The Australian retail sector continued to grow in February, although the sluggish global economy and increased competition from internet merchants suggest 2012 could be another tough one for local companies.

Recent data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics suggest retail sales grew 0.2 percent in February, following a 0.3 percent increase in January. Seasonally adjusted, approximately $20.98 billion was spent on retail, compared to the $20.95 billion the previous month. The slight rise in sales in February was on par with what many economists predicted.

"This was in line with expectations," Macquarie senior economist Brian Redican told the Sydney Morning Herald. "There was no sign of any improvement on February … It looks like another tough start to the year for the retail sector."

A number of forces have impacted the local retail sector. Falling consumer confidence has forced many Australians to be more cost-conscious and peel back on spending. The general economic conditions haven't helped the matter, with many households being forced to spend more money on basic commodities rather than retail goods. Finally, many Australians have begun shopping online and importing retail purchases from foreign retailers, rather than supporting local merchants.

Some big names in the Australian retail sector, such as David Jones, have been hit hard by these changes. Last month, David Jones noted first-half profits declined 19.6 percent from the previous year to $85 million. The company specifically pointed to online shopping and importation of goods as contributing factors and warned investors that full-year profits could take a 40 percent hit as the company reacts to these changes.

The retail sector performed better in some regions of Australia than others. In Queensland, for example, retail sales were up 1.5 percent and in Western Australia, they increased 1 percent. Conversely, sales were down 0.6 percent in New South Wales and 0.4 percent in Victoria, the ABS data revealed.

"Global ructions driving heightened caution coupled with the strong Aussie encouraging purchases abroad will keep retail sales soft," Moody's Economy.com analyst Katrina Ell added.

In addition to altering store operations, many Australian retailers are rallying behind legislation that would lower the importation threshold. Because consumers don't have to pay taxes on imported goods worth less than $1,000, many simply buy low-cost products abroad and then import them rather than paying higher domestic prices.

This entry was posted by Retail Pro on Tuesday, April 3rd, 2012 at 9:24 am .

While economic conditions are slowly improving, a considerable number of Americans are still without jobs or any means to support themselves. This, in turn, has lead to an increase in shoplifting, and retailers should reconsider their store operations in response.

Scott Stanton, the owner of County Market in Indiana, has noted a significant lift in product theft. It's frequently difficult to make the appropriate changes because of how sporadic shoplifting can be – one week there are no instances, the next there could be a dozen. Additionally, people from all walks of life are stealing food, clothing and other products – there is no way to profile thieves.

Fortunately, other shoppers are noticing and are helping retail merchants fight against these thieves.

"You'd be surprised. Customers will come and tell you when they see something," Stanton told Commercial-News. "They understand if you're stealing from our store, that customer realizes they're also stealing from them. It all trickles down."

In North America, it frequently isn't the shopper that brands need to worry about. According to the Center for Retail Research, employee theft was the biggest source of concern for shoplifting.

This entry was posted by Retail Pro on Sunday, April 1st, 2012 at 9:50 am .

Marketing is no longer just a means of getting a customers to shop in-store – now, a significant number of retail merchants are leveraging proximity advertising to encourage consumers to take specific action.

A new IBM study suggests 72 percent of consumers would act on a marketing message they receive while in sight of a retailer. Given the fact that more than 1 billion people worldwide now own mobile phones, the devices are the perfect means for retailers to deliver these messages.

"The connection is clear: Marketers that can reach the customer at the point of sale can harness the enormous potential of proximity marketing," MediaPost adds. "Thanks to a pervasive mobile culture in which consumers use smartphones as portable windows to the world, marketers have the power to deliver the right message at the right place when they combine mobile messaging capabilities with digital signage tools."

Walgreens is one of the many retail merchants integrating smartphones into store operations. The brand recently began sending digital coupons and catalogs to people as they entered stores.

This entry was posted by Retail Pro on Thursday, March 29th, 2012 at 9:48 am .

Retailers can expect to see greater traffic using their retail point of sale software, as consumers are predicted to be out in greater numbers this spring.

According to the Global Retail Manufacturers and Importers Survey, 43.2 percent of survey respondents said that the spring 2012 shopping season will surpass last year's, and another 40 percent believe that the summer 2012 season will perform better year-over-year.

Additionally, 40 percent of respondents said that retailers ordered more merchandise than last year, with 47 percent reporting that stores' orders increased by 3 to 5 percent.

"These numbers are very encouraging for the overall state of the consumer-driven economy," said Andrew Tananbaum, executive chairman of CBC. "This is the first time in nearly three years that the importers we work with are manufacturing more than they did last year and are planning on having to restock shelves."

The figures are only one of many recent indicators that the U.S. economic recovery is gaining steam. Last month, more than 225,000 jobs were added to the economy.

This entry was posted by Retail Pro on Thursday, March 29th, 2012 at 2:56 am .

New retail software will only get brands so far, according to top UK stores. Trust and innovation will be key to winning the future.

Major UK retailers, including John Lewis and Waitrose, are examples of how stores are responding to the financial crisis, globalization and increasing technological change to reach consumers in new ways, Reuters reports.

One way retailers can improve the customer experience, according to store groups, is to understand consumers' desire for change and develop new packaging and design, the source notes.

"Retailers are going to have to face a new reality, there's going to be no help from the government," Peter Marks, chief executive of The Co-operative Group, said at the annual Retail Week conference. "We all have to start focusing on driving costs out of the business and investing those savings into giving the customer a better experience."

