news
A recent study released by the National Retail Federation reports that the number of businesses victimized in the past 12 months is up from 79% in 2007 to 85% so far in 2008. More and more businesses are seeing their stolen merchandise popping up for sale in other locations (the internet clearly being one of the most prevalent places).
E-fencing is quickly becoming the primary modus operandi for thieves as they can resell the stolen merchandise anonymously without raising any eyebrows. One of the most important findings is how much "new in box" items are worth to the criminals. These... Read more
Tags: E-Commerce and E-Business, e-fencing, news, organize retial crime, Rebecca Button, retail theft, stolen merchandise, survey
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The Federal Trade Commission announced in a press release today that it will soon be publishing clarifications to the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003. The following topics are to be addressed:
(1) an e-mail recipient cannot be required to pay a fee, provide information other than his or her e-mail address and opt-out preferences, or take any steps other than sending a reply e-mail message or visiting a single Internet Web page to opt out of receiving future e-mail from a sender.
(2) the definition of “sender” was modified to make it easier to determine which of multiple parties advertising in... Read more
Tags: CAN-SPAM, E-Commerce and E-Business, email marketing, law, legal, legislation, Marketing, Marketing Your Business, news, Rebecca Button
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The earthquake tragedy in China is only the most recent example of how harmful disasters can be. Not only are they costly in human lives and sheer destruction but also in the number of businesses that will never open their doors to customers again. Disaster can occur on a smaller scale as well such as burglary, fires, hardware crashes and many more.
A White Paper produced by HP and SCORE reveals that about one-third of all respondents to a survey in the paper said they backup their data rarely, if at all. Most of the rest did it less than... Read more
Tags: advice, Business, china, disaster, earthquake, insurance, news, Rebecca Button, tips
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Published April 28th, 2008
It’s begun. The Great Consumer Schism is effectively working its way through America-an event last experienced in this country in the ’70s. Economic disparity in America is nothing new. But in times of recession the division is inflated and even more apparent as seen through shifts in spending habits. It makes perfect sense of course that middle to lower income households are switching from brand name items to generic in order to save a few bucks.
So what does this mean for retailers? Well, if you sell cheaper products, this is great news! If you sell brand name (and therefore... Read more
Tags: brand name, economy, Generating More Sales, news, Rebecca Button, recession, retail, Sales
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Published April 18th, 2008
It’s almost like that gopher pounding game at the carnival. As soon as you bop one on the head another pops it’s mocking little head out of the hole which you must smash into oblivion…and so on and so forth for what seems like forever. Just as law enforcers find a way to prevent a crime, criminals find another way to commit it. We often stereotype criminals as dumb but in reality, in order to be a successful criminal you have to be smarter than the system that’s designed to keep you from violating it. It’s the nature of the... Read more
Tags: credit card, news, Rebecca Button, retail, scam, tips
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Published April 15th, 2008
Grab your coconut bras and grass skirts and jump on the organic textiles bandwagon! More and more retailers are beginning to cater to green fashion and it would appear that it’s more than just a fad.
The reason for this? One day not long ago some forward thinking entrepreneurs realized that people will spend bucket loads of money on fashion…so why wouldn’t people do the same for organic clothing as well? They looked around and said to themselves "the only organic clothes available look like burlap sacks!" "Ces’t tres horrible! " they gasped in unison, aghast at the utter disaster... Read more
Tags: eco-fashion, fashion, going green, news, organic, Rebecca Button, retail, Starting a Business, trends
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Published March 18th, 2008
There is quite a lengthy article on the Modern Distribution Management website that explores one of the biggest problems the wholesale/retail industry faces — counterfeiting. It sites statistics such as "The Counterfeiting Intelligence Bureau estimates counterfeiting accounts for 5 percent to 7 percent of world trade" and "most counterfeit goods (close to 95 percent) can be traced back to China, according to a report from the International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition."
While counterfeiting is not a new trade by any means, what IS new is how the development of e-commerce has aided in its proliferation. “The Internet has made it possible for... Read more
Tags: counterfeit, E-Commerce and E-Business, fakes, news, Rebecca Button, retail, wholesale, wholesale industry
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Published March 11th, 2008
For years now, consumers have enjoyed the benefits of being able to use their Visas, Mastercards, American Expresses, etc. practically anywhere there are things to buy. Consumers sign up for credit cards to pay off other credit cards and with the ease and accessibility of online shopping, the credit industry is booming.
What consumers don’t know (or didn’t) is that the cozy relationship between merchants and credit card companies, isn’t really all that cozy. Up until now, credit card companies have imposed what is called an "interchange" fee on merchants every time a consumer uses a credit or debit card... Read more
Tags: Accounting, congress, credit card, Finance, Finance and Accounting, legislation, news, Rebecca Button
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Published March 6th, 2008
Here’s some pretty important news straight from the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors . Usually the manufacturer is held liable for product defects but in some cases, the wholesaler can be held liable as well/instead.
Here are some of the specific circumstances where the wholesaler-distributer can be held liable:
Some wholesaler-distributors provide installation, service or repair work as a "value-added" for their customers, which may increase their product liability exposure in the process.
Wholesaler-distributors that modify, repackage or re-label products may assume a greater liability than those who don’t. Modification of the product can include any modification of instructions or warranties.... Read more
Tags: distributor, national association of wholesalet-distributors, news, Product Sourcing, Rebecca Button, wholesale, wholesale products
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Published February 27th, 2008
How awesome is this?
Did you know that every year the National Retail Federation’s conference and expo features the latest advancements toward the stores of the future. The X08 is a "mock store" where buyers can try before they buy. IBM is already trying to incorporate this virtual technology into their business. Their version of the virtual store allows customers to choose from various features and get a nearly complete sense of what they’d be investing in, using 3D technology.
And electronics is just the beginning. A company called Fit Just Right has visions to create a virtual shopping experience... Read more
Tags: 3D technology, news, Rebecca Button, virtual reality, virtual shopping, virtual store, X08
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