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Inside Washington Retail - Latest News

Newsletter July 30, 2020

IN THIS ISSUE

  • Data privacy takes a COVID-19 turn
  • Webinar: Aug. 6, Engaging your customers post COVID-19
  • WR joins letter in support of liability protection
  • WR urges relief for UI trust funds
  • Home Depot issues its 2020 Responsibility Report
  • Changing waistlines cause retail adjustments
  • Retail Doctor shares marketing ideas to motivate shoppers
  • No newsletter next week
  • Safety tip: how to avoid infectious blood

Data privacy takes a COVID-19 turn

Mark Johnson, Senior VP of Policy & Government Affairs

Many of the privacy questions regarding the use of technology for COVID-19 contact tracing emerged earlier this week during a joint remote meeting of the state Senate Environment, Energy and Technology and Health Care Committees.

It’s likely that a bill to protect privacy in contact tracing will be introduced when the Legislature expects to meet again early next year.

During the presentations of several guest speakers, questions that arose included:

  • What data should be collected? How will it be used? How will individuals know their data is protected? Will there be an app developed?
  • Should control of data be centralized or de-centralized? There are pluses and minuses to both approaches. Should data collected be by individual location or more general proximity or both?
  • Speakers emphasized that data collection must be voluntary from individuals. Best practices were discussed including the need to be transparent about retention times, collection purposes and data sharing for secondary uses.

About a dozen Senators participated at the workshop chaired by Senator Reuven Carlyle (36-D Seattle) and Health Care Chairwoman Senator Annette Cleveland (49-D Vancouver).

Apple and Google have been working on the issue for possible deployment on a smart phone. Several states and countries are trying the contact tracing programs.

One speaker, Justin Brookman, Director of Privacy and Technology Policy for Consumer Reports, said a recent survey showed 7 out of 10 Americans don’t want to use an app with concerns over secondary use, government abuse, immigration and law enforcement, insurance pricing, advertising and data breaches. He said Congress and the states of California and New York were considering legislation related to this topic.

Washington State Privacy Officer Katy Ruckle expressed caution on clearly identifying and addressing security issues, individual participation, data minimization, and transparency. She reminded folks that federal HIPAA laws do not cover all protected health information.

Dr. Kathy Lofy, the State Health Officer, explained that contact tracing has been used for decades to track illnesses such as HIV, tuberculosis and hepatitis. Such testing does not collect Social Security numbers, drivers’ license numbers, biometrics, immigration status, and financial information, she said.

The Department of Health currently uses the Washington Disease Reporting System. Its goal is to reach individuals within 24 hours of a reported infection and 48 hours with any contacts they have had. DOH has 304 staff working on the project. In cooperation with UW and Microsoft, state health officials are developing a contact tracing app that currently is going through testing.

Webinar: Aug. 6, Engaging your customers post COVID-19

Washington Retail is excited to announce a partnership with SpotOn Transact Inc., a leading provider of software and payment tools for small to medium-sized businesses. After extensive research we are pleased to present to our community educational resources, business optimization tools, and exclusive programs. We will introduce it during a 10 a.m. webinar on August 6.

Our guests from SpotOn will be Anthony Smith, Regional Director and Patrick Wiltsey, Director of Business Development.

Topics will include:

  • Remaining competitive with larger companies by capitalizing on technology
  • Managing your customer data for best results
  • Encouraging repeat business
  • Finding time to engage customers online to improve foot traffic and boost customer retention
  • Managing your online reputation effectively

Register Here

WR joins letter in support of liability protection

Washington Retail has joined a letter to Congress in support of national legislation to protect the liability of retailers from COVID-related lawsuits for frontline workers and businesses. A bill was introduced into the U.S. Senate this week.

It seeks to protect businesses from the exorbitant costs that can result from frivolous lawsuits during the COVID-19 pandemic. Such expenses threaten the continued recovery of the U.S. economy and the jobs of retail employees, the letter states.

In seeking temporary relief for retailers during the pandemic, the bill would provide a national baseline of protection to stop a growing wave of lawsuits from inhibiting the return of a robust economy and healthy citizenry, the letter states. Read the text of the letter here.

The National Retail Federation released a statement this week on behalf of Congressional efforts to protect the liability of businesses during the pandemic.

WR urges relief for UI trust funds

Like many states, Washington’s Employment Security Department has struggled to keep up with unprecedented unemployment claims while drawing down its trust fund from which it pays the benefits. It also has been slowed by an identity theft scandal that drew off hundreds of millions in illicit benefits.

A letter to Congress from Strategic Services on Unemployment and Workers’ Compensation, a national organization representing the views of businesses regarding workers’ compensation, suggests ways that lawmakers can provide financial relief to states. Chief among them is a proposed transfer of federal funds to state UI trust funds equal to the amount of benefits paid during COVID-19. Washington Retail has joined on in signing the letter.

Read the entire letter here.

Home Depot issues its 2020 Responsibility Report

Surveys show that shoppers are increasingly interested in learning whether their social values match well with the companies where they shop.

Often, company responsibility reports reveal actions that customers don’t know. Home Depot is a recent example. Its 2020 Responsibility Report includes updates on activities and progress on its initiatives in sustainability and corporate responsibility.

