Below you will find helpful and relevant articles that we carefully curate for the benefit of our B.R.A. Retail Members almost every day. Be sure to scroll through the most recent article or use the Search/Lookup feature to find topics and keywords related to articles that may help you to lower costs, increase margins or create more remarkable customer experiences.

“Do Wave Pools Actually Make Money? We Asked an Industry” by Evan Quarnstrom via The Inertia

by admin | May 6, 2026 | Customer Experience, Debate, Insurance, News, Opinion, Outdoor, Surf, Tourism

The Wavegarden pool under construction at DSRT SURF in Palm Springs, California. Photo: Wavegarden It feels like a lifetime ago that Kelly Slater unveiled his clandestine wave pool project in the Central California farmland. It’s been a little over a decade since...

“Why “Anything Else?” Is Costing You 10% of Every Sale” by Bob Phibbs via The Retail Doctor Blog

by admin | May 2, 2026 | Brick & Mortar, Customer Experience, Customer Service, Sales Training

Your associate looks up at the register and says: “Anything else?”The customer says no. The sale closes. And roughly 10% of that transaction walks out the door with them.Not because the customer did not want more. Because your associate handed them the...

“Retailers could close more than 40K stores in the next 5 years” by Daphne Howland via Retail Dive

by admin | Apr 27, 2026 | Brick & Mortar, Clearance Sales / Discounting, Commercial Real Estate, Customer Experience, Customer Loyalty, Customer Service, E-Commerce, News

An Eddie Bauer store in March 2026 that is slated to shutter this year. Closures over the next five years could weigh on already struggling malls. Daphne Howland/Retail Dive Tariffs and immigration policies are weighing on the industry and could drive even more...

“The Most Valuable Place Left Is One That Doesn’t Know You” by Bob Phibbs via The Retail Doctor Blog

by admin | Apr 8, 2026 | Brick & Mortar, Consumer Behavior, Customer Experience, Customer Service, Resources, Sales Training

It will be a place that has no idea who you are. There is a particular freedom in being unknown. No purchase history following you through the door. No algorithm anticipating your next move. No recommendations based on what people like you tend to buy. Just you,...

“How retailers can leverage their private label marketing advantage over national brands” by Erin Cabrey via Retail Boss

by admin | Apr 2, 2026 | Brick & Mortar, Customer Experience, Customer Loyalty, Private Label, Resources, Retail Strategy

Private label sales continue to grow, reaching a record $283 billion last year, with sales and unit volume growth outpacing those of national brands. While retailers are often selling private label products that are similar to, or even dupes of,...

“New Court Evidence Shows Amazon Working with Rivals to Quietly Raise Online Prices” by Jeanel Alvarado via Retail Boss

by admin | Mar 19, 2026 | Brick & Mortar, Customer Experience, E-Commerce, News, Retail Crime

Court filings reveal that when Amazon and a rival “price match,” someone in the chain agrees to raise the price so both can safely match at a more expensive levels. California Attorney General Rob Bonta just exposed something most shoppers suspected but couldn’t...