Halloween is a real treat for retail David Kaplan / Houston Chronicle At American Apparel, a Lower Westheimer clothing store, Halloween is the busiest time of year – even busier than Christmas, said Lyna Phillips, a store manager. Customers are buying tights, leotards and body suits to serve as the foundation for anything from a bunny […]

Shoppers face holiday choices Eileen Smith / Courier-Post The frost hasn’t formed on the Halloween pumpkin, the Thanksgiving turkey is weeks away from the roasting pan — and retail watchers already are predicting Grinchlike holiday sales. A view glimpsed through their crystal balls: • The National Retail Federation predicts shoppers will spend an average of […]

Microsoft to go head-to-head with Apple in brick and mortor Steve Henn / Marketplace Microsoft looks to expand its retail operations across the country. Microsoft store employees cheer and greet the first customers of the store at the Scottsdale Fashion Square October 22, 2009 in Scottsdale, Ariz. (Laura Segall/Getty Images) Jeremy Hobson: Well here in […]

Don’t Mind the Gap’s Closeout Sales Quentin Fottrell / SmartMoney The Gap’s closure of nearly 200 of its stores is unlikely to be combined with closeout sales worth your while, analysts say. It’s just not in the interest of the once-hip retailer to compound the news of its scaling back with a shopping blowout that […]

Starbucks, more careful now, opens new Tampa shop Richard Mullins / The Tampa Tribune TAMPA –Starbucks has just accomplished something it hasn’t done in Tampa Bay in three years: open a new location.The coffee giant renovated a former Long John Silvers restaurant into a coffee shop at Dale Mabry Highway and Linebaugh Avenue after overexpansion […]

U-Village store fits Microsoft consumer strategy Janet I. Tu / The Seattle Times The performances this time will come from The Black Keys and OneRepublic, not Miley Cyrus and Dave Matthews. The venue will be University Village, not Bellevue Square. But the M.O. and goal are the same: Generate excitement for the opening of a […]