Here are a few highlights from the report. You can find more on Home Depot’s Twitter page:

  • The Home Depot contributed more than $50 million in COVID-19 community support, and 95% of its stores donated essential COVID-19 supplies in their local communities
  • Last year, more than 33% of new hires were female and more than 50% were ethnically diverse. In 2020, in support of its commitment to racial equality and social justice, the company established an executive-led task force to further expand its ongoing work to strengthen African American and other minority communities, combat discrimination and deepen its diversity
  • The Home Depot is committed to produce and procure energy from 335 megawatts of renewable and alternative energy projects by 2025
  • We pledge to eliminate expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) film from private brand packaging by 2023
  • In 2019, the company found a 10% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions

A press release about the report is here. The full report is here.

Changing waistlines cause retail adjustments

Sheltering in place has added a retail trend in 2020.

While quarantining from COVID-19, people have filled their free time in different ways. Some dipped too many chips and gained a size or two. Others found time to get on their treadmills and lost weight.

Not only are traditional retailers taking note. So are body measuring technology companies as shoppers are going online to change measurements on their profiles.

Some think all the new sizes could result in unplanned sales during the pandemic.

Read more.

Retail Doctor shares marketing ideas to motivate shoppers

In a recent blog, retail consultant Bob Phibbs painted a foreboding portrait of the retail landscape. Besides the challenges of COVID-19, brick and mortar stores are facing another reckoning: the U.S. has far too much retail square footage for projected demand from customers.

So, what to do about it?

Here are direct excerpts from the Retail Doctor with five strategies proven to turn shoppers into buyers:

  • Have a robust set of price points in every category. This might mean you offer used products to compete with entry-level sewing machines or bikes or private label. But be careful. Without sales training this could be a margin killer.
  • Offer a rundle. What is a rundle? A rundle is a recurring revenue bundle first coined by Professor Scott Galloway several years ago. You come up with a plan where shoppers can give you a fixed amount every month for a series of lessons, a subscription box, or access to special courses; think Peloton, Birchbox, or Dollar Shave Club. Shoppers want fewer choices but like a regular plan that gives them convenience and more than they would get if purchased alone.
  • Adjust your buying. Many retailers are debating whether to expand private-label products. Instead of trying to predict customer demand, agree now on triggers you’ll look for to know if private-label or other categories are a better fit for you and if you will make more money using them.
  • Revisit marketing promotions. Supply chains for many of your vendors are broken. Products are taking too long to get here and even being canceled at the last minute. You don’t want to run promotions on products that you are already low on. That breeds chaos and frustration for you as a retailer and your customers. If you regularly promote a 20% off brand X sale or you put your entire store at 20% off and don’t have the product to back you up, now you can’t offer timely rainchecks as back-up either.
  • Plan for remote selling. This goes beyond a Facebook Live video. It is one-to-one selling to your loyal customers using something as basic as Facetime or Zoom to more sophisticated software like Salesfloor. Even if you have to close again or go curbside, most employees will feel safer not having to do face-to-face interactions.

No newsletter next week

It’s summer vacation time including for the weekly Inside Washington Retail newsletter.

Washington Retail will not send the newsletter next week to catch up on rest and relaxation.

Look for it again the week of August 10. Meanwhile, any major developments will appear either on our website, on social media or in same-day email alerts to members.

Safety tip: how to avoid infectious blood

Blood-borne pathogens are infectious microorganisms in human blood that can cause disease. These pathogens include, but are not limited to, hepatitis B (HBV), hepatitis C (HCV) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Needle sticks and other sharps-related injuries may expose workers to blood-borne pathogens.

Environments that are most exposed are healthcare settings within others in the general public. Working in retail brings you in contact with the general public and can also put you at risk for being exposed including contracting blood-borne diseases in the workplace if proper prevention measures aren’t taken.

The sight of someone’s blood alone doesn’t tell you if they’re infected. You must therefore exercise “universal precautions,” which means treating all blood and blood-containing materials as though they do actually contain blood borne pathogens.

Prevention includes:

  • regular hand washing
  • wearing protective clothing such as latex gloves when dealing with an injured person
  • avoid poking yourself with the needle from tagging guns and being careful with box knives and cleaning up broken glass so that no blood is drawn.
  • take care if handing garbage bags to ensure no sharp objects are protruding from the bag.

If your workplace has the potential of finding needles, Washington Retail has archived a Labor & Industries’ presentation about the topic that you can view here.

Additional information can be found at RS SafetyTV or RS Safety Library

WR employs Rick Means as Director of Safety & Education who is available to help members draw up safety plans and suggest topics for safety meetings. Contact him at 360-943-9198, Ext. 118 or rmeans@waretailservices.com

WR diversity statement

It's essential to have a holistic strategic plan for diversity and inclusion. We encourage everyone to consider having a plan that connects with diverse people; creates a diverse workforce; fosters an inclusive work environment where different perspectives are valued; partners to share time, talent, and resources with our staff and with communities; and communicates these values with others.

In principle and in practice, we value access to leadership opportunity regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, religion, age, sexual orientation, nationality, disability, appearance, geographic location, or professional level. The association strives to accomplish this by serving as a model where we are working to help our staff, our volunteer leaders, our members and our community embrace these principles.

 

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