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The Hershey Company, the No. 1 candy producer in the United States, has announced price increases for its chocolate and candies in response to rising input costs of its key ingredients.

Online retailers continue to spend the most money on paid search because they find it is the most effective way to acquire new customers, according to a Forrester Research and Shop.org report.

Internet retail titan Amazon has reported a money losing quarter despite impressive growth in sales.

Supply Chain commerce solutions provider Manhattan Associates, Inc. announced that SDV, the global leader in supply chain management services, has successfully deployed Manhattan Associates’ Warehouse Management solution (WMS) to orchestrate the regional supply chain operations of Clarins and Sephora in South East Asia.

In a global survey, half of the world’s CEOs recognise that their supply chain can be a strategic differentiator, but the majority of them believe their retail supply chains are not optimal. JDA Software warns that supply chain has become a mission-critical issue that retail CEOs need to look into.

AEB Asia Pacific has announced a new version of its ASSIST4 Monitoring & Alerting solution. The latest version offers unparalleled business flexibility and superior performance for businesses through its new messaging framework and enhanced tracking features.

Revionics Inc., which delivers solutions for omnichannel merchandising strategies, has announced the latest release of its Markdown Optimisation solution. This provides new capabilities that enable retailers carrying short life-cycle products – such as fashion products – to localise and prioritise decisions at speed and scale for increased profitability.

Almost every aspect of retail today is far removed from what it was twenty, ten or even five years ago. Yet at the heart of it, so much remains the same. To paint a picture: previously if you were expanding into another city or country, you would do your research, understand your customer in that market and open a concept store to build your brand awareness in a way that resonated locally.

“Responsible consumption” (RC) products now account for at least 15% of all grocery sales — or a US$400 billion global market, according to a report by Boston Consulting Group (BCG). Three-quarters of consumers in the most developed countries say they buy RC products at least occasionally. In the otherwise stagnant grocery sector, two-thirds of total growth in recent years has come from RC products, the report said.

Diving deeper into mobile apps, WalmartLabs – which is Walmart Stores’ innovation lab – has acquired Stylr, a mobile app that allows shoppers to find clothes in nearby stores.

Retail brand Gap has announced it plans to produce clothing in Myanmar, making it the first American retailer to enter Myanmar since the country began its transition to democracy three years ago.

Italian retailer Furla is continuing to expand its presence in travel retail across Asia.

At the World Processing Tomato Congress last month, Charles Brand, vice-president, Marketing and Product Management at Tetra Pak, spoke on global consumer trends influencing the food industry. He shares more with Retail Asia.

The global food industry is on the eve of an online retailing revolution that will lead to fundamental changes for players along the supply chain, from processors to retailers. Food processors and producers, however, face the danger of being pushed to the back of the e-shelf because products are not sufficiently ‘online-proof’.

US-based CP Kelco, a specialty hydrocolloids manufacturer, has opened a hub facility for South Asia alongside its dairy beverage centre of excellence (CoE) in Singapore. The company said the move is to strengthen its global innovation footprint.

Online retailers have to fulfil their promises of convenient and better shopping experience to their customers. Robert Van Lith, general manager for Unitox, tells Retail Asia about the potential pitfalls for e-tailers and how his company can help them deliver on their promise of customer delivery.