Traditional brick-and-mortar retailers don’t have a lot going for them these days. On the one hand, high unemployment and stagnant wage growth is sapping the purchasing power of the average consumer, and on the other, the rise …
Companies & Industries
Bain Capital, Private Equity Firms Accused of Price Fixing in Lawsuit
Mitt Romney’s presidential run has had the ancillary effect of increasing scrutiny of the private equity industry. After all, Romney founded the private equity outfit Bain Capital, and has built his case for the presidency in …
Could ‘Showrooming’ Actually Be Good for Brick-and-Mortar Retailers?
Stores hate it when shoppers scope out merchandise in person, only to whip out a smartphone, shop around, and ultimately make the purchase elsewhere. Yet could this practice, known as “showrooming,” wind up helping retailers, …
New Public-Private Partnerships: The President’s Stealth Plan To Create Jobs?
As casual reading, the Presidential Memorandum “Accelerating Technology Transfer and Commercialization of Federal Research in Support of High-Growth Businesses,” released Oct. 28, 2011, is about as riveting as the Department of …
That’s Some Quirky Marketing Strategy: CEO Calls His Customers ‘Idiots’
Michael O’Leary, the CEO of the fee-happy European airline Ryanair, isn’t scared of a little controversy. In fact, he seems to actively welcome it, periodically making outrageous statements (“The best thing you can do with environmentalists is shoot them”) and announcing possible new money-makers for the airline such as in-flight porn …
Poll: Is it Okay for Retailers to Track Customers’ Shopping Behavior While in Stores?
If you’ve done any shopping online, you probably know the feeling: You pick out, say, a pair of shoes online, put them in your virtual shopping cart, but then for some reason change your mind. Afterwards, it seems that every site …
No Sale? Retailers Try to Avoid Deep Discounting Without Losing Shoppers
At some point in recent years, 50% off became the new normal, with shoppers growing increasingly accustomed to dramatic markdowns—and correspondingly unimpressed with a measly 10% off. Stores jacked up list prices so that the …
Is It Time to Declare the Nissan Leaf a Flop?
The headline for a recent Detroit News story has it that the “20,000 sales target [is] unlikely” for the Nissan Leaf. But “unlikely” is probably understating things. It appears as if Nissan won’t get halfway to its 20,000-Leaf …
‘Super Mario’ Rides to the Euro’s Rescue
ECB plan to buy sovereign bonds of euro nations under market attack marks significant shift in policy
Amid Public Backlash, Bankers Maintain Influence in Washington
Wall Street isn’t the most popular industry in America right now. A poll conducted last fall by the Washington Post and ABC News found that 70% of the country viewed financial institutions on Wall Street unfavorably — and that …
Why Isn’t There More Inflation?
Huge deficits and ultra-low interest rates should have led to serious inflation by now. The great mystery of the past three years is why they haven’t.
Lyft: Ride Sharing Startup Zimride Hits the Gas Pedal in San Francisco
Using technology to attack structural inefficiencies in the market for automobile transportation.
