Although few on the RetailWire panel of industry experts would dispute the benefits of localized merchandising, many challenged the Tribune's contention that Wal-Mart's "mission to become a neighborhood-style store" is a recent development.
Today, retailers' inventory has returned to more normal levels, making the acquisition of merchandise more challenging.
One concludes that Samsung must have really good supply chain control, because that's some SKU [stockkeeping unit, ie different piece of merchandise] challenge there.
Trying to change their promotional tact while trying to clear inventory and move towards more centralized merchandising will be challenging in a tough traffic environment," JPMorgan analyst Brian Tunick had said in mid-January.
General merchandise has some significant challenges, in our view, and the Q3 result marks an underlying deterioration on Q2 – so if anything it appears this division is getting worse".
With a large exposure to big-ticket, home-related merchandise, Sears faces huge challenges as shoppers, squeezed by the rising costs of staples like gas and food, have cut back on nonessentials.
"These underperforming mobile games are a virtual version of the merchandising and frictionless payment challenge that this team solved for the retail industry," says Atlas Venture's Jeff Fagnan.
A former restaurant manager and driver for United Parcel Service, Mr. Dorrough finds the process of acquiring merchandise an exciting challenge.
"We thought that the challenges lay beyond merchandising and spilled into design, but it is a little bit of an about-face on the part of the Gap, to be making the change now".
Despite being less rich in taste, and despite the logistical challenges involved with merchandising this fruit to international markets at an acceptable quality, Cavendish eventually replaced Gros Michel in commercial banana plantations.
