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September 10, 2010


While the Summer Turns to Fall
CRMA Golf Outing Now Just a Couple of Weeks Away
Energy Efficiency Outreach Program to Kickoff
Retailer of the Year Nomination Deadline
Retail News and Notes

• Boy that went by fast!

• While we were all enjoying the summer, and taking a little break from our FF, the hot season turned into fall and we now we are back with our weekly FF.

• Here is a rundown of what went on while we were away.

• The political primary season came and went and former Ambassador to Ireland Tom Foley beat out two opponents to capture the Republican nomination Governor.

• While Stamford Mayor Dan Malloy beat his challenger to become the standard bearer for the Democrats this November.

• Foley vs. Malloy will be a very interesting matchup and we promise to keep you up to date on that matchup.

• Meanwhile, Linda McMahon spent the summer clawing from way back to almost catch Dick Blumenthal in the polls, now making this race one of the hottest ones in the country.

• How is this for a trend:

• In May, Blumenthal had a lead over McMahon – 56% to 31%

• In June, the lead shrunk to 55% - 35%

• In July it moved to 54% - 37%

• The big jump was in August when Blumenthal’s lead withered to 50% to 40%

• Now, many insiders believe the gap has closed even more and the race is now gotten so close that the whole country seems to be watching.

• The race has gotten so interesting that for their upcoming debate, Fox News Anchor Brett Baier has agreed to moderate the debate.

• And the President is coming to the State September 16th for a Blumenthal Fundraiser.

• Other news and notes from the summer campaign season, include the world famous pollster, Charlie Cook, tagging the Jim Himes vs. Dan Debicella 4th congressional race from “likely to leans” Democrat.

• In Charlie Cook language that means Himes, the incumbent has the advantage, but he better watch out.

• Also this summer the CT Legislature and the Governor kept a close eye on the state budget – which continues to be a challenge.

• In fact, a major red flag was flown in the face of Retailers when the co-chairs of the influential Finance Revenue and Bonding Committee, seriously rose the issue of increasing the state sales tax to combat the growing state deficit.

• The CT Mirror has the story and you can view it by going here .

• Finally, while the summer is time for us to re-group and get ready for the next legislative session, we spent a lot of time working on ways to raise money for the association to keep us strong as well as continuing to finds ways to HELP YOU SAVE MONEY.

• Hopefully all that work will show off as we head into the home stretch of the year and get ready for the 2011 legislative session.

CRMA Golf Outing Now Just a Couple of Weeks Away

• One of the major fundraises for CRMA is our annual golf outing.

• This year our outing is September 27, 2010 at the Hartford Golf club, which is one of the premier private golf clubs in the state.

• Our outing might be our best one yet and if you have not had the chance to sign up there is still time and we would love to have you.

• If you are interested in helping out this year, whether it is putting a foursome together or purchasing a tee sign or even donating a raffle prize, please call Cathy in our office today.

• As we move into the homestretch of the golf outing, we can use all the help we can get and we appreciate your consideration.

• Please call Cathy in our office at 860-527-1044 or email her at cathy@crmaonline.com for more information.

Energy Efficiency Outreach Program to Kickoff

• One of the projects we were working on this summer is one that we are confident will help YOU save money in a very important part of your business.

• CRMA will begin right away, with a new energy efficiency outreach program to help educate retailers throughout the state on the benefits of the number of energy efficiency programs that are being offered to retailers today.

• Both CL&P and UI offer retailers, large and small, various programs that will help them lower their electric bill by becoming more energy efficient.

• The CRMA outreach program will assist the utilities by helping get out the word to members and non members about these programs.

• So, look for information from us about ways that you can lower your electric bill, not only by switching off standard service, but by other means, that will help you become more energy efficient and will help you save MONEY.

• We are very excited about the program because we know that too many times folks forget about the impact that our members have not only on the economy but in this case the energy market.

Retailer of the Year Nomination Deadline

• We are extending our deadline for this year’s Retailer of the Year by one more week. You now have until Friday September 18th to submit your nomination for retailer of the year.

• Please review a nomination form by visiting our website, www.crmaonline.

• Please submit your nomination to us today.

• The announcement of this year’s Retailer of the Year will be made at our annual awards luncheon which will be held on November 17th at the Bushnell in Hartford.

• Reminder to the members of our LP committee: the annual New England Organized Retail Crime Symposium and Tradeshow will be held on September 9, 2010 at the DCI center in Worcester Massachusetts.

• If you are interested in attending it is not to late, but please contact our office today or visit www.retailersma.org and go to the ORC link.

• This summer we also formed a retailers only Energy Committee, which is made up of Energy professionals from our member companies.

• As we mentioned above, energy efficiency and supply are critical parts to running a retail business and the fact that retailers are huge players in this market makes it important that CRMA have a stronger voice on energy issues.

• The CRMA Energy Committee is open to any CMRA member or CRMA energy manager and is intended to be a place where we can talk about energy policy questions and issues so that members of the retail energy community can come together to discuss ideas and possible solutions.

• It also provides us with experts in the area of energy policy so that we can increase our presence on these issues at the State Capitol and the DPUC.

• If you are interested in joining the CRMA Energy Committee, please contact our office today.

Retail News and Notes

• Macy's aims to make magic with its new campaign
Macy's has launched a celebrity-studded new campaign in time for Fashion Week, featuring Martha Stewart, Donald Trump and Jennifer Lopez in TV spots with a free-for-all feel. The campaign includes a dual focus on shopping and events associated with Macy's, including the Thanksgiving Day Parade, with one star-laden commercial featuring a backroom party complete with parade balloons and celeb spokeswoman Jessica Simpson locating just the right pair of shoes for one shopper. MediaPost Communications/Marketing Daily (9/7)

• Save-A-Lot and Rite Aid team up on S.C. stores
Rite Aid will add Save-A-Lot grocery items to 10 stores in South Carolina in a partnership with SUPERVALU. The stores will be remodeled and open in October with the name Save-A-Lot Food Stores/Rite Aid Pharmacy. Google/The Associated Press (9/7)

• Big-box chains think smaller as they seek to serve the masses
Discount-chain giants Target and Wal-Mart have stepped up efforts to localize their marketing and personalize offers to meet the needs of more customers, Forbes reports. Both chains have begun tailoring merchandise mixes in each store to better suit the needs of the communities they serve, and Target's online efforts now include a customizable electronic version of the chain's weekly circular that lets users create sale alerts for their favorite products. Forbes (9/7)