The Woes of Sears in Photos

Posted on October 21, 2013 by bermanevansretail
For quite a while now, Sears and its sister chain Kmart have trending downward. Part of this has been due to the effects of the recession. But another part of the problem has been  the lack of investment to keep the stores up to date and visually appealing.
With that in mind, click on the image below to see “18 Depressing Photos That Show Why Nobody Wants To Shop At Sears,” as shown by Yahoo! Finance.

 

Photo by Brian Sozzi/Belus Capital Advisors

 

Post suggested by Patrick Socci, Zarb School of Business, Hofstra University.

 

Posted in Part 1: Overview/Planning, Part 2: Ownership, Strategy Mix, Online, Nontraditional, Part 3: Targeting Customers and Gathering Information, Part 5: Managing a Retail Business, Part 6: Merchandise Management and Pricing, Part 7: Communicating with the Customer | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Seating for 5,000? West Lake Restaurant in China

Posted on October 20, 2013 by bermanevansretail
For those of us accustomed to dining out in a typically sized restaurant, seating for 250 or 500 people may make a restaurant seem massive.
So, how about these statistics for the West Lake Chinese Restaurant in Changsha, China? The restaurant was started in 2000 by Qin Lingzhi, who borrowed $10,000 to do so:
  • Nearly 950,000 square feet
  • Seating for 5,000 
  • A staff of more than 1,000, including 300 chefs
Click on the image to access an eye-opening Businessweek slideshow.

 

 

Posted in Global Retailing, Part 2: Ownership, Strategy Mix, Online, Nontraditional, Part 3: Targeting Customers and Gathering Information, Part 4: Store Location Planning, Part 5: Managing a Retail Business, Part 6: Merchandise Management and Pricing | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Manfluencer: Another New Term for the Retailing Dictionary

Posted on October 18, 2013 by bermanevansretail
We have written about the important topic of the shopping behavior of men versus women several times before. See, for example, 1, 2, 3, 4.  Now, let’s add another post to our collection — because this is such a timely and significant aspect of retailing.
Consider these observations by Anne Marie Chaker, writing for the Wall Street Journal:
“Food makers, including giants Kraft Foods Group and General Mills, eager for any potential new sales, are trying to win over men. Research indicates men are doing a greater share of the grocery shopping and meal preparation. In a June survey of 900 meat-eating men ages 18 to 64, 47% were deemed ‘manfluencers’ by Midan Marketing, a Chicago market research group focused on the meat industry. Manfluencers are responsible for at least half of the grocery shopping and meal preparation for their households.”
“Food company executives hope more men shopping means new opportunities for foods some men have traditionally shied away from in this country, including yogurt and hard cider. The changes are often cosmetic: larger portions or darker color schemes instead of recipes on the backs of packages. Yogurt for men is radically different from the yogurt women buy. The label is black.”
Click the image for a WSJ video clip on this topic.

 

Posted in Part 1: Overview/Planning, Part 3: Targeting Customers and Gathering Information, Part 6: Merchandise Management and Pricing, Part 7: Communicating with the Customer | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment