Justin Bieber Doll to Save Retail?

Well its that time of the year to look at what presents will be the hottest to buy. With the crazy advertising going on this year because of the push to save the industry through holiday sales, the turnout for Black Friday is going to be crazier than ever. This yea, there are so many great deals that it would be crazy not to be able to find the cheapest price.

What is absolutely crazy about this year is that a Justin Bieber doll is suppose to raise the retail industry by a quarter this season. Now, I am not to judge what people like to listen to music wise, but a Justin Bieber doll is really that popular? Apparently books and other dolls just do not match up. I must say it is brilliant marketing done by the 16 year old's publicist. He already has completely taken over Itunes so why not the economy. At a young age he learning this market very well.

By: Ariel Levin

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/blog-post/2010/11/black_friday_shopping_tips_for.html

Time to "Twist and Shout": Beatles Now on iTunes

Steve Jobs and Apple announced on Tuesday that the Beatles would finally appear on iTunes. Terms of the deal between Apple and the record lable EMI Group, Ltd. have still not been released, but the talks have happened. Apple now has the right to digitalize the Fab Four and sell their music online.

The Beatles' entrance into the realm of iTunes could be "Hello" for some and "Goodbye" for others in the industry of music retail. For one, it completely solidifies the prominence of online music. The fact that the Beatles had been missing from iTunes before meant that there was a great gap in the digital music system. Now that iTunes has said "goodbye" to that gap, it can really start to take a hold of the music business.

Over the past few years, online music selling has very quickly become the primary form of music retail, and the fact that that retail now includes the Beatles only makes the online market stronger. It may even represent a step in the direction toward the death of the CD, and, therefore, physical music retail stores. As more and more artists finally go digital, there are fewer and fewer reasons to go out and buy CDs. Any retailers that sell CDs, from Best Buy to small record stores, will suffer from this digitalization.

This transition could also mean big things for Apple in general. The Beatles are an older group and draw from an older population of fans. The fact that they are now available online may encourage those of an older generation to jump on the iPod bandwagon. Incorporating such a groundbreaking band will open awareness and spread Apple products across more generations.

Apple is likely to see a large boom in sales when the Beatles finally go on the market. Everyone has been waiting for this for a long time and they will be eager to begin buying every song imaginable. There will suddenly be so many popular songs available at once, and sales will rise accordingly. Some may even buy their first iPods because of the fact that the Beatles are now available.

As for music retail, the online trend is becoming more and more common, and it is becoming more and more difficult for anyone to compete with Apple in that category.


Sources: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703326204575617004052395816.html

http://www.appolicious.com/finance/articles/3991-with-the-beatles-now-on-itunes-the-album-format-is-no-longer-yesterday

Catherine Reeves

Game over… Continue?

U.S retail sales of video game hardware (consoles like Xbox), software (actual titles) and accessories summed $1.07 billion in October compared to $1.11 last year. Year to date sales stood at $11.07 billion, an 8% decrease from last year.

Moreover, hardware sales went down 26% to $280 million from $381 million last year. Both Nintendo and Sony were unable to sell as many consoles in the past two years, while Microsoft has actually increased unit sales of its console, Xbox, by 30% to 325,000 units.

Meanwhile, game software sales increased by 6% to $605 million. This figure does not include the latest record shattering release of Call of Duty: Black Ops, which holds the record of the highest release day sales with a shocking figure of $360 million.

Video games have always seemed a small niche market to many people, yet such figures clearly make this industry a lot more significant than the image of teenagers passing time in the basement. At a time where many people have little to spend on leisure, video games actually seem to hold strong sales. Perhaps with the advancement of technology multiplayer gaming is replacing other social activities.
Although quite expensive at first, video games offer a higher bang for the buck than many other pastime activities such as going to the movies when a ticket costs $12.

Obviously the slump in overall sales can be attributed to the lack of new products along with the ongoing affects of the recession, which continue to prevent people from spending money on unnecessary goods.

Video games will continue to revenue enormous sums of money in these troubled times in the retail industry as even the worried consumer can’t say a to a determined kid with the latest & greatest video game on his Christmas list…

Article source: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gHaDv9mvelX2WsRRERcGrlQcsgBQ?docId=9c5894761e3442c79954705ad7ea46e1

Written by Michael Milner

Free Shipping...YES!

