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Arlington, Va. -- The Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) issued the following statement in response to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) employer mandate proposed rules filed Wednesday in the Federal Register.

San Antonio -- The grocery industry, for the most part, lags in using online shopper insights for shopper and competitive advantage, according to a study developed in partnership with BeaconUnited, a national grocery broker, and ArchPoint Consulting, and powered by business intelligence firm Black Pearl Intelligence. Grocery-related social media conversations are now estimated at 10 million annually, yet many grocers are still slow to respond, the study found.

New York -- Hennes & Mauritz AB has cut a deal to open in Manhattan’s Times Square, the New York Post reported.

According to the report, H&M will move into the three-floor, 42,510-sq.-ft. space at 4 Times Square that was previously occupied by the restaurant ESPN Zone. The space, which has been vacant for some two years, includes two huge billboards that wrap above the store’s facade along Broadway and West 42nd Street.

First, who said technology coverage has little to do with retail real estate commentary?

And second, who said the Millennials aren’t wise beyond their years?

For the record, I never said either.

For Valentine’s Day, mall owner General Growth Properties has challenged shoppers to power up their mobile devices to “search for the love” at a GGP mall. Effective Feb. 1, customers began entering the Where Is the Love? sweepstakes by finding and scanning love-themed QR codes hidden throughout participating GGP malls.

Redwood Shores, Calif. -- Cross-channel shopping is the new norm: Fifty-four percent of consumers regularly employ two or more channels before they make a purchase, according to a new study by Oracle.
 
The report, “Cross-Channel Commerce: The Consumer View,” reveals that consumers expect a consistent experience across all channels. Nearly 20% expect to redeem the same coupons and promotions in stores and online.

Bentonville, Ark. -- Walmart chief merchandising officer Duncan Mac Naughton expressed optimism about the retailer’s prospects for the holiday season and beyond during comments at a Bentonville Bella Vista Chamber of Commerce meeting with attracted more than 500 people. The function was held on Tuesday.

New York City -- An overwhelming majority (72%) of U.S. consumers expect their holiday spending to be “careful” or “controlled” in 2011, according to Accenture’s annual consumer holiday shopping study. Discounts, sales and prices are still top of mind this holiday, with 40% of consumers saying an item being on sale is the single most important factor in their decision to purchase.

New York City -- Fifteen percent of Web searches on Black Friday will be done on mobile devices, according to a study by Google’s AdMob.

Reston, Va. -- Survey results released Monday by ComScore showed that approximately 6.2% of 14 million mobile phone users have scanned a quick response or bar code on their mobile device.

Among 14,452 users surveyed in that have scanned a QR or bar code, 58% of them scanned a code at home, while 39.4% and 24.5% of respondents have scanned codes at a retail store or grocery store, respectively. As far as what they scanned, 49.4% said they scanned a QR or bar code found in a newspaper or magazine, while 35.3% scanned product packaging.

Teen apparel retailer rue21 is celebrating the opening of its 700th store, in New Braunfels, Texas. The chain is on track to open 110 locations this year.

Commented president and CEO Bob Fisch: “We remain one of the fastest growing retailers in the nation. I would like to thank our real estate, construction and field teams and recognize their hard work, which allows us to celebrate another significant milestone for rue21."

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Fort Worth, Texas -- Pier 1 Imports said Thursday its same-store sales rose 10.2% in the first quarter, helped by better traffic, more purchases being made and a higher average receipt. The retailer also gave a first-quarter earnings forecast above Wall Street's expectations.

Total revenue for the period ended May 28 climbed 10% to $335 million from $306 million.