retail

Apple Stores get their turn under NY Times' investigative spotlight

Was recent Apple activity around raises at its retail stores a preemptive strike against a just-published New York Times article?

That's what The Los Angeles Times is wondering aloud today.

The extensive New York Times piece, which hit the Internet today bearing the headline "Apple's Retail Army, Long on Loyalty but Short on Pay," looks at what workers at the stores make relative to their commission-earning dopplegangers at carriers such as Verizon. It also speaks of hectic working conditions and shifts with no breaks, and gives a peek at what some might call the lightly cultish … Read more

PayPal to roll out Web redesign making it more user-friendly

PayPal's clunky Web site is about to get sleeker and more user-friendly. According to TechCrunch, the online payment company is revamping its Web site to make it more orderly and have fewer navigation bars and tab options. Now, there will be just three tabs: buy, sell, and transfer.

"We are always creating new ways to use your PayPal account," screenshots of the new Web site say. "Explore some innovations that could make your life a little easier."

PayPal told TechCrunch that the company will announce more details on the redesign tomorrow. For now, it's … Read more

Apple turns you on with the angle of its laptops

Sometimes, you're in a bar and there's a member of your target sex leaning just slightly toward you.

At least, that's what you think. Or rather feel. Something about their posture beckons you. Something suggests that you should be at one with them. Something tells you that they want you to complete them.

This is, apparently, a feeling Apple would like you to have inside its stores.

According to a moving piece from Forbes, each morning Apple employees whip out their iPhones, use an app called Simply Angle, and position the laptops to seduce.

The angle of … Read more

You should never, ever, preorder a video game

Have you ever preordered a video game? Did you feel good about yourself after doing so? Yes? No? Truth is, you should almost never, ever, preorder a video game.

A preorder does virtually nothing for you, but it does a great deal for various other parties. First off, it's a free loan. Think about it. You're essentially giving a game retailer 5 or more dollars for free. All you get back in return is a receipt that you've done so. A big-name retailer now has your 5 dollars that it, in turn, can do whatever it wants with. Sure, it might seem trivial on a small scale, but multiply your 5 dollars times the amount of preorders made a day, and we're talking millions of free unearned dollars here.

Game distributors and retailers also use preorder data to gauge interest in a title. They're basically using your donation to measure how successful a marketing campaign is even before anyone has played the game. And once you've pledged those few dollars, odds are you'll be back come release day. If not, the money stays with the retailer, where you'll most likely use it on another title -- or even worse, forget about it. … Read more

Apple looks to open two more stores in China

Apple is expanding its presence in China, a new report claims.

According to Reuters, Chinese government officials revealed today that Apple will be opening brick-and-mortar stores in Chengdu and Shenzhen, though they didn't say when those locations might open. The Shenzhen location, which will be in Holiday Plaza, a higher-end mall, only needs an environmental permit to open. The Chengdu location was approved in late May, according to Reuters' sources.

Apple currently has five stores in China, including two in Beijing and three in Shanghai. The move to open more stores is designed to increase Apple's presence in … Read more

Mac Pro refresh may loom, as wait times grow before WWDC

It's no secret Apple's desktop tower is long overdue for an update, and perhaps one of the best signs that a Mac Pro refresh is just around the corner has come from Apple's online store.

MacRumors notes today that those in the market for one of the towers -- which haven't received a hardware update since July 2010 -- are facing unusually long wait times if they want to pick one up in store.

While Apple lists three of the four models as in stock on its online store (with the 12-core model shipping in 2-4 … Read more

IBM partners with Honeywell to create mobile shopping app

IBM is introducing its own in-store shopping companion app.

Dubbed the "digital shopping assistant," this mobile app allows consumers to scan items they want to purchase at retail stores with their smartphone and then use an IBM self-checkout station to pay.

"Retailers can now deliver a more personalized shopping experience that is less of a chore and more of a convenience for consumers," IBM Retail Store Solutions vice president John Gaydac said in a statement. "By enabling consumers to scan and check-out a wide variety of products at their own pace, retailers can not only … Read more

Google tries, tries again with online shopping

Amazon may not exactly be quaking quite yet, but Google is taking another stab at revamping its lackluster online-shopping business by forging closer commercial links with online merchants and improving its product-related search function.

The Web giant rolled out a new initiative today that renames its fornerly uninspiring "Google Product Search" service as "Google Shopping" while also changing the ground rules:

First, by requiring merchants to pay for listings (Google calls them "product-listing ads") that were formerly free; Second, by inserting these paid product placements into general search results more obviously and with bigger … Read more

Nest thermostat coming to Apple retail stores soon, report says

The high-tech thermostat created by one of the founding members of the iPod team will soon be sold in Apple's retail stores, according to a new report.

iLounge says it's heard that Nest Labs' thermostat, which went on sale near the end of last year, is headed to Apple's stores and will be sold for its usual $249 retail price.

Apple has more than 360 retail stores around the world. The extra point of sale would add to the Nest's current sales options, which include the company's own online store, local installers, and Lowes stores … Read more

PayPal adds 15 new retailers to its brick-and-mortar roster

PayPal announced today it is partnering with 15 more U.S. retailers aiming to get shoppers to use PayPal's offline payment system.

"Consumers are relying on technology now more than ever to simplify their lives when it comes to shopping and paying, and retailers must adapt to this shift or risk becoming irrelevant," PayPal President David Marcus wrote in a blog post. "Innovative retailers everywhere are looking for ways to improve the shopping experience, extend loyalty programs and better engage with their customers."

The new retailers include, Abercrombie & Fitch, Advance Auto Parts, Aeropostale, American … Read more