“Study:  Target Gets High Marks for Protecting Online Passwords (Costco, Walmart, Home Depot trail)” by Dan Goodin at ARS.  “Apple.com was the only site to receive a perfect score of 100, which was based on 24 criteria, such as whether the site accepts “123456” and other extremely weak passwords and whether it sends passwords in plain text by e-mail. Microsoft and academic supplier Chegg tied for second place with 65, while Newegg and Target came in third with 60.”  See the Rankings

 

“Sam’s Club Hacks 2,300” by Kim Souza at The City Wire.  “Bill Durling, a Sam’s Club spokesman, reportedly said the layoffs would target a combination of salaried assistant managers and hourly employees. Certain positions, like telephone attendants, will be eliminated.  “We realized we had pretty much the same club structure whether a club had $50 million in revenue or $100 million in revenue,” Durling said of the distribution of assistant managers. “What we’re trying to do is balance our resources.” Read more

 

“Kroger prospered during 10 years with Dillon at the helm” by Josh Pichler at Cincy Enquirer.  “He’ll also keep preaching the importance of feedback to anybody who asks.  “Most bosses are supposed to give you some feedback, but they often are uncomfortable in doing it. If you ask them for the feedback, the invitation makes it easier,” he said.  “It’s my single most important piece of management and personal advice. Feedback’s a gift.”  Read more

 

“The 1 Plainly Obvious Explanation for Sears Store Closures Sweeping the Country” by Brian Sozzi at Belus.  “Sears desperately needs cash on its balance sheet. The reasons why: (1) to alleviate the highly likely concern amongst suppliers, temporarily; (2) to tell a story to the stock and bond markets that Sears could fund some form of its alleged turnaround given an asset rich balance sheet, preventing another stock slide; (3) to raise liquidity from underperforming assets in the hopes of soothing the worries of watchful creditors.”  Read more

 

“At Walmart Alaskan Salmon is Back on the Menu” by Clare Leschin-Hoar at The Guardian.  “After four months of uncertainty, Alaskan salmon suppliers to Walmart have something to celebrate.  The retail giant told the Guardian it has decided to expand its sustainable seafood policy to include certification programs beyond that of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), the world’s largest seafood certifier.”  Read more

 

Radio Shack Breaks “Do it Together” Campaign In Support of New Positioning” by Meredith Derby Berg at Ad Age.  “A new national advertising campaign called “Do It Together,” from Austin, Texas-based GSD&M, aims to show how Radio Shack and consumers can collaborate to solve technological problems like connecting today’s many devices, said Jennifer Warren, the retailer’s chief marketing officer…The new ads will invoke a full tagline: “It can be done, when we do it together.”  Read more

 

“Michaels Hacked” by Maria Halkias at Dallas News.  “The retailer said it has recently learned of possible fraudulent activity on some credit or debit cards that had been used to make purchases in its stores.  The company gave no details about the data security attack, but said it’s working with federal law enforcement and has hired data security experts to establish the facts.”  Read more

 

“Take that Beyonce – Target and Shakira Team Up with Three Exclusive Tracks on “Shakira” “The partnership is Target’s first major artist collaboration of 2014 and continues Target’s commitment to working with fan-favorite musicians to bring guests more content from the artists they love.”  Read more

 

“Retailers step up their visual game to hook shoppers” by Jennifer Wang at Orange County Register via Star-Tribune.  “Oakley’s strategy doesn’t stop after visitors cross the threshold. Stores are designed with an “interior window” in the first 10 to 15 feet for customers to engage with featured products, often involving interactive video and digital screens. “Otherwise you’ve brought them in and lost them,” Abbott said.”  Read more

 

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