The Retail Vantage
  December 2011
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In This Issue
Black Friday rewards some retailers
Tech Tips
Sizing Up Small Business Saturday
Meet Our Staff
Referral Rewards
Keeping Your Business Safe
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Black Friday rewards some retailers, not others 


Many stores like Toys R Us and Walmart opened earlier than ever this year. Retailers are still banking on Cyber Monday discounts to keep shoppers spending.
 

  

By Adrianne Pasquarelli

Black Friday Rewards Some RetailersBuck Ennis Photo
 

Almost a quarter of Black Friday consumers were shopping by midnight this year, compared with 10% in 2010, according to the National Retail Federation.
 

The results are in: Black Friday was lucrative for most retailers, thanks to some early doorbuster deals. But not every store was a winner.

 

Shops like Toys R Us and Walmart made gambles that paid off this year by opening earlier than ever on Thanksgiving evening. Others, including Macy's and Target, opened at midnight, also drawing praise from retail analysts, who think the move to earlier opening hours will be repeated by more retailers next year.

 

"We wonder if next year you will just be able to have your turkey dinner in the mall," joked Nomura analyst Paul Lejuez in a report. His comment may not be far from the truth, as almost 25% of Black Friday consumers were shopping or waiting for stores to open at midnight, compared with 10% of shoppers last year and 3% in 2009, according to the National Retail Federation.

 

Since all stores were offering promotions, those that traditionally rely on shoppers seeking value may have missed out. Mr. Lejuez estimated that teen retailer Aeropostale Inc. lost out to competitors such as American Eagle Outfitters Inc. Womenswear stores such as Talbots and Ann Inc., owner of Ann Taylor and Loft, also saw weak traffic, he noted, because women are typically not shopping for themselves during Black Friday.

 

Continue Reading: Click Here

 

Source: Crain's New York Business
 

 

Tech Tips

Tech Tips

Copying purchase orders

You can use the Copy PO button on the Purchase Requests Enter window (Purchasing > Purchase Requests > Enter) to copy the detail from an existing purchase order into a new purchase request. This feature allows you to duplicate an existing PO to process a " standard" or repeat order, without requiring you to reenter all of the lines on the original PO.

Follow these steps to copy an existing purchase order:
1. Select Purchasing > Purchase Requests > Enter,to display the Purchase Request Enter window.
2. Create a new purchase request, and then click the Copy PO button.
3. Select the PO you want to duplicate from the Purchase Order Lookup window and click OK to copy the details-including vendor, location, and shipping information, as well as the actual order lines and any notes that are on file-from the selected PO into the new purchase request.

You can select a Vendor number, Location, and/or Location Group for the new purchase request to filter the purchase orders that are available for selection from the Purchase Order Lookup form.

Because it may be out of date, cost information for each item on the selected PO is not copied into the purchase request. Instead, the current cost of each item is used and the extended cost is recalculated for each order line. In addition, the Order date on the new purchase request is set to the current date and the Delivery date and Cancel date values are cleared.

After you copy an existing PO, you can edit, save, and post the new purchase request in the normal manner.

 
  

Posted by: John Tozzi

Sizing Up Small Business Saturday

President Barack Obama visits Kramerbooks for shopping with his daughters Sasha, and Malia, right, Saturday, Nov. 26, 2011, in Washington.

 

This year's Small Business Saturday promotion appears to have boosted sales for some independent merchants. The event, started last year by American Express, offers shoppers $25 credits if they use their AmEx cards at local independent businesses on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. Vermont bookseller Josie Leavitt, blogging at Publishers Weekly, says she saw her AmEx charges double that day:

 

I think slowly the message is starting to seep in that it's vital to shop at small businesses. It's a little sad that American Express doing this promotion has had more of an immediate and positive effect on business than the Shop Local campaign has had. This got me thinking about the power of the message and the size of the voice creating the message.

...

 

I'm not a huge Amex fan, I don't have one personally and they are expensive for retailers to process, but I loved this promotion.

