Walgreens is a pharmacy most Americans choose to partonize. Walgreens has everything in one stop and is easy to find what you need. The Walgreens on the corner of Spring Garden and Aycock is the closest to me. This store just opened in 2008 and they have been busy ever since.

There are many advantages to this Walgreens. It is walking distance for me, that way I don't have to use my gas. They have about everything you need, food, cosmetics, medicine, a pharmacy with drive thru, photo lab and toiletries. They have the Redbox DVD rentals and some are open 24/7. When coming on Aycock toward Lee St, it is easy to turn right into their parking lot. They even have their own turning lane, which makes it great for those who want to turn. This particular store has great customer service. Everytime I go in there I feel welcomed. Their store is very clean, mostly because it is new. Also an advantage to this store is that it is near a college campus with students walking down Spring Garden all the time. With Walgreens being at the very corner of the campus most students would go there instead of CVS across the street because it is right there.

There aren't a lot of disadvantages to this particular store. One being if you are coming toward campus on Spring Garden and you want to go to Walgreens, you have to turn left onto Aycock then turn left into their parking lot. Another disadvantage is that there is only one entrance. You have to drive around the building to get to the front, which can be a hassle sometimes. When you exit Walgreens' parking lot, there is only one way to turn. With Walgreens being close to college and depending on college students for their sales, while school is out their sales might decrease. Overall, I like Walgreens and that is where i prefer to shop for last minute products.

Picture:
http://media.photobucket.com/image/Walgreens/feministing/walgreens.jpg

Why Circuit City Failed??

I remember when our family was looking for a new TV or a computer we would go to Circuit City. We would get great deals and have extremely good customer service. Now, you would get an excellent deal because they are now having a seventy percent offsale because they are closing down all of their stores but you might not find your TV or computer. As of January 16th, 2008, Circuit City came to the public saying they have decided to shut down all of their stores and start the liquidation process.

By what I have read in the articles, it seems that the reason why they went bankrupt was because of the creditors and lenders and CC just couldn't make a good agreement. They decided in November 2008 they were going to close twenty percent of their stores, which were 155 stores in USA. It also seems that Circuit City also went bankrupt due to poor management. It seems as they didn't know what to do financially.

I also believe that Circuit City failed in the retail industry because over half of their profits were made by internet sales. They didn't do a lot of business in stores compared to internet sales. And with our economy in a recession I believe that it made it worse for Circuit City. Not everyone can go and spend all this money on TV's, computers, etc, with the way our economy is. With the economy the way it is, people wants the best quality for the cheapest price and with competitors like Best Buy and Wal-Mart, Circuit City just couldn't keep up.

Articles:
http://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/stories/2009/01/12/daily51.html?ana=from_rss
http://retail.freedomblogging.com/2009/01/16/circuit-city-going-out-of-business/6058/
http://money.cnn.com/2009/01/16/news/companies/circuit_city/

Picture:
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3401/3203753409_8a4ea83e7a.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.flickr.com/photos/f33/3203753409/&usg=__youINs8XeTj7MxU1gi785gwkkAk=&h=334&w=500&sz=135&hl=en&start=4&sig2=J7mGnoZzhbI-GNbNHv5e1w&tbnid=43hFucRMGR56kM:&tbnh=87&tbnw=130&ei=mDyvSfPjOobWMOj9pYwH&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcircuit%2Bcity%2Bgoing%2Bout%2Bof%2Bbusiness%26gbv%3D2%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DG

Target Market.

http://www.intimetools.com/Portals/0/Association%20Hub/AH_TargetMarket.jpg

When you are trying to open up a retail store, you have to determine a target market. You need to know who will buy your product and use it and enjoy it. You can do this by determining the demographics, which are Age, Gender, Income, Education level, and what this person does for free time. You can also determine your target markets by doing surveys like the VALS. This separates your target market even further. It helps you determine how a person shops for certain things, if they are brand loyal, or impulse buying.

When doing the VALS survey, the results told me that I was an achiever and secondary an experiencer. After reading in the book, an achiever is involved in buying certain products and is a leading target for numerous products. I find this to be true. My secondary was the experiencer. The book describes this trait as fashion forward and describes the person who has impulse buying. This is true for me. I am always buying things just because they look cute, or are interesting without thinking about if I would use them.

When doing the target market in class for certain retailers, I thought we did the right target market. Our group had hot topic. When looking at the VALS diagram in the book, I believe that our person, Josh, would be a striver. He has an image he wants to keep. I feel that Josh watches a lot of TV and doesn’t read. I feel that our target market is for the strivers. He might not have good credit but he does care a lot about his image.

Source:

Levy, M, & Weitz, B (2009). Retailing Management.New York: McGraw-Hill Irwin.

How did NY and Company get here?

In 1918, Samuel A. Lerner and Harold M. Lane opened up a blouse shop in New York City. They thought they were doing good, so they expanded. They called the new store Lerner Shops. Lerner shops then expanded and in 1985 Limited Inc bought all 798 stores and when Limited Inc sold them, the new stores were called Lerner New York. Lerner New York then became New York and Company.

New York and Company is nationwide and has a revenue of $1.14 billion. Their headquaters is located in New York City, NY. They have over 550 stores all over. There are actually two here in Greensboro. I bet Samuel Lerner and Harold Lane would think their store would be a leading retailer in accessories. Their most major markets are in New York City, Houston, Atlanta, and Los Angelos. The collection for the fall was straight off the runway.

New York and Company have an assortment of apparel. The apparel is only for women. They have casual, wear to work, workout, denim, accessories, jewerly, handbags and initmates. A recent campaign ad indicated they were "Trendy Not Spendy" and "More Fash for Less Cash". New York and Company also helps out in the community and with charities. In September 2008, they sold pink lipgloss to help support Breast Cancer Research Foundation. In February 2009, They are selling signature red makeup bags for the American Heart Association.

Favorite Retailer

There are several retailers that I love. But my favorite retailer overall would be New York and Company. New York and Company offers great fashionable styles at a decent price. I like NY and Company because they have extremely cute clothes. They offer clothes for younger women who want to be fashionable. Their clothes are very stylish.

I also like NY and Company because they offer great customer service. They greet you as soon as you walk in the door and make sure you are finding everything okay while you are in the store. They make me, the customer, feel important. Another reason why I love New York and Company because they are always having sales. Their signs are always correct and they are always readable.

NY and Company markets to the younger crowd who are looking for a great fashion at a good price. I feel that I can always find something there. I never leave the store without something. It is easy to shop around. Their store is very accessible. Finally I love New York and Company because I feel that the quality is perfect. I feel that I pay enough money for the best quality.