Your may still be trying to calm down after news spread of a looming “unavoidable bacon shortage” (which isn’t really going to happen). But don’t get too comfortable. Now we’re supposed to panic about the possibility of milk …
Smart Spending
Why the Mid-Priced Mattress Is Getting No Love
When navigating the spectrum of products in the marketplace, consumers naturally gravitate to the middle. The popular mid-price hotel category, for instance, is attractive to the masses who don’t want to skimp by staying at a …
What to Buy in October
When most people think of October, they think of brown, yellow and red leaves and bright orange pumpkins. Retailers think green. To them, the start of the fourth quarter represents hope that end-of-the-year sales will boost their …
MoviePass Goes National: Unlimited Trips to the Movies from $25 Per Month
A subscription service heralded as the “Netflix for movie theaters” is being launched nationally this week. For $25 to $40 per month—exact price depends on location—members are allowed to see one 2D movie daily at any theater …
Meh, No Thanks: 3 Hyped Tech Products Consumers Are Passing On
Can consumers be relied upon to jump onto the latest tech, regardless of price, practicality, and whether the product at hand actually represents worthwhile innovation? Well, if we’re talking Apple products, to some extent the …
Free eBooks For Banned Book Week
This week marks the 30th anniversary of Banned Books Week, a censorship-awareness campaign backed by “the entire book community –- librarians, booksellers, publishers, journalists, teachers, and readers of all types,” according to the American Library Association.
What’s in Store for Holiday Shopping 2012?
Where will you be shopping during the upcoming holidays? What, when, and how are you likely to check off the items on your shopping list? The predictions of retail analysts are in.
Can the Chipotle ‘Fast Casual’ Approach Work for Pizza?
The “fast-casual” restaurant concept has been enormously successful for Chipotle, Panera Bread, and “better burger” chains like Five Guys. The idea, which the value-conscious, pressed-for-time American consumer has embraced with …
Study: Posts on Facebook Almost Never Lead to Retail Sales
Social media has been described as having an “enormous influence” on consumer behavior. A 2011 Nielsen study found that roughly one-quarter of all time spent by Americans on the web is devoted to sites such as Facebook, Twitter, …
The Passive-Aggressive Way to Haggle Online: Abandon Your Shopping Cart
If you’ve ever been shopping online and thought I’d like to make a purchase, but I’d like it even more if the price was 10% cheaper, give this a tactic a try: Enter your items in the site’s shopping cart, but don’t buy anything. …
There’s Like a 50-50 Chance You’re Paying Too Much for Seafood
When you’re paying for food by the pound, it’d be nice if the weight you’re being charged for was accurate. Apparently, according to a new investigation into frozen seafood at supermarkets, quite often this isn’t the case. And no …
The Big Business of Bandwagon Baseball
Obviously, sports fans root for their teams to do well. But business owners who sell team merchandise probably root even harder, considering how much of an impact a team’s success (or failure) can have on sales of hats, jerseys, …