Many high street retailers have taken to purchasing more space for their operations, adding second levels or expanding laterally.

This entry was posted by Retail Pro on Thursday, March 29th, 2012 at 2:50 am .

Major retailers are hoping to spur more purchases through a new retail merchandising venture launched by American Express and Twitter.

The two companies have teamed up to provide consumers with discounts by tweeting certain retail hashtags. For example, consumers shopping at Whole Foods Market can receive a $20 credit on a future purchase of $75 or more at the store by tweeting #AmExWholefoods.

Shoppers looking to take part in the program simply have to visit the American Express website and sync their credit card with Twitter. The discounts will then be automatically applied when users tweet a specific hashtag.

"I really believe that this is turning tweets into transactions," American Express executive Elizabeth Rutledge told CNN Money. "We need to be where our customers are. They're on these platforms using them every day."

Currently, 16 retailers are participating, including H&M, Whole Foods Market, FedEx and Best Buy. Whether more retailers will be added remains unclear.

This entry was posted by Retail Pro on Wednesday, March 28th, 2012 at 2:53 am .

With a projected surge of investment, UK retailers may need to prepare with updated retail software such as point-of-sale systems.

According to a recent report from corporate adviser Clearwater Corporate Finance, UK retail is predicted to see a large increase in foreign investment, following a series of acquisitions last year, Retail Week reports.

The report, called "The Spend," noted that overseas investment has been increasing since 2009. Last year, overseas investors accounted for 42 percent of mid-market deals, compared to 2009, when they constituted 18 percent of the total deals.

"Both UK and overseas [corporations] are acquiring for a number of reasons, including to establish a market presence, grow market share, acquire particular capabilities or access brands that have the capability to be grown globally," said Gareth Iley, partner at Clearwater's consumer sector team, according to Retail Week.

Currently, luxury retailers are taking advantage of the market, snapping up spaces in London's prime shopping districts.

This entry was posted by Retail Pro on Wednesday, March 28th, 2012 at 2:50 am .

Retail Pro International, LLC just completed its 2011 audit and is excited to announce a record-breaking year. Despite the economic downturn that affected other businesses in many regions across the globe, Retail Pro International was able to achieve top-line growth over the 12-month period.

Revenue reported during 2011 was higher than the year prior, in part due to a healthy deferred revenue balance that was carried over. Meanwhile, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization were up by 43 percent year-over-year, stemming from tight expense management.

Retail Pro International continues to be in an excellent cash position as well, due to strident collection processes and the close involvement of the sales team in this matter.

December 2011 was the best showing for sales in history of the company," added Kerry Lemos, CEO at Retail Pro International, LLC.

Retail Pro International is planning for an even bigger 2012 as the company continues to globalize and develop its presence in new markets, including the Middle East, with its innovative retail software solutions, including the Retail Pro Prism, the next generation retail management software due for general release mid-year.

This entry was posted by Retail Pro on Tuesday, March 27th, 2012 at 11:24 am .

Retail Pro International is welcoming 10 new business partners to the global Retail Pro Community. These partners include Cypress Solutions (California, USA), DML Knowledge Group (Ontario, Canada), Ink Pavilion Limited (Lagos, Nigeria), Mannai Corporation (Doha, Qatar), Nortech Infonet (Bangalore, India), PC Integral (Monterrey, Mexico), Pioneer Solutions (London, UK), Retail Professionals Hawaii (Hawaii, USA), Softteam (Bogota, Columbia), and ubiTems (Korea).

Authorized business partners are key components to Retail Pro International's success.  Partners sell, and more importantly, deliver and perform services for Retail Pro customers across the globe. This network of partners enables Retail Pro International to reach customers in the most remote of markets, giving them service in their local language and providing first-hand knowledge of retail conditions in that part of the world.

"The retail industry is a global sector, and to truly be a leader in retail management software, it's crucial we're able to provide service that is tailored to each individual market," Mike Bishop, vice president of business development, said. "These business partners, each a best-in-class technology company, allow us to achieve that goal."

Retail Pro International is continuing its growth and is looking to add many more partners in 2012 in all markets they serve, on all continents.

This entry was posted by Retail Pro on Tuesday, March 27th, 2012 at 11:23 am .

The internet is no longer a novel sphere for retail merchandising – in fact, companies are expected to have a presence on multiple social media outlets.

However, this can become difficult as not all websites are right for every retailer. One newer social media site is appealing specifically to image-dependent retailers. Pinterest allows members to share images and thoughts by "pinning" them to virtual community boards.

Like Twitter and the possibility of "re-tweets," images can be "re-pinned" on other boards, allowing retailers to gain more followers or users in a certain community, Retail Week explains. While the site is still relatively new, it was recently found to drive more interest to websites than Google+, LinkedIn and MySpace combined.

Retail Week suggests two ways that companies can leverage Pinterest: creating themed boards they can share with followers and encouraging consumers to share the content with their own communities.

"Using the social networking site is a good way to build brand presence online, introduce the retailer's product to a new audience and ultimately increase sales," Retail Week explains. "Images are linked to the retailer's website, so users can click through to the transactional site. Retailers can also monitor the kinds of images being shared and searched for by users in order to keep up with trends."

This entry was posted by Retail Pro on Tuesday, March 27th, 2012 at 2:00 am .