Retail Consulting Archives - Page 2 of 5

TGC’s Chris Palma hosts keynote conversation at the 2017 NYU Stern Luxury & Retail Conference

Chris Palma, a Senior Analyst at TGC, recently hosted a keynote conversation at the 11th Annual NYU Stern Luxury & Retail Conference. The event featured Elaine Hughes, CEO of E.A. Hughes, and Ron Frasch, former President and CMO of Saks Fifth Avenue and Operating Partner at Castanea Partners. Prior to joining Castanea, Ron was President and Chief Merchandising Officer at Saks Fifth Avenue until the sale of the company to Hudson's Bay Co. in 2013. Previously, Ron was CEO and President at Bergdorf Goodman. He also held senior executive positions at Escada and Neiman Marcus. For the past 10 years, the Luxury & Retail Club at New York University's Leonard Stern School of Business has hosted an annual conference bringing together top graduate students with leading industry professionals in Luxury, Retail, Hospitality & Spirits, and Consulting. This year’s conference theme was ‘Envisioning a Connected Future’. With the retail space constantly evolving—the goal [...]

TGC2018-03-26T08:55:13-04:00

TGC’s Kevin Mullaney and Chris Palma discuss retail real estate trends at The Harvard Club NYC

The Grayson Company’s Kevin Mullaney and Chris Palma were recently invited by The Real Estate Special Interest Group of The Harvard Club NYC to lead a panel on current trends in the retail industry, with an emphasis on how these trends are impacting real estate property values. TGC discussed the rapid pace of change in consumerism, the recent wave of retail store closings and areas of strength in the brick & mortar retail environment. TGC's provides broad expertise in retail and brand consulting, as well as investor due diligence and assessments. TGC has successfully helped numerous brands navigate the layers of real estate complexity in the U.S, with specific retail real estate services, such as real estate strategy development, site selection and lease negotiation.

TGC2017-09-19T08:05:40-04:00

Hope is Not a Plan

TGC’s CEO Kevin Mullaney discusses standing strong in the face of the “retail apocalypse” There is no question that the U.S. is significantly “over-stored,” especially when compared to other developed countries. The “retail apocalypse” we’re experiencing now is a market correction that’s been looming for some time. The number of retailers who have announced meaningful store closures is staggering and there’s no doubt that a seismic shift in the retail landscape is taking place. Why is the “retail apocalypse” upon us now? The reality is this: over the last 45 years, the number of U.S. malls has grown at a rate that has far outpaced the U.S. population. Unproductive malls that should have been closed have instead been kept artificially afloat through “bundling” leases in unproductive centers with those in highly desirable malls. The straw that broke the camel’s back was a substantial decline in mall traffic and the record number [...]

TGC2018-03-26T08:55:13-04:00

Overstored America: Retailers Wake Up and Work It Out

Store closings, well above the usual level of trimming retailers do annually, are expected this year. By David Moin | January 25, 2017 The shakeout has arrived. For retailers across the nation and up and down the price spectrum, 2017 will be a year of dramatic square footage reduction — and no one is being coy about it. “Brick-and-mortar retailers will evaluate store fleets relative to e-commerce and make decisions on what they believe to be the right ratio of stores to e-commerce,” Marvin Ellison, Penney’s chairman and chief executive officer, told WWD at an industry fundraiser earlier this month. It was one of those feel-good kind of evenings — 1,500 people raising $3.5 million for YMA scholarships and programs — but an undercurrent of concern over the state of retailing permeated the crowd in the ballroom of the Grand Hyatt. Consumers have more disposable cash, the stock market is hitting all-time highs, yet there [...]

TGC2018-03-26T08:55:14-04:00

Top Sears Execs Depart

More concerns emerge about the company’s health and viability By David Gill | December 6, 2016 Two of Sears Holdings top executives left the company last week, again raising questions about the retailer’s future. Joelle Maher, president and chief member officer of the Sears chain, and Jeff Balagna, executive vice president, both departed the company. Maher, who took her post in July 2015, was in charge of the chain’s merchandising, marketing and profit-and-loss operations, along with the development of its Shop Your Way member-centric business strategy. Balagna joined Sears Holdings in May 2013 as head of its information technology operations. Sears Holdings announced Balagna’s departure in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which said he left “to focus on his other business interests and pursue other career opportunities.” Maher’s departure was confirmed by Howard Riefs, spokesman for the company. Successors have not yet been named, Riefs added. Press reports about [...]

