Slow websites affect not only whether consumers will make a purchase but also the overall impression of the retailer. At NRF’s annual Shop.org conference in Los Angeles, Target and West Elm shared why speed matters, along with techniques for creating a faster user experience.

CVS Health and Thrive Market may be very different businesses, but both share a commitment to developing enduring customer relationships that leverage digital. In a session presented by Fast Company at Shop.org, leaders from both businesses shared their strategies to improve service and lift the customer experience.

The old rules that defined corporate success don’t apply anymore — businesses are being forced to carve their own way. At Shop.org, The Future Lab’s Trevor Hardy offered advice for companies looking to regain customer trust and succeed in the future.

Again and again, we hear that companies must prioritize innovation, infuse it into their culture and bring in diverse perspectives. NRF’s Artemis Berry spoke with theBoardlist’s Sukhinder Cassidy ahead of her appearance at NRFtech on the people, culture and decisions that drive true innovation.

STORES' annual Retail Industry Software Sourcebook, the retail industry's definitive buying guide, is now available! Take a look at the digital edition of this annual directory, designed to help retailers of all sizes and in all channels find the applications they need to run a successful enterprise.

More than half of Nordstrom’s online traffic comes from mobile, per the SimilarWeb Retail Market Intelligence Report, which examines incoming U.S. traffic to the top 10 websites in eight retail subcategories; online searches at Lowes.com were more like to include brand names than searches at HomeDepot.com.

The digital edition of STORES includes must-read pieces, including the articles featured here. Browse the archives for issues you may have missed.

Halloween has grown both in terms of its popularity among U.S. consumers and its importance within the retail calendar over the past decade. NRF’s research team notes what’s changed since last year and how retailers can build on shoppers’ excitement.

Allbirds co-founders Tim Brown and Joey Zwillinger worked with growers who produce the highest-quality merino wool to engineer a material specifically for shoes. This week on Retail Gets Real, Zwillinger discusses how the digital startup is disrupting the long-established footwear industry with direct-to-consumer marketing.

Hamdi Ulukaya, founder, chairman and CEO of Chobani, joins business executive Ariana Huffington and senior executives from Facebook and Instagram as a keynote speaker at NRF 2018: Retail’s Big Show, to be held Jan. 14-16 in New York City. Advance registration rates for the event end Nov. 17.

Target Corporation is deepening its partnership with Google to make online shopping even easier. The partnership includes Target’s nationwide expansion on Google Express, including voice- activated shopping, as well as the addition of Target REDcard as a payment option in 2018. Target and Google will also partner to explore and develop future digital experiences focused on Target’s signature style categories.

SMITH, a global commerce agency, announced a strategic partnership with global marketplace platform provider Mirakl. The partnership combines SMITH’s decades of commerce expertise with Mirakl’s marketplace platform, which helps retailers and brands rapidly extend their range to reach more customers with more products.

Urban footwear and apparel retailer City Gear has selected Shopgate Inc.’s mobile commerce platform solution to develop an enhanced mobile shopping application for customers.

IBM is teaming up with fintech company Dream Payments to bring new revenue-generating mobile payment offerings to financial institutions and merchants in the United States via the IBM Cloud.

Canada’s Marie Claire Boutiques selected the BlueCherry Enterprise Suite to manage its design and sourcing processes, including the selection of BlueCherry Product Lifecycle Management and Sourcing Suite to develop its private labels more efficiently and quickly.

Everything But Water, the largest specialty swimwear and resortwear retailer in the U.S., selected Manhattan Associates to deliver a first-of-its-kind software solution that creates a captivating and seamless omnichannel shopping experience. Orlando-based Everything But Water is deploying Manhattan Active Omni to manage transactions and facilitate store fulfillment operations across its full network of over 100 retail locations across the country.

Paytronix Systems Inc. has become the loyalty and guest engagement platform for TravelCenters of America LLC’s Minit Mart stores and an array of branded restaurants. Paytronix expects that the platform will strengthen customer relationships by delivering highly targeted, relevant and timely offers, earned rewards and messages.