MSA Midwest Chapter Members: Today Is the Last Day to Register for Your August Meeting
from MSA
Information about the next meeting of MSA's Midwest Chapter has been posted to the MSA Web site. Don't delay -- today is the last day to register. View the agenda and get more details about the summer meeting. More

New MSA Retail Tip: Green, Sustainable, Eco-Friendly, Healthy Design: Part I -- Store Interiors
from MSA
Green, sustainable, eco-friendly, earth-friendly, non-toxic, healthy … these are all popular buzz words that describe wonderful concepts currently being incorporated into home, business and mercantile interiors on a daily basis. But what does this mean to the typical museum store management team? More

CPSC Issues Policy Statement on CPSIA Tracking Labels
from Publishers Weekly
The Consumer Product Safety Commission issued its long-awaited statement of policy on the tracking labels required for all manufacturers of children's products, under the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act. More

Art Institute of Chicago Launches Landmark Virtual Gallery Tour on Museum Web Site
ArtDaily.org
The Art Institute of Chicago launched Pathfinder, the museum's new interactive floor plan and virtual gallery tour system on its Web site. The first art museum in the world to dynamically combine its floor plan with fully up-to-date high-definition and panoramic views of its galleries, the Art Institute now offers web surfers and visitors planning a trip to the museum a completely unique experience of the galleries. Pathfinder additionally offers information about daily programming and gallery tours, all current exhibitions, special activities in the new Ryan Education Center, and visitor amenities such as restaurants and shops. More

The Leaner Baby Boomer Economy
from BusinessWeek
The downturn is putting a crimp on baby boomers' free-spending ways, and the likes of Mercedes and Starwood Hotels are scrambling to keep up. More

Ecommerce Know-How: Should You Host Your Own Web Site?
from Practical eCommerce
For some ecommerce businesses, operating an in-house HTTP server and the associated server software can improve Web site performance, increase data security, and lower overall costs. But hosting your site yourself is not for everyone. More

Six Reasons to Kick Off Your E-mail Program Today
from OneCoast
Many buyers tell us a big challenge to running a successful retail store is ensuring a continuous flow of customers into their stores. We often hear: consumers buy once they are in the stores. But how do you best get them in the door? Let's lay out six reasons why you should start an email program today. More

Marketing to Today's 65-plus Consumers
from Adweek
Looking at some survey data on 65-plusers, and hearing from people professionally engaged in understanding and marketing to this cohort, we get a clearer picture of how older Americans see themselves and the advertising that's aimed (or, often, misaimed) at them. More

You Sample, You Sell
from OneCoast
There's nothing better than giving away free samples to get your customers to try, love, and buy whatever it is you have to sell. Paint stores give tiny packets of paint so you can sample the colors at home. iTunes lets you play 30 seconds from every song on an album before you download it. And clothing retailers even take away display space to provide for sampling - the dressing room. More

Online Retailers Focus on Checkout to Increase Sales, According to State of Retailing Online
from NRF
When it comes to how people buy online, retailers are paying as much attention to how the shopping experience ends as how it starts. According to "The State of Retailing Online 2009: Merchandising Report", conducted by Forrester Research, Inc. of 117 respondents, retailers plan to focus heavily this year on improving customers' check-out experience. Companies will also place an emphasis on image enhancement on product detail pages and site search filters to help shoppers more easily find what they're looking for. More

Skinny Wallets, Sticky Fingers: Retailers Fight Theft
from The Gazette Colorado Springs
Bogus travelers' checks. Hidden pockets bulging with Blu-ray discs. Mad dashes out the door with shopping carts full of unpaid merchandise. Not only have retailers taken a hit from decreased consumer spending, they're also dealing with losses from increased criminal activity, including shoplifting, employee theft and vendor fraud, as well as employee error. More

Sales Set to Fall Further in August
from Retail Week
Retail sales fell for the third consecutive month in the year to July, with little respite forecast by retailers for August, according to the CBI's Distributive Trades Survey. A total of 32 percent of retailer respondents said that year-on-year sales volumes increased during the year to July, while 47 percent said that they were down. The resulting balance of -15 percent was better than forecasts of -21 percent. A balance of -23 percent is predicted for August. More

Top Benefactors Sue Brandeis Over Museum Closure
from Boston Herald
Three top Rose Art Museum benefactors are suing to stop Brandeis University from closing the Waltham cultural site and selling off more than $200 million of art. More

Fright Night at the Museums
from The Globe and Mail
The recession is forcing some Canadian art museums and galleries to cancel, reschedule, rejig or indefinitely postpone exhibitions -- both new ones and those on tour from elsewhere, a Globe and Mail survey shows. More

Museum Hours: Time for a Change
from Real Clear Arts
To save money, many museums are trimming back hours -- incredibly, some are cutting out evening hours. Sorry, but decisions like that are unfathomable, which seem to be more for the convenience of staff than for the convenience of visitors. More

Lucia Loves ... A New Online Museum Shop
from The Times
"Dinner with Tracey Emin, tea with Rodchenko ... we're bringing a little culture to your dining table." So reads the blurb on the art of dining section of culturelabel.com, a new website that aims to bring culture (or, more precisely, culturally-related products) not just to the dining table but to any part of your life. More