TGC2018-03-26T08:55:14-04:00

HomeGoods on the March

Spitting in the eye of e-commerce, the off-price retailer strategically focuses on brick-and-mortar stores By David Gill | November 2, 2016 HomeGoods is home retailing’s new Gold Medalist. With many brick-and-mortar retailers posting up-and-down results lately—some with all down performance—the specialty operation of The TJX Cos. has maintained an upward trajectory for the past few years. Its net sales rose 31 percent to $3.9 billion from fiscal year 2014 to fiscal year 2016, which ended on Jan. 30 of this year. It reported same-store sales increases of 7 percent in 2014 and 2015, and 8 percent for 2016. Its profit rose 42 percent in that three-year time span, to $549.3 million. Contrast that with the results over the same three-year period from Bed Bath & Beyond, its closest retail rival. In the 2014-2016 fiscal span, Bed Bath’s net sales rose 5.2 percent to $12.1 billion. Net income over that period fell 18 [...]

TGC2018-03-26T08:55:14-04:00

5 Secrets to Small-Business Success at the Holidays

By Jackie Zimmermann | November 23, 2016 The doorbuster deals are set and the Black Friday ads are out, perennial indicators that the holiday shopping season is in full swing. The National Retail Federation predicts $655.8 billion in holiday sales this season, up 3.6% from 2015. In addition to securing enough working capital and inventory, you’ll want to prepare for the rush in other ways. NerdWallet asked Steve Goldberg, president of retail consulting firm The Grayson Company, for tips on how to get started. 1. Advertise early To attract early shoppers, your marketing needs to be in front of the right consumers at the right time. According to a survey by the NRF in the first week of November, 56% of respondents had already started buying gifts. But hope is not lost if you’re getting a late start, Goldberg says. Small-business owners can react more nimbly than larger stores, he says. “They can make decisions without having to [...]

TGC2018-03-26T08:55:14-04:00

Ikea’s Omnichannel Experiment

The Swedish retailer makes up for lost time with a thorough and deliberate approach to the newest form of retailing By Allison Zisko | November 2, 2016 Big boxy Ikea may ultimately prove that slow and steady wins the omnichannel race—and be surprisingly nimble at it in the process. After a relatively slow digital start—Peter Agnefjäll, president and CEO of Ikea Group, told CNBC one year ago that the Swedish retailer “could have been faster” getting into e-commerce—Ikea in September reported strong online sales for fiscal 2016. Agnefjäll told Reuters that online revenues grew 30 percent, to $1.54 billion, without entering any new online markets. Back in January, he told Bloomberg Business that the company’s goal is for online revenue to represent 10 percent of total sales by 2020. “On a journey to become the world’s leading multichannel home furnishings retailer, Ikea Group is increasing its focus on integrating physical and digital commerce [...]

TGC2018-03-26T08:55:14-04:00

Finish Line Struggles to Find JackRabbit Buyer

by Tony Owusu | Monday, November 21, 2016 Finish Line announced that it will take a $44 million charge related to the process of searching for buyers of JackRabbit. Finish Line could struggle to find a buyer for its specialty running business JackRabbit, industry analysts told the TheStreet Monday. The Indianapolis-based athletic shoe retailer announced that it is exploring options for the company, which could include a sale, and that it will take up to a $44 million charge as it goes through this process. Finish Line hired M&A investment banking advisory firm Peter J. Solomon Co. to explore a sale. The firm has worked on a number of high profile deals, recently, advising the sale of headphone-maker Skull Candy to Mill Road Capital for $165 million, as well as the failed $6.3 billion merger between Office Depot and Staples. "The challenges Finish Line faces in finding a buyer are multiple," Steve Goldberg of retail consultancy firm The [...]

TGC2018-03-26T08:55:15-04:00

Steve Goldberg discusses “6 Retail Store Design Tweaks to Boost Sales”

6 Retail Store Design Tweaks to Boost Sales Merchandise sells itself in stores with appealing entryways, intuitive paths, upscale lighting and branded signage. by: Joni Sweet Every square foot of your store has the potential to make a sale. But that doesn’t mean you should cram in as many signs and products as possible. An attractive, intuitive design and plenty of open space is more important to your bottom line. “Retail store designs are an extremely important part of today’s strategy for developing sales,” said Steve Goldberg, president of The Grayson Company, a consulting practice that works with brands and retailers. While there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to creating the perfect retail space, there are some store design principles that will influence sales across the board. Here are tweaks every shopkeeper should consider. Focus on the front Getting customers into your store depends on having a well-designed entryway, said Goldberg. “The most common mistake [...]

TGC2018-03-26T08:55:15-04:00

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