2012

Hells Gate in British Columbia is a tourist attraction in Fraser Canyon, apart for being an awesome place to visit, they also have some interesting merchandising ideas in their shop. They use wooden boxes with flair. I like the idea and many retailers could do a similar thing

It is the fourth of July I time when Americans love to shop. In fact Politicians are encouraging them to shop. But what are they really doing this 4th of July? They are barbecuing rather than shopping! The average American will spend $191 on the celebration, down from $216 last year according to research carried

According to Scarborough research on July 2nd 2012. This is what Americans have been doing around their home in the last twelve months. 27% Gardening and landscaping 26% Painting and wallpapering inside their home 13% Carpeting and flooring 12% Remodelling the bathroom 10% Painting the outside of the house The garden industry may be concerned

The USA retailers are more confident than I have seen them in some time. They feel the consumer is starting to spend again and that the future will see an improvement in the economy …. time will tell. Working with retailers it is becoming increasingly clear that the lack of product knowledge training is affecting

Fred owns an independent music store in St John’s Newfoundland From the outside it dares to be different, it stands out from the crowd. Each CD has a had written sign from Fred or one of the team telling the consumer what the writer thinks about the CD and music. He has new and second

Take a walk past an Apple store before the store opens and you may see the team adjusting the products before the doors are opened. Except they are not just tidying the store up. They are adjusting the iPad’s to the correct angle ….. to help you see the screen … wrong! To force you

Father Day arrives in USA and new research shows the changing habits of the consumer. The National retail federation in the USA has been carrying our t spending for Fathers day. It used to be that dad got a power tool or some other manly present,but that is all changing. The experience driven gift market

Travelling around the hills of Ontario at present in Canada. It is strawberry time and it is wonderful to see seasonal retailing in action. Many retailers have lost the art of seasonal retailing and the excitement that can create in the marketplace. Providing anticipation for the customer can help generate the marketing hype. Farm retailers

Retailers seem to be doing it tough and there seems no light at the end of the tunnel. What do they need to do to grow sales? Look at many retailers and their approach is to reduce the price, but how long can this go on for? Working in the USA, Canada and Australia over

Over the last few months I have been promoting the importance of a “Bricks and Clicks” strategy in your business. This does not just apply to retail stores it also applies to magazines. Australians are the biggest buyers of magazines in the world but that industry is changing as well. Pick up a copy of