The Power of Retail

Besides reading, I’ve also been getting back to another old favorite pastime of mine…arts and crafts. With our last move, I ended up losing all of my craft supplies, and I never had time to start collecting all the things again. In the past few months, I have really begun to enjoy spending time on creating fun stuff and have spent time online looking for the right supplies, such as the right paper, airbrush tools and so on. Now what I have to do is get a shelving unit to store all these items and to ensure that I don’;t lose them in the next move, whenever that might be!

Border’s new concept store in Texas opened in Allen. The store is spread across two floors and has several interactive features on offer in the travel, wellness, cooking and other sections. There is a large mural on three walls in the children’s section done by Colin Thompson, which is a definite look at even if you don’t have your kids along. The store has a large section on Manga comics and has a large consumer electronics section, which was put in after the company conducted research on that their customers wanted. So now, consumers will be able to burn their own CDs, create audio books and learn the art of making picture books. There is also a self-publishing kiosk at the store.

Admit it, there’s nothing like having salon hair all the time, isn’t there? For a lot of people, it’s a nice treat to go to a salon and have your hair done professionally, but it can never be often enough right. the next best thing is having the professional tools at home, so you can create the look yourself. Don’t panic, it’s a lot easier than it sounds, so instead of having visions of burnt and frazzled hair, think how amazing it would look once you used a pink flat iron to create a salon styled look!

I think it’s a great way to replicate the styles, and where at one time all professional products were made only for use by professionals, these flat irons are made to be used be regular people at home, and are really simple to handle. We’ve all had the run of the mill styling products that look so generic, but with these pink flat irons, your hair is sure to get a bit of pizazz and end up looking fabulous.

Since these products are made with the finest products and latest technology, they are very easy to use and handle even for novices. The newer design of these flat irons means that there is a limited strain on the hands and wrists during use, which will be an added bonus from all the use that you going to put it through!

I’ve been looking for a new cell phone and am getting thoroughly confused as to what all options I must have and which are the ones that I’m OK without. It’s not been an easy ride, I tell you, since the things that cell phones have these days keep changing by the minute it seems and just as I decide on one, I learn something about another new cell phone which is said to be the next best thing and so it continues.

Here’s a cartoon from bLaugh.com that illustrates it perfectly!

Ever since I took up an interest in photography, I have started to notice things that I’d never even seen before. Maybe I did see the things, but they did not have an impact on me like they do now. My mind has become more curious about how to photograph things in a different way, how to capture them best, how to make ugly things look beautiful and so on. It certainly is a very interesting and time consuming past time.

Here is a shot that I took last month. It’s a simple shot, but I loved the way the colors came together and complemented each other.

Walmart and JCPenney’s new lines of furniture, Canopy and Linden Street are not well known or branded products, but they are all the same targeting the customers who shop at branded stores such as Pottery Barn and Ikea. Walmart mailed its shoppers a catalog of 33 pages detailing its line of products of the Canopy line, which also has it’s own website at www.canopyliving.com. As a competitive move, all items that are shipped to Walmart stores will have free shipping. With this new brand, the company is hoping to create a different feel and look for its customers. The Walmart name or brand does not appear on the website unless you really go and dig for it, which is an intended move.

JCPenney on the other hand, created its new brand Linden Street, as it realized that its customers were going in for the simpler designs in furniture, bedding and window dressings. Consumers were more interested in everyday furniture, that focused on function and form first and only then fashion, but nothing that was too ornate.

Even before the housing downturn put home furnishings retailers in a spiral, Americans were migrating to a more casual style and lower prices for furniture. Penney’s and Wal-Mart’s moves signal a recognition that the furniture industry has to “find ways to attract a new generation,” said Jerry Epperson, a longtime furniture analyst for investment banking firm Mann, Armistead & Epperson.

“They aren’t going to do it selling $5,000 to $10,000 dining room and bedroom suites,” he said. “Younger people are buying items, not suites, and they want them to be practical and functional.” Smaller living spaces, younger households and the desire for everything to be both functional and fashionable have led consumers to ready-to-assemble furniture and modestly priced pieces that will move from first apartment to family room.

One of the most fun things that one can buy in the summer are nice summer sandals. Nothing quite like declaring summer, but showing off your tippy toes, isn’t it? I try to buy a couple of new sandals each season, so that I get my shoe buying fix and update my wardrobe. Lately, I’ve been rather impressed with Ecco shoes, a brand that I’ve never worn before. Their products are really great quality and have a nice understated elegance to them, nothing too flashy or crass at all. Agreed, they are known more for their comfort than their styles or fashion forwardness, but they are great shoes for anyone who has to spend a lot of time on their feet.

Kids love to be able to design their own clothes, and now a retailer has come up with the very same idea in a workable manner. Springwise reports that Fashionology LA, a Beverly Hills store is allowing its teen customers to design their own clothes, by selecting from a several designs as inspiration and then selecting what they would like to make of it, using the touch screen Design pads. They will also be able to select a mood suhc as Pop, Rock, Peace, Malibu or Juku, select the embellishments they would like to be on the garment and so on.

Once the design process is complete, you head to the U-Bar where an inhouse Fashionologist will use a heat press and add the design elements to the garment. Once ready, the customer can put on the garment and be photographed in it and if she agrees, the photo will be shown on the stores 70inch screen and also be emailed to her so she can share her new look with her friends. The cost of the process costs from USD 20-90 depending on what item you pick and how elaborate the design is.

Sears is working hard to change its image and has teamed up with MTV to create a new back-to-school movie and will be adding to its line of street clothing and accessories that are designed by LL Cool J. The company has been redoing its image for quite some time now, trying to change people from thinking that all it sold was hardware, but sales have not been all that great and the so the company is trying to woo the young and the urban hip with this new line of clothing and branding.

According to Sears CMO, Richard Gerstein, “While mom may decide what the acceptable place is to shop, the kids are deciding what clothes they want and what places have it. If we come out of our season with much more relevance with this group, and improving our sales and profitability with this group, we think it’s a big win.” No one is sure whether these new initiatives will turn the tide for the company and rejuvenate its image and it will be interesting to watch.

…Some industry observers said they don’t believe Sears has the credibility to compete in the increasingly crowded teen market. Nor are they sure whether this latest effort will yield more success than previous initiatives aimed at bringing back shoppers.

“Trying to be everything to everybody is difficult because consumers have so many choices,” said Morningstar analyst Kim Picciola. “If they can manage to reinvent themselves, I think it will be a big win for them. But I think that’s going to be a challenge in this current environment.”

Walmart is no longer Wal-Mart! Yes, that’s right, the hyphen is gone, as is the star in the middle and it has been replaced by an organic looking flower at the end instead. Walmart has changed its logo several times before as well, and the last time was in 1992. This change was long overdue, since it had started looking very dated. The new logo will appear on stores by the fall, but is already coming in new print advertisements and TV commercials so consumers are getting quite familiar with it already.