Gloom and doom. That’s what we’ve been hearing for several years now about the future of retail. But retail is not dead. It’s changing, it’s evolving, but it certainly does not have one foot in the grave. Yes, almost 10,000 stores shut their doors in 2019 alone. CNN Business states that although online shopping is […]
Coin-operated vending machines were invented by Percival Everitt in 1883 and got their start in London in the late 1800s. Those first machines dispensed postcards, envelopes and notepaper and were widely seen in train stations and post offices. In years past, we used our quarters to buy Cokes and candy bars. Vending machines were a […]
So many books, so little time. I love to read, but seldom have the time to do it. And when I do, I want to “unplug” – spend a little time in a fictional world chasing dragons, finding magic and getting involved in other people’s stories. That being said, there is value to reading for […]
Recently, Domino’s Pizza in Russia launched what I thought would be a VERY cool campaign – 100 free pizzas every year for 100 years for any customer willing to tattoo the Domino’s brand on a visible part of their body. Who could have anticipated that hundreds and hundreds of people would be willing to do […]
Multiculturalism has been sewn into the fabric of America for hundreds of years. 40 million immigrants came to the United States between 1830 and 1940, many of them with little or no English language skills, and certainly most of them unskilled laborers. And the face of America continues to change. According to the 2010 U.S. […]
I use apps on my Smartphone for so many things every single day. Checking social media, looking for a good show on TV, finding out what’s playing at the local movie, discovering a new restaurant, getting directions, and even messaging my congressional representatives to tell them how I feel about their votes. Never in a […]
Every time I hear an advertising slogan for an unfamiliar product, I wonder how realistic it is. Every product in a category cannot be the best in its category. I recently came across a blog post from a Twitter friend of mine, Georg Gray, titled “Honest Slogans That Tell What People Really Think Of Popular […]
I recently read a BBC article about funeral planning advertisements created by the Beyond creative agency in the UK, which were subsequently banned by Transport for London for being “likely to cause serious and widespread offence.” I can understand the concept behind these ads – a little humor, or “edginess,” or even a touch of […]
According to a recent article from Recode, Amazon is now moving into the logistics and transport business. Their new program offers Amazon-branded delivery vans and uniforms, as well as coaching and training for new “partners” – all for less than a $10,000 investment. Certainly, Amazon sales continue to rise, accounting for 4% of all […]
There has been a lot of talk lately about the demise of brick and mortar, but the physical retail shopping experience is here to stay. What’s changing? It’s evolving into a new customer experience. AT&T recently published an interesting graphic (courtesy of Quartz) showing some of the new technologies which will transform retail stores into a […]
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