In his book “Crossing Fifth Avenue to Bergdorf Goodman”, the former CEO of the luxury specialty store wrote that there was always a “magic price” where the merchandise sold and the customer was happy and that a merchant’s job was to find that price. A week ago, when Bergdorf Goodman Read more…
A recent article in the Atlantic raised alarm bells on the demise of retail jobs, observing that “retail employment is following a familiar path, one already beaten by farmers and factory workers”. However, pronouncing the death of the traditional retail job is not necessarily the same as pronouncing the death Read more…
At Bergdorf Goodman, I noticed that the Marc Jacobs boutique had done something quite interesting. Right by the escalator on the 2nd floor, they had a sales representative who greeted shoppers and urged them to visit the boutique on the 3rd floor. I thought it was really thoughtful because people are often more responsive Read more…
A while ago, Barney’s – the fashion forward New York City retailer – launched a series of new technological features in their store to great fanfare. The store would now have iPads for shoppers to use and interactive displays in their café that was supposed to enhance the shopping experience. Read more…
Despite Hurricane Sandy, a trip down Madison Avenue on the Upper East Side revealed that the holiday season had begun. It appeared that most of high-end retail stores had resumed business as usual. However, for many of the people who work in the stores, their circumstances were far from usual. Read more…