Archive for December 13th, 2011

Frito-Lay says: “Gentlemen, start your (electric) engines.”

December 13, 2011

Punch line:  Frito-Lay is building the largest fleet of electric cars in North America

According to Today’s Trucking …

PepsoCo’s Frito-Lay North America has turned the ignition on ten new electric trucks in Orlando.

The electric delivery trucks are set to be part of the largest planned fleet of commercial all-electric trucks in North America.

Frito-Lay plans to deploy 176 electric trucks this year, making them the largest commercial fleet of all-electric trucks in North America.

The trucks are by Smith Electric Vehicles, and designed to operate at peak effectiveness in urban environments.

The trucks generate zero tailpipe emissions and each truck emits 75 percent less greenhouse gases than a conventional diesel truck.

The trucks operate for up to 100 miles on a single charge.

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I wish me a Merry Christmas … I wish me a Merry Christmas …

December 13, 2011

TakeAway: Consumers are spending more on themselves this holiday season. This is boosting retailer’s sales for now but raising concern of consumer spending after the holidays.

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Excerpt from AdAge: “On Your Holiday Shopping List This Year: You”

Consumers are taking advantage of deals to snap up items for themselves and non-gift items for their families.

According to the National Retail Federation, six in 10 planned to buy non-gift items this holiday season, spending an average of $130, up from $112 a year ago.

Research from Shopper Sciences found that a majority of shoppers spent more on themselves than on friends and family during the post-Thanksgiving shopping period. And 80% of shoppers surveyed spent more than they planned to.

Some retailers are even marketing the concept of self-gifting. NRF recently highlighted J.Crew, which featured a “Gift Yourself” section on its website, along with the text “To: You, From: You.”

While self-gifting is good news in the near term, in the long term it could prove problematic.

“Many went into the holidays thinking, ‘I need a new laptop, but I’ll wait until the prices are good.’ If consumers are waiting for the holidays, that creates a challenge for retailers [trying to] pull shoppers in the other 10 months of the year. It’s a blessing during the holidays and a curse the rest of the year.”

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This Google pop-up is different …

December 13, 2011

Takeaway: Google launched its first retail pop-up store in London, called the Chrome Zone. Google hopes to appeal to consumers’ desire to physically touch and experience a laptop computer before purchasing it. Let’s see if it helps boost the company’s holiday sales …

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Excerpted from brandchannel.com, “Google launches first branded store in London”

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… Well, the wait is over and the company has opened its first store… as a “store within a store” in central London — a pop-up boutique.

The 285 sq. ft. pop-up store within the Currys and PC World superstore on Tottenham Court Road “only sells Google’s (Samsung) Chromebook laptop and a few accessories such as headphones” and “will run for three months up to Christmas” …

A second Chrome Zone location will open this week (Oct. 6th) at a PC World superstore in Essex. “We’ve put a lot of effort into making it feel welcoming, homely and, dare I say it, Googley,” said a company spokesperson.

“It is our first foray into physical retail,” said Arvind Desikan, head of consumer marketing at Google UK. “This is a new channel for us and it’s still very, very early days. It’s something Google is going to play with and see where it leads“

Edit by KJM.

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