Sears refutes claims that toy vendor cut off Kmart

The embattled retailer has “always paid our vendors for orders we have placed," CFO Jason Hollar said in a blog post.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 24, 2016

Why Black Friday is losing prominence during the 2016 holiday shopping season

Traditionally the single-biggest sales day of the year, the shopping holiday has morphed into a month-long event — causing retailers to adapt their strategies. 

By Corinne Ruff • Oct. 20, 2016

Explore the Trendline➔

How retailers can win over shoppers during the holidays

Retailers are pulling all the levers to drive loyalty during the industry’s all-important quarter.

By Retail Dive staff

Wet Seal plans pop-up stores for the holidays

The retailer shuttered a third of its stores when it filed for bankruptcy more than a year ago, but leveraging temporary locations could help attract holiday shoppers.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 20, 2016

Why retailers' cybersecurity vulnerabilities could hurt holiday sales

Merchants keep falling prey to cybercrime, but retail executives keep diverting attention and funding elsewhere. The problem is it could cost them customers — in some cases, forever.

By Jason Ankeny • Oct. 19, 2016

Macy's teams up with electronics retailer Brookstone to ignite holiday sales

Brookstone’s merchandise includes tech-enabled pens, wine openers, massage tools and drones — the kinds of items that are especially popular as holiday gifts.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 18, 2016

Report: Macy's to open at 5 p.m. Thanksgiving Day

Macy’s has been open on the holiday since 2014, but is expected to open even earlier at many of its stores, according to retail blog BestBlackFriday.com.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 17, 2016

8 experts predict the 2016 holiday shopping season

Industry forecasters are calling for a merry and bright 2016 holiday season. But is the optimism on target or off-base?

By Jason Ankeny • Oct. 17, 2016

Accenture: Holiday bargain hunters start search at Amazon

Consumers will shop multiple retailers to find the best holiday season prices, and the majority will check Amazon before they go anywhere else.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 13, 2016

Amazon adds toys to Alexa's repertoire in time for holiday shopping

Consumers can now use the Alexa voice-activated virtual assistant software to shop for toys available through Amazon Prime.

By Dan O'Shea • Oct. 13, 2016

Mall operator won't open 72 US shopping centers on Thanksgiving

CBL & Associates Properties credited the decision to feedback from mall employees and retail partners as well as input from shoppers.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 13, 2016

Sears perks up Shop Your Way program ahead of holidays

Members will be privy to a special holiday pricing guarantee and a bonus in-store sales event.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 12, 2016

Why Best Buy is betting big on virtual reality

This holiday season, the electronics retailer is greatly expanding in-store Oculus Rift demonstrations. Is the VR market finally set for explosive growth?

By Dan O'Shea • Oct. 6, 2016

Heading into holidays, Amazon and Google showdown plays out in ads

Google’s announcement of an AI-integrated home assistant yesterday followed Amazon’s launch of an enormous Alexa campaign.

By Peter Adams • Oct. 5, 2016

Kohl's launches mobile payment app ahead of holidays

Kohl's Pay enables the retailer's 25 million branded cardholders to purchase products and apply rewards with their smartphone.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 5, 2016

NRF: Holiday sales poised for modest 3.6% boost

The National Retail Federation and the International Council of Shopping Centers forecast a modest holiday bump, with most of that going to brick-and-mortar retailers.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 5, 2016

PwC: Holiday spending poised to surge 10% over 2015

Holiday retail sales are expected to increase to an average spend of $1,121 per shopper, according to the seasonal forecast.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 4, 2016

Why September is prime time to acquire mobile shoppers for the holidays

Back-to-school shopping season just ended, and the holidays are on the horizon. This quiet period is the perfect time for retailers to make noise on mobile.

By Jason Ankeny • Sept. 27, 2016

How the presidential election is distracting holiday shoppers

This year's highly politicized race is weighing down consumers at a time when retailers hope to capture their attention — and dollars — ahead of the holidays.

By Corinne Ruff • Sept. 26, 2016

Deloitte: Holiday sales to grow by as much as 4%

Digital interactions like social media marketing and mobile activity will help drive an expected 17% to 19% increase in e-commerce sales.

By Daphne Howland • Sept. 22, 2016

Study: Half of consumers will complete holiday shopping by Thanksgiving

More than a quarter of respondents said they’ll be doing most of their holiday shopping even before Nov. 1 — up eight percentage points from 2015.

By Daphne Howland • Sept. 20, 2016

Target hiring more than 75K seasonal workers ahead of holidays

Outplacement firm Challenger, Gray and Christmas anticipates that 2016 seasonal retailer hiring will hold steady in comparison with last year.

By Daphne Howland • Sept. 13, 2016