 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Shopping Centers Today -> October 2001
 PRINT THIS STORY: |
  CHANGE TEXT SIZE: |
 |
KOHL’S TAKES THE LEAP
Kohl’s Corp. has finally started selling online, becoming one of the last large retailers to do so. But the Menomonee Falls, Wis.-based chain, which operates more than 350 stores nationwide, is not making a big deal of it. In fact, the company launched the site quietly back in June without announcing it, according to The Associated Press (AP). “We’re not anticipating that it’s going to be a huge part of our business,” Gary Vasques, executive vice president of marketing, told AP. “The intent is to provide a convenience to our shoppers.”BOOK SMART
 |
Independent retailers are using a new tool to fight back against retail giants such as Amazon and Barnes & Noble: the Internet. The American Booksellers Association has launched Booksense.com, a hub site that links shoppers to Web sites belonging to their local independent booksellers. Some of these bookstores are selling over the Internet, as well as using their Web sites to publicize books, events and special offers.
 |
OUT OF THE FRYING PAN
Struggling computer products retailer Egghead saw the Internet as a savior back in 1998. Facing withering competition from software superstores such as CompUSA, it scrapped its remaining 80 stores, fired 80% of its 1,000 employees, and switched to an e-tail-only format, renaming itself Egghead.com. Internet commerce isn’t much different from conventional retailing, its chairman, George Orban, told The Austin American-Statesman at the time. In the case of Egghead.com, he was right: The company continued to lose money and, in August, filed Chapter 11, selling its Web site and assets to retailer San Jose, Calif.-based Fry’s Electronics.HANDICAPPED WEB ACCESS
The government isn’t demanding yet that retail Web sites comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, but good business sense is, advocates for the handicapped say. People with handicaps who find a site difficult to see or navigate are unlikely to return, said Paul Magnani, general manager of Ripple Effects, a company that helps clients make their Web sites easier to use through voice browsers, text transcripts and the substitution of keystrokes for mouse manipulation. Conversely, a user-friendly site will build customer loyalty, he told SCT. “One out of every five Americans has a disability and the numbers are growing as the population ages,” he said. |
ALBERTSON’S BAGS WEBVAN’S SHOPPERS
Capitalizing on Webvan’s recent demise, Albertson’s has expanded its online sales area in Seattle, where it has added a seventh store to its Internet supply network. Visits to Albertsons.com shot up 300% after Webvan crashed this summer, according to InternetWeek. The store now serves 125 ZIP codes in the Seattle area.
POP GOES THE ‘POP-UNDER’ AD
 |
Sick of those “pop-under” ads advertising wireless cameras? You are not alone. According to a Jupiter Media Metrix study, the ads, which appear on screens during visits to other sites, have reached a huge number of people. But 73% of computer users have closed the ad before 20 seconds has elapsed. Ads that are targeted and relevant to their audience are more effective than indiscriminate marketing, Media Metrix observed.
Shopping Centers Today
 | Current Issue December 2008 |