Law would make retailers pay for card fraud
A proposed law in Massachusetts would make retailers responsible for consumer losses when hackers penetrate databases and steal credit card information, Forbes.com reported. The law would apply to all stores that do business in the state. This shifts financial risks from banks to retailers. Small community banks would benefit most from the proposed law.

Vanishing bees cause alarm
U.S. beekeepers are troubled by big losses they're seeing in bee colonies. A dearth of pollinators could be bad news for many crops.
→ Keepers are baffled. BBC News
→ Honeybees vanish. The New York Times
→ Almond crop threatened. MSNBC

Armstrong unveils Monrovia boutique
Armstrong Garden Centers, a 36-store chain in California, teamed up with Monrovia Growers to develop a store-within-a-store concept. The resulting Monrovia Boutique is a 1,200-sq.-ft. area that combines Monrovia plants and outdoor living products. "In a department store, if you like a specific designer, you'll see all of their clothes in one area," said Bob Smiland, Monrovia chief sales and marketing officer. "[Boutiques are] a natural way for consumers to shop for their favorite brands." Merchandise and themes will change throughout the year.

Consumers use tax refunds to minimize debt
Most consumers are filing taxes early this year, and many are using refunds to pay debt, according to a survey by Nat'l. Retail Federation. Nearly two-thirds of consumers (62.2%) filed income taxes in Jan. and Feb. Nearly 70% of consumers expect to receive a tax refund this year. More than 43.1% plan to use their refund for paying down debt. "Retailers begin to offer special sales and promotions as early as May knowing that it is hard for consumers to resist spending at least a small portion of their refunds," said NRF pres. and CEO Tracy Mullin.

Online 'pre-shopping' continues to grow
Consumers' growing use of the Internet to shop and pre-shop is creating opportunities for retailers, according to a new survey from Deloitte & Touche USA. 63% of respondents purchased online during the holidays; 95% said online experiences were positive. Also, 63% of consumers surveyed did an online search for a product or store information before visiting a store. Almost half of consumers (48%) read online consumer-written product reviews, at either a retailer site or a nonaffiliated site, before making purchase decisions.

View from a blog
A consumer shares her wish list for garden centers. Open Register

Worth a visit
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