Consumer Packaged Goods

Major Carriers Forecast Significant Growth in Holiday Shipping Volume

November 7, 2016

UPS, FedEx and the U.S. Postal Service are all projecting major growth in holiday shipping volume during the peak season, driven by the continued boom in ecommerce activity. UPS, for example, is projecting 700 million deliveries between Thanksgiving and the end of the year, a 14 percent increase over 2015.

Executives Claim Election Season Is Negatively Affecting Sales

November 7, 2016

The New York Times

The coming election will give the United States new lawmakers and a new president. But what does it mean for fast food, leisure cruises and bulldozers? As the nation's bitter, bizarre campaign season builds to its November conclusion, companies across a range of industries are using the election as a data point - sometimes as an excuse - to explain what's happening in their business.

Staying Alive in an Ever-Changing Retail Landscape

November 7, 2016

Robert J. Bowman, SupplyChainBrain

The traditional holiday shopping season is shaping up to be a microcosm of the big changes that are roiling retailers every day.

Consumer Spending Rebounds With Biggest Jump Since June

November 4, 2016

Los Angeles Times

Consumer spending rebounded strongly in September, rising the most in three months as incomes also improved, the Commerce Department said this week. The 0.5 percent jump in personal consumption expenditures provided momentum for a key driver of the U.S. economy heading into the year's final quarter and could push the Federal Reserve closer to another small interest rate hike.

Why Retail Today Is About Data and Experiences

November 3, 2016

Apparel

If retail advisor Doug Stephens is to be believed, the term "store" someday will be remembered as a relic of the Industrial Revolution as our culture and technology enable transactions virtually anywhere, thanks to socially integrated buy buttons, mobile commerce and more. We've already seen a shift in the language of retail away from "stores" to "physical retail spaces," which Stephens told attendees at September's SAP Retail Forum is a better way to describe how retailers should think about their businesses as commerce channels proliferate.

Coates Group Deploys B2B Virtual Reality Tool

November 3, 2016

RIS News

Digital merchandising software company Coates Group has launched a virtual reality (VR) tool from a B2B perspective, allowing brands to physically see and develop new digital hardware and content within their own virtual store.

U.S. Commerce Department Reports Fall in Durable Goods Orders

November 3, 2016

CFO

U.S. durable goods orders fell in September, confirming another weak quarter for business spending, but core capital goods showed some signs of a recovery. The Commerce Department said orders for items meant to last three years decreased $0.3bn, or 0.1 percent, to $227.3bn in September, following a 0.3 percent increase in August.

U.S. Trade Continues Decline Despite Economic Growth

November 3, 2016

The New York Times

The constant flow of goods from Asia to the United States was briefly interrupted last month after Hanjin, the South Korean shipping line, filed for bankruptcy, stranding several dozen of its cargo ships on the high seas. It was a moment that made literal the stagnation of globalization.

Millennials Want Companies to Adopt New Identity Verification Approaches

November 2, 2016

MultiChannel Merchant

When it comes to sharing personal information, millennials are reluctant. There is a gap between millennials wanting to secure access on all connected devices and their willingness to sharing data, according to a study by Lexis Nexis Risk Solutions. This could be a wake-up call for businesses to find solutions that minimize the amount of data they have to collect.

Omni-Channel Strategy Is Central to Retailers' Success During Holiday Season, Researchers Say

November 2, 2016

ChainLink Research

Serendipitously, Christmas and Chanukah fall at the same time this year, which may mean less pain for retail logisticians aiming to get all those packages to customers on time - and to recognize 2016 revenue. And this promises to be a pretty good year for retailers: According to the NRF, retail sales should grow 3.4 percent this year.