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June 25, 2010

CRMA Loss Prevention Committee Update
Looking for the Next Retailer of the Year
Summertime Energy Savings
Retail News and Notes

• On Wednesday of this week, CRMA held another in our series of Regional Loss Prevention meetings at the community room within the Westfarms Mall in Farmington, CT.

• The meeting was a big success with well over 50 Loss Prevention professionals from a wide variety of Retailers in attendance.

• Glastonbury Police Chief Tom Sweeny gave a great presentation on his activities regarding pawn shops and the illegal operations that are taking place in a number of them throughout the state.

• The group also took some time to exchange information about activities that are taking place throughout the State in an effort to better coordinate and hopefully prevent ORC activities in CT.

• We are in the process of planning our next regional meeting, which will be held sometime in October.

• If you are interested in attending this meeting, please let Cathy in our office know so she can add you to our growing list of LP professionals. You can reach Cathy by emailing her at cathy@crmaonline.com or by call our office 860-527-1044

Looking for the Next Retailer of the Year

• In addition to talking about ORC activities in the State, we also announced at our meeting this week, that CRMA will be honoring a Loss Prevention professional with our first annual LP person of the Year.

• This award will be presented at our annual luncheon and awards ceremony that will take place in November, at the Bushnell’s Autorino Great Hall in Hartford.

• You can nominate a deserving LP professional by calling Cathy in our office for the nomination form and submitting it to our office.

• Also, we are still accepting nominations for our Annual Retailer of the Year.

• The Retailer of the Year will be honored during our Annual Luncheon and Award Ceremony and we strongly encourage you to call Cathy today to nominate your favorite retailer for the 2010 Retailer of the Year.

Summertime Energy Savings

• With summer officially upon us this week, we want to once again remind members of ways that they can save money and lower their energy cost thru programs that we offer.

• One easy way to lower your cost is to switch your energy supplier to our program with Public Power who can make that switch for you and save you lots of money.

• Please keep in mind two things when considering switching energy suppliers.

• One, if you are still with UI or CL&P you are paying too much for your energy supply you should switch your energy supplier TODAY.

• And the second thing to remember is that CRMA has endorsed a CT ENERGY COMPANY to help lower your cost.

• Public Power is a Danbury CT power supply company and already a number of members have switched to Public Power and lowered their energy cost.

• Check into it today and we think you will find that there is real savings to be earned. Check out Public Power by going to their website, www.ppandu.com

• Speaking of earning savings, while it gets hot, you can earn money by lowering your consumption thru our Demand Response program with CPowered.

• CPowered is a leading Energy technology company who are experts in Demand Response.

• If you participate in the CPowered Demand Response program you can EARN REAL MONEY while helping the environment.

• CPowered will pay you to “get off the grid” so to speak and we encourage you to call Bryan Porcaro of CPowered today to see if your company can participate in the Demand Response program.

• Your can reach Bryan at 646 438 4979 or at bryan.porcaro@cpowered.com

Retail News and Notes


• Global frenzy erupts for the iPhone 4  Shoppers from Japan to San Francisco woke up early, and some braved the rain, to get their hands on an iPhone 4, according to media reports that predict Apple could set a record by selling 1 million of the smartphones today. Apple said Wednesday that production delays will push introduction of the white iPhone until late July. Also, some users who received their handsets early reported a few bugs, including screen discoloration and reception issues. ClipSyndicate/Bloomberg (6/24) , Reuters (6/24) , The Wall Street Journal (6/23) , Bloomberg Businessweek (6/24) , The New York Times (free registration)/VentureBeat (6/24) , CNET/Circuit Breaker blog (6/23)

• Penney's pushes e-commerce effort to the next level
J.C. Penney, an early adopter of online retail, has reported flat website sales for the past three years as new competition for e-commerce customers exploded onto the scene. The chain plans to turn that trend around and boost online sales by $1 billion during the next few years by completely revamping its e-commerce system during the next 18 months. The new infrastructure will allow the chain to ramp up social media efforts and develop mobile commerce efforts. InternetRetailer.com (6/23)

