Today in Retail: Big Lots Has Big Plans for eCommerce, Brick-and-Mortar Growth; Inside the Victoria’s Secret Brand Transformation

Today in retail, Best Buy talks about the transformational power of technology, while Burlington Stores hopes to see foot traffic increase in 2022 after a Q4 slump has investors and analysts skittish. Plus, discount retailer Big Lots looks to increase its eCommerce sales.

Best Buy Faces Higher Costs, Says Tech Has ‘Changed Every Aspect of Our Lives’

Best Buy CEO Corie Barry told investors Thursday (March 3) that the structural changes that have happened over the past two years in terms of how we live, shop and work are permanent and committed to facilitate the advance of the connected economy.

Saying the digital shift and use of tech was no longer “a ‘nice to have’ but a necessity,” the Minnesota-based operator of 1,000 stores said during its investor day presentation that tech and related innovations are expanding into all parts of life.

Big Lots Promises Quick Rebound After Lackluster Q4

Discount retailer Big Lots saw a slight drop in its quarterly net sales in the last three months of fiscal 2021 compared to 2020 and less than 8% growth from the same period two years ago, but CEO Bruce Thorn told investors and analysts the company’s best is yet to come in 2022 and beyond.

Perhaps the most glaring area of worry for Big Lots is its eCommerce penetration, which was less than 5% in Q4. Thorn outlined a plan that includes a jump to 10% to 15% eCommerce penetration, a move that he says will generate another $500 million to $1 billion or more for the company.

Big Lots plans to open more than 50 new stores in 2022 as part of a long-term plan to open more than 500 new locations, with 80 or more coming each year starting in 2023.

Burlington Shares Tumble After Company Reports Q4 Foot Traffic Drop

Burlington Stores’ stock price saw a double-digit, pre-market dip Thursday (March 3) triggered by the company’s fourth-quarter earnings report and the announcement that the clothing retailer had seen a decline in foot traffic to its brick-and-mortar stores for the three-month period.

Overall, Burlington Stores saw a 28% increase in Q4 net sales in fiscal 2021, ending Jan. 29, from fiscal 2019 and 18% growth in total sales from two years ago. But while many of the numbers showed upward momentum for Burlington Stores, that wasn’t enough to get past the drop in foot traffic during the period, said CEO Michael O’Sullivan in a statement.

After 7-Month ‘Brand Transformation,’ Victoria’s Secret 2.0 Is Almost Unrecognizable

As part of the full-scale transformation of Victoria’s Secret, essentially everything that put the world’s largest specialty retailer of women’s intimate apparel and beauty accessories on the map 30 years ago has either been changed or scrapped altogether.

The Ohio-based operator of nearly 1,400 stores on Thursday (March 3) unveiled a raft of plans in the wake of its “milestone first year,” including a parade of upcoming product launches, several new brands, and a mix of promotions aimed at attracting new customers.

Mobile B2B Payments Combine Consumer-Grade CX With Industrial-Strength Security

TreviPay’s mobile payment app is designed to give business-to-business (B2B) customers who purchase in-store an omnichannel experience. The one-click payment app for B2B buyers is being used in 305 Staples stores in Canada and is in talks with other potential partners.

It features a multifactor authentication application so that when the buyer uses the mobile app at the store, it generates a code that the store scans to identify the customer at the point of sale. The app gives the customer access to a credit line immediately, allowing them to make purchases online, in the store or by calling a salesperson without waiting for a physical card to arrive.