Electronic retailer, Best Buy Co., plans to offer costumers free online shipping for certain items until December. 21. Wal-Mart made a similar decision earlier in the month. Best Buy will offer free shipping for hundreds of thousands of items “including all CDs, Blu-Ray and DVD movies and gaming software and accessories”. However, products with heavy demand and values like iPads, laptop computers and major appliances will not be included in this deal. In fact, many retailers are starting to present consumers with free shipping as the holidays approach. Wal-Mart plans to have 60,000 online items with free shipping while Target this season will have the same deal for over 800,000 products on orders of at least $50.

In recent months, Best Buy has faced a steady stream of competition from Wal-Mart and other discounters. However, the company has still managed to posts growth for the year. In September, “the company reported a fiscal third-quarter profit that topped analysts' estimates and raised its forecast for the year”. As the approach, Best Buy will look to continue this growth.

_{http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704648604575620482439021728.html?mod=WSJ_Retailing_leftHeadlines}

A lady can NEVER have too many bags

The hand bag and leather goods luxury store, Coach, reported a 34% increase in their net profits for it's first fiscal quarter. The company reported that it's adoption of lower price points, increased profit margins, along with expansion into developing markets have all contributed to the success. Currently Coach is hoping to expand into chinese market, recognizing the great opportunities in the booming chinese economy.

I believe that Coach is doing well not only because of it's adoption of lower price points, but due to the luxury trend in the market. Households with an income of over $100K have been spending at almost pre recession levels where as households with a lower income are still cautious when it comes to luxury spending.

Or perhaps the reason is as simple as: Some consumers are still willing to sacrifice other necessary expenses such as rent, for the latest, "cutest" bag.

Written by Michael Milner

Article source:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303390704575575881503013638.html

Cheers to That

Trailing 52% to 48%, a Washington state ballot initiative wants to privatize liquor sales and change the beer and wine distribution rules. Large food retailers like Costco, Safeway, and Wal-Mart contributed financial support to the ballot. In fact, out of the campaign’s six million dollars in funding, Costco is attributed to nearly 4.8 million dollars of that fund. Brewers like MillerCoors and Anheuser-Bush gave funds to the opposition, “Protect Our Communities” as well. Together, the opponents of the ballot collected 9 million dollars. 

The ballot, if passed, would cause a revamp and overhaul of Washington’s trade regulation concerning alcohol. Brewers, distributors, and small businesses fear that if passed, the ballot would give large retailers an unfair advantage. These companies would gain leverage to lower prices and therefore, weaken the role of independent distributors in the supply chain. Unable to lower their own prices, small time businesses would not be able to compete with large retailers. However, supporters claim that consumers would benefit from paying lower prices.

While supporters are right that lower prices would benefit the consumer, at what cost to other retailers. Is fair to contribute funds to a campaign where other businesses have the potential to suffer severe losses? Costco and Wal-Mart at this time have already seen gains in profit over the last quarter while many small businesses have experienced losses. If anything, at most, large discount retailers should wait for full economic recovery before supporting a ballot like this.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703506904575592430139576138.html

RadioShack Back on Track?

RadioShack has posted promising 3rd quarter returns, with net income rising 23%. Part of this comes from RadioShack's effort to liven itself up and move away from the recent reputation it has gained for being a "has been" in the era of technology. RadioShack is focusing more on smartphones and e-readers and it has begun calling itself "The Shack" so that it can connect more with a younger generation. Despite revenue changes, RadioShack's current stock price is still around where it had been. Some analysts expect it to rise as much as 40 percent, however. Hopefully RadioShack, or "The Shack" for short, can continue to hold on in this competitive technology era.

In a world that is continually advancing technologically, one would think that a company that deals with technology would not have any problems surviving. However, as technology grows, old products become obsolete very quickly. This can also happen to a company name as well. RadioShack fell a bit behind the times and then became associated with only the geeky crowd. "Radio" is also outdated, because people rarely listen to the radio as their main source of auditory or technological recreation. RadioShack is now moving in the right direction, though, by informally dropping the "Radio" from its name and moving its focus to more demanded products. That is what companies must do to stay in the game, especially in such a quickly moving field.

Catherine Reeves

Source: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB128907583106554497.html?mod=WSJ_Retailing_leftHeadlines