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This validities my the presentation that I did in class last week stating that the omni-channel retailing approach is where the retail industry is heading... Great article....

I agree with AT&T's stance on store layout and in-store customer service since this was the aspect of Phone retailing that was missing most of the time. At least that is my experience from Germany and the Netherlands. I think there is a huge potential for this model in other markets then the US as well.

I know I personally like to get any of my shopping done early that I can merely to avoid the holiday traffic and craziness that happens. At the same time, I always tend to end up with coupons or even small gift cards when I do shopping that are only valid within that 'prime' holiday shopping season. So, I think those type of programs really work because I always end up coming back to use them even though I had intentions of not shopping during that time. I also think it is interesting to look at retailers offering holiday type sales earlier and earlier in the year. I wonder what the limit will be as each retailer tries to trump the other. I also really like the extended return policy. That is EXTREMELY useful and could definitely be part of a deciding factor for me on who I shop with given that I could get similar products at each place.

I think for stores and shoppers can benefit from this model. Stores can increase their revenue but shoppers can shop early and have a way to afford a better holiday. It also encourages shoppers to come into the store more frequently and earlier in the season. It will be interesting to see if other stores adopt this model. I surprised Walmart does not have this as an option for some of their larger items.

Like Krista I wonder what the limit will be.. just keeps getting pushed back further and further. I know at J.Crew we just started implementing "holiday return policy". More than anything I think that offering such a guarantee offers a level of comfort to the customer. It makes them feel more confident about the purchase and more likely to buy it. I like the aspect of honoring online prices with store prices - very important.

I agree with Lina comment. The extended return policy is a ploy to get consumers in the store, make a purchase and know they have time to return it if they desire. Comfort, ease, and satisfaction for and of the customer will drive business.

I can't stand the thought of shopping really early for Christmas. Some of the things this article talked about really shocked me. The part about Walmart rolling out it's holiday shopping in August is not something I would find appealing. I think that takes the Christmas spirit out of Christmas completely. It's always a tradition with my mom to shop in November and December when it is acceptable to think about Christmas! I completely get the idea of budgeting, buying a few gifts here and there, but starting shopping in August? Not for me.

The article is totally right! I worked for a year at a gas station next to my studies and we had these 'puy 9 coffees, get the 10th for free' cards, which we wanted to hand out to all taxi drivers, to make them visit our gas station frequently. Every second driver refused to take a card, when I offered them, because of the huge amount of other loyalty cards in its wallet (as Raphael already pointed out). Furthermore, I saw that we also have those cards for drinks at the HRC Store and I never took one, because I simply consider the drinks as too expensive to buy a dozen of them, just to get one for free!

This is a great article! It's very similar to a costco card or a sam's club membership. The only way a loyalty card like this would work is if the company had prices that beat juggernauts such as walmart or target. Most people on campus do have costco cards, so whether it's the Costco food or the ability to buy literally almost anything at the store, Costco seems to have found the solution.

I think that Finish Line is going to benefit highly from being able to do mobile transactions, especially during the holiday season. This will be able to help them eliminating lines and making for a better overall customer experience. I think it may take some consumers a while to become accustomed to, but overall I feel like that is where technology is bringing us in the retail world and it can only help the customer experience.

It is clear that more retailers are moving towards mobile POS systems, and it is interesting to imagine stores without cash registers. Nonetheless, most consumers can't stand the idea of sitting in line when all they want to do is pay once they've chosen the item or items they want. And not only are there problems with long lines, but there are also problems with not being able to find someone to help you when you need it. I think retailers switching to the mobile POS system is an advantage because they can interact more with the customers, while having the ability of being a portable checkout. The convenience of the mobile POS system allows the sales rep to converse and inform the customer of the product they are looking at, and shortens the decision to buy time since the sales rep can swipe the customers card immediately once the customer decides to buy.

I think this is a genius idea. I hate going into finish line and waiting in line for ages because of how crowded the place always is. Giving the attendance the ability to do mobile transactions with decrease the clutter of people in the stores who can get in and out quickly and make the experience much more enjoyable!

I can see why Finish Line is moving in this direction because a lot of the retail industry is following suit. I think the combination of technology and good customer service is a great thing to have in the retail industry but only if the customer service is solid as well. I am a little skeptical about Finish Line doing this only because when I go into tennis shoe stores which is what Finish Line's main product is, I like to talk to someone with a lot of knowledge on the product. I like getting an expert's opinion on running shoes because they are all made so differently.

I feel like the next logical step for finish line would be to offer an array of customization options on a mobile application due to the trend in which people like to individualize their shoes. Prior to this, you would have to buy a personalized product directly from the manufacturer based on the options that they allowed, and were often times much costlier than they might have been otherwise. By acting as a third party on behalf of this order, Finish Line not only provides a channel to its consumers for these customization options, but gives manufacturers more exposure to this application than they had prior. Its a win-win.

I agree, it is important to be innovative and develop more ways of approaching the customer. However, in the end it is also important to be distinctive in other disciplines like direct customer service or outstanding product quality and design. When I went into a Finish Line store the first time in my life yesterday, I didnt really see much differences in products or design in comparison to European Stores or Foot Locker.