 

The effort is intended to give Main Street retailers a boost between the post-Thanksgiving shopping frenzies known as Black Friday (for big box sales) and Cyber Monday (online deals). It's also savvy marketing for AmEx and the other companies participating. It encourages more merchants to accept the cards and gives shoppers an incentive to pay with their AmEx cards instead of other cards or cash. (Likewise, Facebook is surely hoping that business owners who created free Facebook ads through the promotion will return as paying advertisers.)

 

By tying the whole thing to the idea of helping small businesses and keeping its own branding relatively unobtrusive, American Express got lots of other companies, business groups, and government officials (including the Small Business Administration chief) on board. (When was the last time you saw the Obamas take part in a marketing campaign started by Visa or MasterCard?)

 

Continue Reading: Click Here
 

Source:
Bloomberg Businessweek

 

Meet Our Staff

  

Jeana ThomasJeana Thomas - Retail Systems Specialist
 

Jeana dedicates herself to a job she knows and loves at Advanced Retail Management Systems. As a Retail Systems Specialist, Jeana combines an in depth knowledge of Point-of-Sale and Inventory Control Systems with a 20 year history in retailing. Her background with retailers like Melville, The May Co. and Talbots, includes multi- and single store management, at the department store level and the specialty store level. Jeana has consulted with countless retailers across the United States, including well known retailers such as Benetton, ARC, The Denver Zoo and the US Olympic Committee. As a Retail Systems Specialist, Jeana works hands on with clients and is a Project Lead.

 

Many of Jeana's friends know her as the "Scrabble Queen." Winning a game against Jeana is nearly impossible. Married with four children, she still finds time to enjoy many outside activities. As an avid gardener she has cultivated a large variety of flowers and has 30 indoor plants in her home.

 

Jeana is a perfect fit as an ARMS employee. She's happy to have been given the chance to incorporate her years of extrinsic retail knowledge while working with ARMS clients in the world of specialty retail for as Jeana states "combining both "retail" and "specialty." "this is the best of both worlds."

 

Advanced Retail Management Systems
Referral Rewards
  
$100 for You and $100 for the Retailer You Refer!


ARMS Referral ProgramHere's how it works:

1.   Let us know the name and contact information for another retail company that is looking for a POS system and receive a $100 Visa Gift card that can be used anywhere Visa debit cards are accepted.

 

2.   Once the referred retailer participates in a 1 hour web presentation for CounterPoint, Retail Pro or Microsoft RMS they will also receive a $100 Visa Gift Card.

 

 

Contact us today with your referral. Call Susie Carmen at (800) 305-0461 Ext 357 or e-mail her at susie.carmen@armsys.com.  Visit our website to register your referral at www.armsys.com  

 

Keeping Your Business Safe During the Holiday Shopping Season

  

Written By Kate Rogers

  

Keeping Your Business SafeIn a perfect world, your employees would be working hard all day long ignoring the tempting distractions the Internet brings. However, with Cyber Monday and other online holiday deals being blasted all over the place, chances are they will be shopping online, grabbing great deals while on the clock.

 

Small businesses have a lot more at risk than lost productivity this holiday season, experts warned. Employees browsing and shopping online can open a business up to scams and security breaches, particularly smaller companies that tend to lack adequate protection.

 

Michael Kaiser, executive director for the National Cyber Security Alliance, said that 77% of small businesses do not have internet security policies in place, so many employees that shop online at work aren't violating workplace protocol. For businesses that want to be upfront with their workers about shopping online on company computers, Kaiser suggests having an honest conversation.

 

"Start by reminding them that they have a significant responsibility to protect the information of employees and customers," he said. "That is a shared responsibility with employees. This can put the whole business at risk, and people don't understand that as well as they should."

 

Continue Reading: http://www.foxbusiness.com/technology-web/2011/11/28/keeping-your-business-safe-during-holiday-shopping-season/#ixzz1f7SOCXb5

 

Source: Fox Business

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