Amazon’s home grocery delivery service, AmazonFresh, is expanding slowly—on purpose. Ther service's first roll-out beyond its home base in Seattle hit Los Angeles last week as Amazon starts in on a strategic plan to focus on high-density urban areas and warehousing robotics, according to a report from Reuters.  

Amazon's Jeff Bezos has shown a lot of restraint in rolling out the grocery product as a handful of competitors like PeaPod, Fresh Direct and a host of more local, store-based systems have entered the space. But Bezos has slowed the process in order to learn from previous mistakes, as well as the mistakes of others. After all, with less than one percent of online activity responsible for the $586 billion in grocery retail sales, the addition of online grocery to Amazon's portfolio makes it virtually unsurpassable. Continue reading...

Amazon, the $60 billion e-commerce giant that sells just about everything online, is ready to make a play for the biggest plum of them all: the online grocery business. 

The company, which has used its home base of Seattle to test its "AmazonFresh" grocery delivery service for years, could begin rolling out the service to other cities this year, first Los Angeles and then San Francisco, according to Reuters. If all goes according to plan, AmazonFresh could show up in as many as 20 other cities, even some outside the United States, next year.

In a remarkable progression, Amazon has grown from an online bookseller to the world's largest e-commerce retailer. Along the way, it has expanded into virtually every product category, if not on its own, by acquiring companies like Zappos, the online shoe seller. Amazon already sells a wide range of consumer goods, such as health, beauty and cleaning products, but delivering perishable items brings a whole new level of complexity to its expansion. That's why Amazon is said to be adding refrigeration equipment to distribution centers outside the Seattle area.Continue reading...

Retail initiatives are trending as brands struggle and compete to adapt to an increasingly mobile-first consumer while keeping traffic coming to their physical stores. In result, stores are undergoing facelifts and creating brand stories to engage customers wherever they are.

CVS/pharmacy just launched an iPad app so customers can virtually explore the full range of its unique drugstore space and access services.

"As a pharmacy innovation company, CVS/pharmacy is committed to deploying new and emerging digital technologies that empower our customers on their path to better health," said Brian Tilzer, SVP, Chief Digital Officer for CVS/pharmacy in a press release.Continue reading...

Consider retailing a two-pronged challenge: On the one hand, retailers must accommodate the increasingly mobile consumer. On the other hand, the traditional retailer can't ignore the need to drive that consumer to a physical store. 

As highlighted in our previous post on the future of retail, there is a flurry of activity surrounding online retail initiatives right now, with particular emphasis on mobile. Mobile payments in particular are getting a lot of attention as retailers figure out ways to transfer the shopping experience to every sort of handheld device.

But there is an equally intense effort to reinvent the traditional store. In fact, many retailers are beginning to realize that rather than close stores, they can sustain them by giving them a much-needed facelift. More than a surface makeover, however, reinventing the store involves a thorough rework that often includes a growing trend: creating a "brand story" to engage and involve a consumer in the shopping experience.Continue reading...

Facebook plans to announce facelift of its News Feed.

Taco Bell officially releases its Cool Ranch Doritos Locos Tacos today. 

Time Warner to spin off Time Inc. as CEO Laura Lang exits.

Adidas posts weaker earnings on Reebok.

Baskin-Robbins plans to triple franchise size in Australia with new partnership.

Birds Eye commended for healthy eating campaign.

Boeing needs to provide more answers on Dreamliner firest to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.

Costco backs minimum-wage increase.

Cracker Barrel adds lower-calorie items.

Dell sees buyout deal threatened by activist investor Carl Icahn.

DirecTV bemoans rising program costs.

Google expands Street View in Europe.

Jamba Juice looks to fresh juice to boost sales.

Lego eyes tie-up with "The Simpsons" on Fox.

Moe's Southwest Grill readies first national ad campaign. Continue reading...

Groupon sacks founder Andrew Mason as CEO.

Gap reports strong sales on increased marketing spending.

Barnes & Noble falls behind in tablet wars.

Ahold plans to roll out more pickup points for Peapod.

Annie's looks to "spread good."

Apple flip-flopped on rule about officers' stock holdings.

Best Buy and founder end talks on ownership deal.

Boeing pares workforce for grounded Dreamliner.

Diageo prepares to buy majority stake in United Spirits.

Disney finds CEO Robert Iger under fire over power and pay.

Domino's Pizza plans to increase national ad spending. Continue reading...

Tesco made headlines a year ago when its HomePlus retail subsidiary in South Korea tested a virtual store in a Seoul subway station, showcasing items that could be scanned and ordered by smartphone for home delivery, while Peapod is testing virtual grocery shopping in the U.S.

Now Walmart is testing a similar idea in Toronto in partnership with Mattel. The retail and toy giants are teaming up on what's described as Canada's first pop-up virtual toy store, enabling QR code-based shopping of Mattel brands — including hot toys from Barbie, Hot Wheels, Fisher-Price and Thomas & Friends brands — to holiday shoppers.

The pop-up is located in the city's massive PATH underground walkway, a retail concouse that connects downtown buildings and and an array of businesses to Toronto's Union Station rail commuter hub. It may find a ready pool of virtual shoppers, as it will run for four weeks in the same location where Wells.ca tested a QR-enabled store in April.Continue reading...

Facebook launches "Gifts" under crafty data play and deletes fake "likes," dropping page views, as it teams up with Gates Foundation to launch apps for future college students.

BlackBerry maker RIM reports loss but sees cash pile grow.

Chrysler backs Motown musical.

Coca-Cola partners with Olympic medalist for soccer camp.

David Beckham nets hugely from his sponsorship deals.

GE is upbeat on industrial outlook.Continue reading...