Content about Company Technology

By Rafi Musher, rmusher@stax.com

New York -- British retailer Marks & Spencer takes a giant leap forward in its goal of becoming a multichannel leader with the opening of its innovative new concept store in Amsterdam. The centerpiece of the 5,000-sq.-ft. space — which marks M&S’ return to the Netherlands after a 10-year absence — is an “E-Boutique” dedicated to womenswear. The shop features what the retailer calls “the world’s first virtual rail,” a display that seamlessly integrates digital rails with physical rails of clothing samples.

Target’s new “Cartwheel” Facebook shopping app is a great concept – use the world’s most popular social media platform to help generate in-store traffic. But the execution is clunky. It kind of reminds me of the second “Star Wars” trilogy that came out around the turn of the millennium – the back story of Darth Vader was rich with potential, but George Lucas polluted a great dramatic story arc with floppy-eared aliens and lame attempts at political commentary.

Social media giant Facebook is generating lots of buzz with the debut of its app launcher, Facebook Home, which turns existing Android smartphones into a Facebook-centric mobile device. (App launchers are applications that allow users to customize the home screen on their personal devices and add various other functionalities to it.)

The use of mobile devices by sales assistants and other associates presents retailers with new opportunities — and new challenges. Of the latter, one of the most critical has do with managing and maintaining the devices. According to one expert, the help desk can't be expected to do it all.

"Every device needs to be configured and supported and managed in some way," said Alan Dabbiere, chairman of AirWatch, a provider of mobile security and enterprise mobile management, in a presentation at the National Retail Federation Conference & Expo.

Boston -- Research findings released Thursday by mobile-retail marketer Swirl found that a full 76% of women prefer shopping in stores over shopping via their smartphones.

“What Women Want When Apparel Shopping,” which polled 1,000 women shoppers, also revealed that 53% of women have between one and five shopping apps on their smartphones. Yet, still, they opt for the store experience.

New York -- Retailers that deliver on their customers’ expectations and provide them with a seamless shopping experience – whether they are shopping in a store, online or through a mobile device – will win their loyalty and gain a competitive advantage that drives sales, according to new research by Accenture.

Polaroid Fotobar, a new retail concept from Polaroid, has opened its first location, in Delray Beach, Fla. The 2,000-sq.-ft. store is designed to allow consumers to take the images from their smartphones and tablet devices and easily turn them into “museum-quality” art that can be framed and hung on a wall or displayed on a desk. 

Polaroid Fotobar has a modern, streamlined look, with sleek lines. The Delray Beach location will serve as a prototype for nine additional cites due to open this year, including locations in New York, Las Vegas, and Boston.

Consumer use of smartphones and tablets is helping to drive the growth of mobile transactions in retail. Chain Store Age spoke about the growing trend with Don Kingsborough, VP retail services, PayPal, which recorded $14 billion in mobile payments in 2012 and expects to exceed $20 billion this year. According to Kingsborough, PayPal is well-positioned to tap into mobile payment growth as it already has three key elements in place: a large consumer base (55 million-plus in the United States), a network of merchant partners and "ecosystem" partners.

By Mike Poldino, Motorola Solutions

Unless you have recently upgraded your point-of-sale (POS) systems, chances are the bioptic POS in your grocery store today can only scan 1D bar codes printed on the paper labels placed on items or on paper coupons. While that met the needs of yesterday’s POS, times have changed. And in order to provide your customer with the best possible experience at the POS, your POS needs to change too.

Beyond 1D — the new types of bar codes appearing in your POS lanes

New York -- Brands and retailers have the most followed or “Liked” pages on social media, according to WSL/Strategic Retail. Nearly two-thirds (61%) of users who “Fan” social media pages, are choosing to follow brands and retailers -- beating out celebrities and TV shows which are followed by just over half of users.  

The finding was unveiled as part of the company’s Buzz to Buy 3.0 trend report, its third annual survey measuring how the power of Social Media and online information are impacting buying decisions.

Armonk, N.Y. -- IBM announced Wednesday that jewelry chain Signet Jewelers has teamed with IBM on a major e-commerce strategy and digital marketing redesign for Signet's national U.S. store chains, Kay Jewelers and Jared the Galleria of Jewelry.

The initiative has resulted in consistent sales growth, including a year-over-year increase of 49% in online sales as reported in the company's recently announced holiday sales for fiscal 2013.