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.

“Back-to-School Spending Surge Set to Break Records: Report” by Samantha Schober via NRF Newsletter Report

by admin | Aug 1, 2026 | Brick & Mortar, Consumer Behavior, Holiday, News, Predictions, Retail Economy

While online shopping is still holding its own, its share of spending among both K-12 and college households is slipping year by year. Yearly BTS spending for college students cracks $100B for the 1st time Back-to-school spending is on track to smash records this...

“Pharrell Just Made Surf the Coolest Thing in Paris. Surf Industry Leaders Weigh In.” by Tiffany Montgomery via SES Outdoor

by admin | Jul 27, 2026 | Apparel /Fashion, News, Opinion, Story Telling, Surf

Photos courtesy of Louis Vuitton. Pharrell Just Made Surf the Coolest Thing in Paris. Surf Industry Leaders Weigh In. SESO asked Pat Tenore of Tenore, Ryan Hitzel of Roark, Evan Slater of Sun Bum, Candy Harris of Unlisted Brand Lab, Ryan Mangan of Quiksilver and...

“College Students Develop Device to Save Skiers and Riders Trapped in Tree Wells” by Cooper Gegan via The Inertia

by admin | Jul 24, 2026 | Industry, News, Opinion, Outdoor, Resources, Snowboard

Avalanche beacons are a crucial part of backcountry skiing. However, even if the devices have saved many lives already, we haven’t yet reached the pinnacle (pun intended) of the technology’s potential. Students at OSU Cascades are working to change that, though. As...

“AI Agents Buy Sight Unseen. Salespeople Keep You Off the Wrong One” by Bob Phibbs via The Retail Doctor

by admin | Jul 20, 2026 | Artificial Intelligence / CHAT GPT, Brick & Mortar, News, Opinion, Resources, Retail Strategy, Sales Training

What an AI shopping agent actually does At Google’s I/O event, the company announced Universal Cart. Here is what it does, in plain terms. An AI agent is not a search box. It is a runner you send out. You tell it what you want, set a budget, and it goes shopping...

“CARV Expo Returns Bigger in Year Two” by Evan Shoda via CE Blog

by admin | Jul 2, 2026 | Brick & Mortar, Industry, News, Resources, Skateboard, Surf, Trade Shows

More brands on the floor and more buyers in the room as the West Coast’s only surf, action sports, outdoor adventure, and coastal lifestyle trade show builds on its San Diego debut. ALPHARETTA, GA — June 4, 2026 — CARV Expo wrapped its second edition at the San Diego...

“Is Using Cash Cringe to Gen Z?” by YPulse via The Robin Report

by admin | Jun 21, 2026 | Brick & Mortar, Customer Experience, Get Paid, News, Opinion, Predictions

Has Gen Z really made using cash cringe? Recent headlines definitely make it sound that way. Cash App recently reported that over half of Gen Z only use cash as a “last resort,” and nearly a third say people who pay with cash are “out of touch.”...