Author Profile

As part of Foot Locker's ongoing platform with Nike, the new digital experience online offers live design sessions, shopping, trivia and more, while a new partnership with Rock the Vote will bring a digital hub for voter information to stores.

For the third year in a row, RIS has been honored for its B2B website risnews.com in the prestigious Eddie & Ozzie Awards, which celebrate editorial and design excellence in print and online publishing.

As consumers change how they shop during the pandemic, the clothing rental retailer is restructuring its memberships and bringing a key feature of its physical drop-off boxes online. Get the details.

RIS takes a deep dive into the current and future states of resale, rental and subscription/membership models and how they are revolutionizing retail in 2020 and beyond.

Retailers have beefed up e-commerce capabilities in anticipation of a monster holiday selling season online. The best way to avoid a tsunami of returns is to be proactive and use technology like AI and analytics to spot trends and fix problems before they get out of control. Here’s how.

RIS scours the data available to give you a peek at what 2020’s holiday peak season will look like.

One benefit to the postponed EMV liability deadline: It’s a major opportunity to get the most bang for your buck — and meet new customer needs — by upgrading to the most modern automated fuel dispenser (AFD) technology. Learn how this tech helps retailers capitalize on a major consumer trend.

Amazon has launched a new luxury shopping experience available to Prime members by invitation only. Learn how Luxury Stores will use retail technolgy to create a new online experience and what the first Oscar de la Renta store will offer.

Ikea has announced it will open its first second-hand Ikea store. Find out what it will be selling and why.

Bankrupt JCPenney is being rescued by mall owners Simon and Brookfield, while off-price pioneer Century 21 Stores is calling it quits.

Lululemon reported a better-than-expected second quarter as it built a seamless shopping experience for both store and e-commerce shoppers amid COVID-19 concerns. Uncover the four ways it did this and the tech it's investing in to keep the momentum going.

On the heels of a Q2 beat, The Michaels Companies plans to hire over 16,000 seasonal positions to strengthen its buy-online, pickup in-store (BOPIS) team. Hear what the retailer had to say about its upcoming quarter and 353% e-commerce growth.

Whole Foods Market has opened its first permanent store dedicated solely to fulfilling online orders. See inside the new retail format closed to customers.

After months of speculation, Walmart has finally lifted the veil on its new membership program Walmart+. Uncover the launch date, benefits, and how it rivals Amazon’s Prime program.

Ulta Beauty posted record e-commerce growth and launched new digital technology, including a new chatbot, service-booking tool, and updated GLAMlab capabilities in its Q2. Learn how Ulta is meeting the needs of beauty shoppers during the health crisis.

As your customers get ready for a new school year, they’re going to be looking for — and giving priority to — retailers who make a personal connection while making them feel safe.

Dick’s Sporting Goods posted its highest quarterly sales and earnings ever, as more people spent time exercising outdoors and at home, and its e-commerce sales exploded 194%. Learn why president Lauren Hobart says curbside contactless pickup is a business that's “here to stay.”

Amazon has opened its first namesake grocery store, Amazon Fresh, in Woodland Hills, CA, and, as you’d expect, it’s packed with retail innovation. See videos, photos and more of the freshest new store in town.

Foot Locker has opened its first West Coast community-based Power Store in Compton, CA. See what the new 12,800-square-foot location offers shoppers and the community.

Best Buy's online sales skyrocketed 242% in its second quarter. Hear the three ways Best Buy believes the pandemic has permanently effected retail and how it is responding -- from piloting a ship-from-store hub model, to beefing up mobile and curbside capabilities.

Bed Bath & Beyond said it has reduced its corporate and retail store workforce by approximately 2,800 roles, effective immediately, as part of an organizational realignment. Get the details.

Lord & Taylor and its owner, fashion rental subscription company Le Tote, continue to review offers for a sale of the country’s oldest department store retailer, as it announces more store closings. Find out which stores have joined the growing list.

BJ’s Wholesale Club has launched contactless curbside pickup service at all of its 219 stores nationwide, beefing up its fulfillment options to serve new, younger and more digitally-engaged members. Find out how BJ’s plans to keep up the pace of 300% digitally-enabled sales growth.

As consumers made less trips to stores and invested in home improvement, both Lowe’s and The Home Depot benefited with impressive comparable sales in their 2020 second quarters, and both attributed investments in retail technology to their success.

Target’s comparable sales broke its record, skyrocketing 24.3% in its second quarter 2020, and the retailer said physical stores were the key to this explosive growth, including an enormous spike in digital.

Walmart’s e-commerce spiked 97% as consumers spent stimulus checks, ate at home, and invested in their homes. Hear about the retailer’s outstanding quarter and what it expects in the coming months as the health crisis continues to upend retail.

Clothing subscription company Rent the Runway is pulling out of its retail stores, while department store chain Selfridges has said it is looking to try out new retail models including rental, resell and repair. Find out how both retailers are reimagining their retail models.

Retail sales rose 1.2% in July, after jumping 8.4% in June, below economists’ forecasts. Uncover what categories saw a jump and what to expect moving forward.

The Coach, Kate Spade and Stuart Weitzman parent company reported a narrower-than-expected loss and acquired nearly 1 million new customers across North America through its digital channels. Find out how and the retail tech the three are investing in to continue to capture digital shoppers.

Apparel Retailer Ralph Lauren took the top spot in this fourth annual e-commerce report. Find out which retailers joined the apparel retailer on the list and the Top 10 Fastest Loading Retail Sites.

Canadian Tire Corporation saw online sales skyrocket, but it wasn’t enough to offset a loss from store closures. Hear how the retailer is investing in its digital experience moving forward.

There’s no doubt this may be the strangest back to school season on record. As class supply lists hit parents’ inboxes, many are still debating if they will even send their children into the classroom this fall. However, as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to threaten the normalcy of purchasing paper and pencils, there’s still time for retailers to ramp up their back to school promotions.

Wayfair saw “unprecedented demand” and “record numbers of new and repeat customers” in its second quarter of 2020, as shoppers turned to improving their homes during the pandemic and shopping online. Hear what CEO Niraj Shah has to say about e-commerce adoption going forward.

The back-to-school buying season is here, and both parents and retailers are preparing for an unprecedented, unpredictable event that won’t look anything like the sales of the past. To successfully connect with customers, retailers will have to dig deeper into a few key trends.

Two more retailers have joined the growing list of retail casualties from the pandemic. Learn more about the bankruptcy filings of Lord & Taylor, one of America’s oldest department stores, and its owner rental clothing company Le Tote, and Tailored Brands, the parent company of Men’s Wearhouse and Jos. A. Banks.

As shoppers clamor for digital payments solutions from retailers, uncover how CVS Pharmacy will offer its customers a touch-free way to complete their purchases in stores.

Seven & I Holdings will acquire Speedway from Marathon Petroleum Corp. for $21 billion along with approximately 3,900 Speedway convenience stores. Learn how the move will support convenience chain 7 Eleven’s growth strategy.