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Retailers oppose Amazon app attack

The Retail Industry Leaders Assoc. and other retail associations are opposing Amazon's predatory app designed to take sales away from retail stores by buying product from a store to receive additional price discounts. Amazon already has a pricing advantage because it doesn't collect and remit sales taxes that local retailers must pay, and the app strategy arrogantly exploits a government subsidy to put "showrooms" out of business. See the CBA Industry Blog.

What's your Nelson-Zondervan take?

HarperCollins's acquisition of Thomas Nelson merges two Christian-industry giants and brings together competing lines of Bibles and Bible translations. What's your take on what this merger will mean to Christian-store retailers and suppliers? Let us know on our Facebook page.

STL begins buy-out from Biblica

A six-member executive team is preparing documents that could see STL Distribution North America split off from parent Biblica in a management buy-out that could close by the end of the year. STL President Glenn Bailey announced the action at the wholesaler’s Fall Invitational in Tennessee last weekend, saying the move is as much about mission as commercial success. Read more.

Carol Awards list offers good reads

Wonder what to recommend to an advid fiction reader in your store? Check out winners and finalists of the Carol Awards. These titles have been professionally judged for writing and story quality by genre to create a reading list and recommendations for customers. Check out the winners and finalists on this postable list.

Bureaucrats push store unionization

If there is any question that the federal government is working to make it easier for people to depend on government and tougher for small businesses to succeed, its final ruling to notify and encourage employees to form unions is another example. You are ordered to post your pro-union poster by Nov. 14. Read more.

California OKs Amazon tax deal

Californa approved a sales tax reprieve for Amazon.com for a year, foregoing $200 million in tax revenue. The action recognizes the need for national Internet sales-tax standards and could expedite a federal law now under consideration. See below post on possible Main Street Fairness Act impact.

Amazon deal could speed fair taxes

The deal Amazon.com struck with California’s Legislature last week to postpone sales tax collection and payment for sales into the state through September 2012 could spark quicker acceptance of the proposed federal Main Street Fairness Act’s administrative solution. Under the deal with California, Seattle-based Amazon agreed to collect sales taxes after the 2012 deadline unless Congress approves action on Internet sales taxes before then. Read more.

See CBA's Advocacy & Action.

Co-op e-book solution not viable now

A task force of Christian-store retailers exploring the feasibility of a collaborative industry solution to provide e-books through Christian stores has determined no viable, broad-based cooperative solution could be identified at this time. Read more.

Stores can put God's Word in Action

A CBA Channel Exclusive in partnership with Thomas Nelson Publishing means Christian stores can help raise as much as $1.4 million to help end poverty and preventable deaths among children in the United States and worldwide. Check out how your Bible sales contribute to the mission.

 

Suit alleges e-book price-fixing

The “agency model” – a business strategy to protect the value of publishers’ content – has been challenged in a class action complaint filed Aug. 9 in the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, by Seattle law firm Hagens Berman.

The suit alleges that Apple, its CEO Steve Jobs, and five publishers conspired to control e-book prices, some of which now are higher than hardcover book prices. The conspiracy was designed to thwart Amazon.com’s e-book market dominance, driven by its policies to sell e-books at or below cost to gain market share.

Read more and link to the suit...

Web-tax fairness bills introduced

Senate Majority Whip Richard Durbin, D-Ill., introduced the Main Street Fairness Act July 29 in the U.S. Senate and a similar bill was introduced in the House. The bill would enable states to require out-of-state sellers to collect sales tax whether they have a physical presence in the state or not. Read more.

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Post Borders strategy tips offered

Think through some of these ideas to convert former Borders customers to your customers in the wake of the national bookseller's liquidation. Let these tips compiled from various sources inspire you.

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Do you have Borders' blinders?

The New Yorker weighs in on what happened to the national bookseller, and it's not all e-books and turbulent economics.

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Borders prognostications abound

General news reporters often don't seem to get the whole picture about Borders' demise, blaming it all on e-books. But industry observers often have a different take. Simba Information senior trade analyst Michael Norris told an Associated Press reporter that Borders’ closure could decrease e-book sales because fewer places will exist for people who buy e-books to browse and research new titles physically before they buy electronically. While Simba has tried to quantify the exact number of consumers “who ‘mooch’ off of bookstores” to browse and later buy on an e-reader, it’s difficult to do, But we know it happens,” he said.

The Wall Street Journal also offers insights into Barnes & Noble’s financial challenges as its e-book strategy has taken as estimated 30% of market share from Amazon.com and Apple.

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CBA pushes for fair Internet taxation

CBA is supporting proposed federal legislation that would help states require Internet-only businesses to collect and remit sales and use taxes to local states. Giant corporations that use predatory practices that avoid sales taxes should be required to pay the same taxes locally owned businesses must pay.

For more, see Advocacy & Action.

Social-media marketing needs a new mindset

Retailers increasingly are using social media to connect with customers, build relationships, and increase sales. Gunnar Simonsen says people want to connect personally and authentically, and companies that want to connect with consumers need to think that way. Simonsen is helping retailers, music groups, organizations, and institutions better serve and connect with their customers using Facebook, Twitter, text-message marketing, and other social-media tools. For more click here.

Ratings help customers better understand Christian-media in stores

A CBA industry task force, in cooperation with The Dove Foundation, developed a new ratings system for Christian DVD products and film releases to help retailers better serve their customers with knowledgeable information about product content. The intent of the ratings schema is to ensure that Christian consumers understand the type of content they are purchasing from Christian stores, particularly if titles contain portrayals not usually expected in Christian media. Go to the ratings page for details.

Are you paying for sloppy PCI practices?

If you noticed a non-compliance fee tacked onto your credit-card services bill, you may not have filled out a self-assessment questionnaire to demonstrate you're compliant with credit-card security standards. Check out what you need to do by reading the full post on the CBA blog.

Posted on January 22, 2010

For the new Corporate Responsibility Guidelines and Best Practices document, plus Lead Paint Rule News, click here.