Leadership coach and “The Positive Effect” author April Sabral has worked in retail for over three decades. In those three decades, she constantly found herself working on teams that were going through a rough time. Sales were down, something major was happening in the company — whatever life threw at her, Sabral was able to...
We all know that alcohol and wine sales were up during COVID-19. In some states they were up by 40 percent. What also occurred during COVID-19 was the shutdown of the most important part of a winery’s business: in-person tastings. Analysts and wine makers alike predicted that the easing of social distancing restrictions would be...
Black History Month is in full swing and many retailers are doing some really interesting things to recognize and honor the achievements and excellence of Black Americans and their contributions throughout U.S. history. Here are just a few cool initiatives we’ve heard of: Last year, JCPenney launched Hope & Wonder™, a purpose-driven private-label brand of...
Whether you’re celebrating Valentine’s Day, Galentine’s Day or both this week, don’t forget how important it is to also practice self-love. This weekend a teacher friend of mine shared how she’s approaching the theme of Valentine’s Day in her elementary school classroom: by teaching her kids ways to love themselves. She’s designing activities around teaching...
What type of retail issues do you expect to face this year? Environmental and sustainability challenges? Workers unionizing? Privacy and cybersecurity concerns? All of these issues and more are discussed in Hunton Andrews Kurth’s 2022 Retail Industry Year in Review, a report that provides a comprehensive overview of recent developments impacting retailers, as well as...
Women in Retail Leadership Circle (WIRLC) member Melanie O’Neil and her home décor brand Rustic Marlin have raised over $8,000 in a little over one week for maternal mental health after O’Neil was moved to act following a local tragedy involving a mother accused of killing her three children. O’Neil, who co-founded Rustic Marlin with...
It’s Black History Month, a month dedicated to highlighting the significant contributions, achievements and joy of the Black community. Women in Retail Leadership Circle (WIRLC) plans to celebrate by featuring content that highlights Black female retail leaders and entrepreneurs in our newsletter, on our website, and on social media throughout the month. This week, we’re...
Recent headlines have been full of layoff announcements, but most of the cuts in retail have been at the corporate level, masking the fact that retailers are still struggling with a massive shortage of frontline workers. A new global study commissioned by WorkJam found that 63 percent of retail companies are currently short frontline staff,...
If you’re like so many clients I’ve talked to over the years, you may think email marketing is as dead as the dinosaur age … … and I’m here to tell you that’s flawed thinking. You don’t own your social media platforms (Facebook and Google do, and they can shut down your account whenever they...
Signet Jewelers, whose brands include KAY Jewelers, Zales, Jared, Banter by Piercing Pagoda, and six others, reshuffled its leadership at several of the banner brands, the company announced last month. Jamie Singleton, formerly the president of the KAY Jewelers, Zales, and Peoples banners, has been named group president and chief consumer officer of Signet. The...
