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Loyalty Newswire – September 7th, 2020

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By: Wise Marketer Staff |

Posted on September 7, 2020

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  • Stop & Shop revealed enhancements to its eCommerce platform and revamped Stop & GO loyalty program
  • Merkle's Special Edition of the Loyalty Barometer report analyzes the impacts of Covid-19 and social disruption on consumer behavior
  • IKEA's shopping centers business made its first U.S. real estate acquisition after buying a mall in San Francisco
  • A recent Wharton study on retail customer loyalty finds consumers are less-forgiving despite setbacks related to the pandemic
  • Here are 9 retailers that are planning to open new stores
  • Visa security flaw enables hackers to gain access to your bank account without knowing the PIN
  • Vipps partners with Visa to accelerate mobile payments in Norway and beyond
  • American Airlines has shared the company is facing backlash for allowing employees to wear a "Black Lives Matter" pin
  • Spirit turns to its loyalty program to raise more cash

LOYALTY PROGRAM NEWS:

GO Time: Stop & Shop Polishes Loyalty Program

Quotable: “Stephens and her team have been the driving force behind Stop & Shop’s new enhancements to its eCommerce platform and its revamped loyalty program, called Stop & Shop GO Rewards. The enhancements unify several areas of the shopper digital experience and also bring online and offline shopping together. The changes also come as the parent company doubles down on eCommerce and as Stop & Shop adds three new warehouses and 50 more shopper pickup locations this year.”

Merkle Releases Special Edition of Loyalty Barometer Report

Quotable: “Because of 2020’s economic and societal turmoil, the benefits of loyalty marketing programs are now in higher demand by consumers. Insights from the report reveal important changes to consumer behavior and preferences, as a result of the unprecedented economy. The pandemic has also intensified fundamental human values, which vary widely across generations.”

RETAIL NEWS:

IKEA's shopping centers arm buys San Francisco mall in its first US real estate deal

Quotable: “IKEA’s shopping centers business has made its first U.S real estate acquisition, buying the 6X6 mall in San Francisco, after telling Reuters in May it was engaged in several negotiations for inner-city acquisitions in the United States.”

Wharton releases new retail study on customer loyalty

Quotable: “The COVID-19 pandemic has made a substantial impact on retail and, as a result, brands are continuing to strategize on how best to engage with customers as many shift to online spending. The “Wharton Baker WisePlum Consumer Loyalty Study,” released in early August, finds that consumers are less forgiving, needing more from retailers despite the global pandemic, putting consumer loyalty at risk.”

9 retailers that are avoiding the industry’s shakeout and opening stores

Quotable: “Altogether, as of Friday, retailers have announced 7,707 store closures and 3,344 store openings so far this year, according to a tracking by Coresight Research. While much of the turmoil in the industry has stemmed from apparel chains and department store operators, the expansion finds itself in a number of other categories: beauty, home goods, discount and grocery chains.”

DATA SECURITY NEWS:

New PIN Verification Bypass Flaw Affects Visa Contactless Payments

Quotable: “The research, published by a group of academics from the ETH Zurich, is a PIN bypass attack that allows the adversaries to leverage a victim's stolen or lost credit card for making high-value purchases without knowledge of the card's PIN, and even trick a point of sale (PoS) terminal into accepting an unauthentic offline card transaction.”

PAYMENTS NEWS:

Visa teams with Vipps to accelerate mobile payments deployment in Europe

Quotable: “Visa and Vipps, the Norwegian digital wallet, announced a strategic partnership to accelerate mobile payments in Europe. Visa’s clients and partners will now be able to take advantage of the Vipps platform to create their own digital wallets and offer customers new ways to pay, be paid and manage their money.”

AIRLINE NEWS:

Airline Criticized for Allowing ‘Black Lives Matter’ Pins to Be Worn

Quotable: “American Airlines is facing backlash from some of its own employees after announcing on Sunday it will allow flight attendants to wear a ‘Black Lives Matter’ pin on their uniform”

Spirit Airlines Looks to Raise More Cash

Quotable: “On Monday, Spirit announced that it intends to raise $600 million of senior secured debt backed by its loyalty program, its $9 Fare Club membership program, and its brand. Spirit sought third-party appraisals for all three assets. The loyalty and $9 Fare Club programs were appraised at $1.9 billion combined, and the Spirit Airlines brand and related intellectual property were appraised at approximately $1 billion.”

Read last week's newswire if you missed it: Loyalty Newswire – August 31st, 2020

The Loyalty Newswire is compiled and edited by the staff at The Wise Marketer.