STORES Magazine - July 2008 - (Page 16)

trEnDS The Swedish pop band also proved to be a natural match for the ubiquitous Swedish furniture retailer. There will be Abba sing-alongs at every IKEA location over four weekends, and nearly 1,000 customers applied to be part of a group wedding of 20 couples on July 17 at IKEA’s Burbank, Calif., location. This DVD Will Self-Destruct Want to catch the Will Ferrell comedy “Semi-Pro”? If you buy the DVD at Staples, you can – but there’s a catch. You’ll only have 48 hours from the time you remove the DVD from a speciallysealed pouch to view the film. Staples recently joined a handful of retailers selling DVDs manufactured with time-limited technology. From Atlantabased Flexplay Entertainment, the process uses a proprietary adhesive to glue together the plastic disc halves that form a DVD. Removing the Flexplay DVD from its sealed package exposes the disc to oxygen, triggering a controlled chemical reaction that causes the adhesive to interfere with the ability of the DVD player’s laser to read the disc. The discs can be viewed on any standard DVD player and remain viable within the package for about one year. Flexplay has partnered with environmentally friendly recyclers, plastics suppliers and selected retailers to implement several closed-loop recycling options including consumer mail-in, pre-paid postage options and collection points through local environmental organizations. Staples is offering the DVDs for $4.99 at its 1,500 U.S. stores. In addition to “Semi-Pro,” titles include “The Kite Runner,” “There Will Be Blood” and “The Golden Compass,” Flexplay began testing sales of the discs in truck stops across the country last fall and is now rolling them out to ADVERTORIAL Univations – The Possibilities are with “U” Industry research shows that consumer acceptance of self-service solutions is exploding. As a result, increasing numbers of retailers in various verticals are planning for and deploying technology that empowers consumers to serve themselves. However, entering the selfservice world is a significant business decision and requires a strategic commitment. The same should be said of the vendor prepared to partner on such a serious initiative. Paving the way for retailers to reach their self-service goals is Fujitsu’s Self Service Univations™. Building on the company’s well-known U-Scan self-checkout brand, Fujitsu Univations encompass all forms of self-service, and will be driven by consumers, employees and retailers alike. So what is driving those folks to self service solutions? Consumers today seek consistent and convenient service during their shopping experience – no surprises. They want choice, they want control, they want relevance and they want speed. Employees want to confidently help their customers when appropriate. They want to provide correct information about products and services and get customers on their way as quickly as possible. And retailers – they want the customers and employees to be happy and productive. They want to control costs; provide attractive service options for their customers; take the surprises out of service; and drive up visits and transaction sizes. Already experienced as a top selfcheckout and self-service solution provider, Fujitsu is launching this focused initiative to develop and provide a total self-service solution for retailers. Retailers will be able to leverage Fujitsu’s expertise and technological innovations to assess their unique business needs including: infrastructure interoperability, improved customer service, labor considerations, security, location and aesthetics. us.fujitsu.com/retailing • marketinginfo@us.fujitsu.com • 800.340.4425 16 STORES / JULY 2008 WWW.STORES.ORG http://us.fujitsu.com/retailing http://WWW.STORES.ORG

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of STORES Magazine - July 2008

STORES Magazine - July 2008 Contents Executive Editor's Page President's Page Dearth of Retail Creativity What Shoppers Think Wow, Is That a Wawa? 10 Things You May Have Missed Numbers Worth Counting Full Price/Markdown Retail People Merchandising Strategy Concept2Watch Point of Sale Outsourcing Human Resources Top 100 Retailers Store Design RFID IT Operations Systems Managements LP Vantage Point Newsbeat Cover Story Emergency Response Systems Background Checks LOEB Retail Letter Point of View NRF News Retail Crossword Retail Industry Calendar Last Laugh

STORES Magazine - July 2008

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