Shopper Marketing and Digital Marketing are one and the same

Over on The Hub, I came across a great article by Stuart Armstrong on where retail will play in the marketing mix.  Armstrong writes:
“Which means that the future of marketing—the convergence of retail, the emergence of digital media networks and the cellphone as the linchpin—is not really the future at all. Because, as Geoffrey Frost noted, in [...]

Costco Diversion Buying Strategy

A good friend of mine just sent me a very interesting article on Costco’s “Diversion” Buying Strategy where high-end goods (in this instance Crocs) are finding they were onto Costco shelves without the authorization of the retailer.  I couldnt find a link online so here is the full article. You can also read the article [...]

Wired - “Rise of the Instapreneur”

Right after I posted about Etsy supporting handmade entrepreneurs, I came across an article on Instapreneurs in this month’s Wired. The article points to several new sites that allow aspiring designers to sell their wares without worrying about manufacturing, selling or even fulfillment.  Basically they allow the creation of instant businesses based on nothing more than [...]

Can Starbucks get its groove back?

So there seems to be quite a buzz going around after Starbucks had their annual meeting the other day.  I’ve been meaning to capture my thoughts on the whole Schultz as a White Knight thing for awhile, especially since the blogosphere has been debating what they need to do to change.  With today being a slow day at [...]

Fresh and Easy leaves me underwhelmed

While I was in Las Vegas this weekend, I had a chance to see one of the new Fresh & Easy stores, the U.S. entry of European grocer Tesco.  After all I have been hearing about this British invasion, I had high expectations for the store.  However, after my most recent visit, I can see [...]

Why Shopper Marketing matters

Ever since I took my role on the Wal-Mart team, I’ve had people want to know more about what a Customer Team Marketing Manager really does. The short of it is that we do Shopper Marketing. We are Brand Managers that are tasked with translating a national marketing campaign into a shopper relevant [...]