• Start of summer means back-to-school for retailers
Retailers looking to stay fashion forward and avoid getting caught with too much of last season's merchandise on hand see the start of summer as the time to launch sidewalk sales and prepare for back-to-school shopping. The practice appeals to buyers who enjoy getting a jump on the next season's new looks and hard-to-fit consumers who need a diverse selection, said Daniel Butler, the National Retail Federation's vice president of retail operations. The Oklahoman (Oklahoma City) (6/24)

June 11, 2010

Loss Prevention Meeting Close to Capacity
Retail of the Year Nomination
CRMA Golf Outing Update
Public Power and CRMA Teaming up to Save Retailers Money
Retail News and Notes


• The CRMA Loss Prevention Committee is holding another Regional Meeting on June 23rd at the Westfarms Mall; today is the last day you can sign up due to the overwhelming response.

• We only have a few spots left so be sure to send in your response today!

• CRMA has invited Glastonbury Chief of Police Tom Sweeny to be our guest speaker for this event. Chief Sweeny has taken a very active and aggressive approach to closing illegal pawn shop operations and will give us an update on some of his cases.

• In addition, like our other meetings, we will continue to foster a dialogue among Loss Prevention Professionals throughout CT so that they can exchange ideas and information to continue to stay one step a head of the bad guys.

• As we mentioned this meeting will be held Wednesday, June 23, 2010 from 9:30 to 11:30 at Westfarms Mall Community Room – 2nd Floor.

• Please call Cathy today (860) 527-1044, to make sure you are registered for the event. It is close to capacity so don’t delay!

Retail of the Year Nomination

• Don’t forget to submit your Retail of the Year nomination!

• This week we received a nomination and we know that there are more to come and we want to continue to encourage every member to nominate either yourself, your colleague or your favorite retailer for this prestigious award.

• If you do not have a nomination form, please call our office today and we will send one out to you ASAP.

CRMA Golf Outing Update

• Don’t forget about our 9th annual CRMA Golf Outing!

• The Golf Outing is one way that we raise money for our association and we hope that you can take some time out of your very busy schedules and join us this year.

• You can get additional information on the day’s events or reserve your foursome by calling our office at 860-527-1044.

• Hope you will be able to join this fall for our Golf Outing. We appreciate your support!


Public Power and CRMA Teaming up to Save Retailers Money

• If you are still on standard service with either UI or CL&P then we guarantee that our endorsed provider Public Power CAN SAVE YOU MONEY.

• If you don’t believe us go this website and check it out your self.

• Put in your monthly bill and compare it with what Public Power is offering you and see your savings.

• Or you can call us and we will do it for you. Call our office today and we would love to show you how we can save you money on your electric bill.

Retail News and Notes

• American Eagle's 77kids brand to start out slowly: As it opens the first of its 77kids stores in the coming months, American Eagle says it's taking a slow and steady approach. The new brand for children will make a name for itself and build sales at the first seven stores before the company will even think about opening an eighth, CEO Jim O'Donnell said. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (6/10)

• Nordstrom is building sales at both ends
The recession brought lessons on inventory balancing for high-end retailer Nordstrom, which isn't backing off plans to expand its Rack discount chain even as full-price sales at Nordstrom department stores recover, leaving less overstock for Rack stores. "We think this is an opportunity for us to learn how to use inventory more efficiently," said executive Michael G. Koppel. "We're excited about figuring that out." MediaPost Communications/Marketing Daily (6/9)

• Merchants offer Father's Day deals to fit budgets
Consumers plan to spend less on Father's Day than they did on Mother's Day, according to an NRF survey. The Associated Press offers tips on finding ways to honor dad without breaking the bank, including searching out short-term specials online and shopping for gadgets that come with rebates. Google/The Associated Press (6/10)