Retail chain news | BlueMauMau

Investigative News

May Chain-Store Sales Post Gain of 3.2%

Member | BMM | Jun 7 | retail, trends

NEW YORK – U.S. chain-store sales posted a gain of 3.2 percent for the fiscal month of May on a year-over-year basis, the strongest gain since January's 4.5%, according to a tally of comparable-store sales compiled by the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC.)

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Hyundai Tops 2013 in Engaging Brand Loyalty

Member | Don Sniegowski | Mar 20 | retail

Technology: Hyundai BlueLink indicators in the rear view mirror

Hyundai Bluelink telecommunication indicators in rear view mirror. photo/Hyundai

NEW YORK — Hyundai is ranked tops by consumers when it comes to automobile brand loyalty, according to an annual survey.

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Weather, Sequestration Drag Retail Sales in February

Member | BMM | Mar 7 | retail, trends

NEW YORK — Retail chain stores in the United States posted a modest gain of 1.7 percent for the fiscal month of February on a year-over-year basis, according to a tally of comparable-store sales compiled by the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC).

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True Value Tops Store-Owner Chains in Loyalty

Member | Don Sniegowski | Feb 22 | retail

True Value employee serves a customer

NEW YORK — The True Value brand is ranked among the best brands when it comes to consumer perception of trustworthiness in the home improvement retailing sector.

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Think Your Profit Margins Are Bad? You Could be a Gas Station Dealer

Member | Don Sniegowski | Feb 20 | retail

What gas station dealers make on $50 of gas sales

Chart: SageWorks, Inc. Data: U.S. Department of Energy

NEW YORK CITY — Financial information firm SageWorks points out despite the high price of gas, just how little gas station dealers (franchisees) make on pumping gas compared to all other types of private companies.

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Valentine’s Shoppers Procrastinate

Member | BMM | Feb 9 | food, retail, trends

Valentine's Day Gift Purchases

Data: The NPD Group/SnackTrack Holidays Valentine's Day Profile

CHICAGO — Seventy-eight percent of shoppers will not begin to shop for Valentine's Day until at least a week before, finds a recent survey by market researchers The NPD Group .

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Retailers Report Strong January Sales Despite Payroll Tax Rise

Member | BMM | Feb 8 | retail

NEW YORK — In further evidence that the economy's private sector is gaining steam, U.S. chain-store retailers sizzled in January, posting a gain of 4.5% compared to last year.

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Convenience Store Traffic Declines in Third Quarter

Member | BMM | Dec 19 | retail

HOUSTON — Total consumer traffic through convenience stores (c-stores) was down 2.1 percent in the third quarter (July, August and September) of 2012 compared to the same quarter last year

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Convenience Store Visits Stable While Channel Sales Increase in Q2

Member | BMM | Aug 23 | retail

A 7-Eleven in New York City

A 7-Eleven in New York City. photo/ps

HOUSTON —Convenience store visits were stable while total channel sales were up in the second calendar quarter of 2012 compared to same time period of a year ago.

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Convenience Stores Hold Out on Interchange Settlement

Member | BMM | Jul 25 | retail

Visa MasterCard settlement

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Visa, MasterCard and major banks announced on July 13 that they had entered a memorandum of agreement to pay $7.25 billion to settle a seven-year lawsuit with retailers and merchants over card swipe fees.

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Headlines from the 'Net

Billionaire Franchisee to Sell 49% of 7-Eleven Operation

Reporter | Janet Sparks | May 29 | retail

Franchisee Vincent Tan, Malaysian’s ninth-richest person, is looking to sell 49% of his 7-Eleven Malaysian franchise, which operates more than 1,300 convenient stores, generating revenue of US$432.8 million.

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NADA: Economic Momentum Grows in 2013

Reporter | BMM | Feb 25 | retail, trends

Chief economist of the National Automobile Dealers Association Paul Taylor foresees sales momentum for new cars and lights trucks to grow more in 2013.

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Consumer Bureau Said to Warn Banks of Auto Lending Suits

Expert | Jeff Sovern | Feb 22 | retail

Here. The first two sentences say:

The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has told at least four banks that it may sue them over vehicle loans and interest-rate markups by auto dealers that appear discriminatory, according to three people briefed on the matter.

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Dish to Shutter 300 Blockbuster Locations

Reporter | Janet Sparks | Jan 23 | retail

In the next few weeks, Dish Network Corp plans to close approximately 300 underperforming Blockbuster stores, resulting in 3000 employees losing their jobs. After the closures, Blockbuster will be left with only 500 locations in the U.S., 26 in Colorado where it is headquartered.

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IslandTime Treasures Expands to Hawaii

Member | Lonnie Helgerson | Jan 22 | franchising, pr, retail, service

Much like Build-a-Bear Workshop® - IslandTime Treasures provides a truly unforgettable experience with a unique and entertaining hands-on sand crafting experience for

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Army Chaplain Opens IslandTime Treasures Location in Charlotte

Member | Lonnie Helgerson | Jan 10 | franchising, pr, retail

Much like Build-a-Bear Workshop® - IslandTime Treasures provides a truly unforgettable experience with a unique and entertaining hands-on sand crafting experience for

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NADA Reports Dealerships Up

Reporter | BMM | Sep 11 | retail

According to a study issued by the National Automotive Dealers Association, car dealerships finally grew in number – 66 in the first quarter of 2012.

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Dealer Seeks Return of Chrysler Franchise

Reporter | Don Sniegowski | Aug 12 | legal, retail

A Chevy at a California Barbeque, photo by Thomas Hawk

A Chevy at a California barbeque diner, photo: Thomas Hawk

A terminated car franchisee in Billings, Montana seeks to use state auto franchise laws to get its franchise back. That's almost inconceivable in other franchise sectors.

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Retailers Expect Back to School Boost

Reporter | BMM | Aug 5 | retail, trends

Retailers say sales jumped in July, some up as much as ten percent. As CBS News' Rebecca Jarvis reports, stores expect bigger numbers this year for the back-to-school shopping season.

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Brumby’s Boss Resigns Over Carbon Tax Gaffe

Australia | Ray Borradale | Jul 8 | op-ed, retail

While all Australians are now being ripped off by the introduction of a ‘carbon tax’, business has been warned not to use the tax as an excuse to hike up prices unless they can back it up and definitely do not blame the federal government for price hikes.

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Expert Advice

Supply Chain is Kicking, Taking Aim at Merchandising

Expert | Nikki Baird | Jun 5 | retail

Nikki Baird's picture

Before the Memorial Day weekend, I had the pleasure of spending the week with Manhattan Associates and its customers at Manhattan Momentum in Las Vegas. I have two major take-aways from the event.

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Four Big Cross Channel Questions

Expert | Nikki Baird | May 7 | retail

Nikki Baird's picture

Last week I fielded an inquiry about the biggest questions retailers are asking in cross-channel right now, and I figured the answer was worth sharing.

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EMV, NFC & Mobile: Opportunities or Disasters for US Retailers?

Expert | Nikki Baird | May 1 | retail

Nikki Baird's picture

Last week I attended the CARTES North America conference. It is an event focused more directly on credit card issuers and the technologies that support them. So what was I doing there?

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