This series of updates contains information regarding issues and trends facing the retail industry during the holiday season. The list below highlights all of our published updates on this topic.

2015

The Price of Customer Loyalty: Rewards Programs and Sales and Use Tax Issues
09.21.2015
Retailers and other businesses use loyalty and rewards programs to draw in customers throughout the year. However, there are several sales and use tax consequences of promoting consumer loyalty.

How Retailers Can Stay Out of Trouble with the CPSC this Holiday Season
08.19.2015
Right along with tinsel and eggnog, the annual list of dangerous toys and products issued by consumer watchdogs has become a holiday tradition.

10 Customs Best Practices for This Holiday Season Santa Doesn’t Rely on Customs, but Companies (and Counterfeiters) Do
07.16.2015
Protecting intellectual property (IP) is a core consideration for most businesses, and protection takes many forms, including trademark protection for brands and copyright protection for assets ranging from entertainment (songs, books, and movies) to software code. Savvy businesses invest in trademark and copyright registrations, yet some business enterprises overlook a key aspect of IP protection: Customs.

Can This Holiday Be Saved? Retail Distress in the 2015 Buying Season
06.09.2015
In the ramp up to this holiday season, the record number of retail and mall closures and bankruptcies should put retailers and their vendors on alert.

2014

Top 12 Ways Retailers Can Address Privacy Issues This Holiday Season
12.11.2014
In this installment of “Perkins Coie Wrapping Papers,” we take inspiration from “The Twelve Days of Christmas” to provide an overview of the top twelve privacy and data security issues retailers should consider as the year comes to a close.

Avoid a Class Action Lawsuit Landing in Your Holiday Stocking
11.06.2014
The holidays are quickly approaching, and shoppers are expected to spend in excess of $600 billion this season. The holiday season is shaping up to become a winter wonderland for retailers.        

ADA Claims Coming for Retailers This Holiday Season for Inaccessible Websites
10.21.2014
The Department of Justice takes the position that websites are covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). More claims are being filed by plaintiffs targeting retailers whose websites are inaccessible to consumers who are blind or have low vision.    

Retail Leasing: Tis’ The Season to Make Your List and Check It Twice
09.17.2014 
The holiday shopping season is fast approaching and for the brick and mortar retail industry, it is a critical time. Whether you are a landlord of a shopping center, a long-term retail tenant, or a temporary seasonal tenant, there are several leasing issues that arise during the holidays that are worth noting.                     

'Tis the Season for Government Contracts: Five Key Compliance Issues for Retailers Selling to the Government
07.29.2014      
As retailers move closer to the end of the government fiscal year in September, ’tis the season for receiving government contracts. Federal agency budget authority for discretionary spending generally mandates that agencies either obligate their appropriated funds by the end of the fiscal year or return them to the Treasury general fund.                

The Perfect Package: A Checklist to Avoid Legal Challenges
07.09.2014
Your product teams surely have already finalized their lineup of holiday winners, the new gizmos and must-have widgets that you hope end up on everyone’s wish lists.

Risk of Data Breaches Keeping You Up? Assess Data Security Before The Holiday Season
06.17.2014
As retailers prepare for the upcoming holiday shopping season, Perkins Coie’s Retail & Consumer Products industry group is proud to introduce its 9th annual “Perkins Coie Wrapping Papers.” These updates will highlight some of the legal issues retailers face during this critically important holiday shopping season.

2013

Don’t Let Your Super Sale Become a Violent Stampede
11.21.2013      
Earlier this week, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued the news release, “Crowd Management Measures Are Critical During Major Sales Events,” and sent a reminder to major retailers and retail associations about the need to take precautions to prevent employee injuries during major sales events.            

Don’t Let the Grinch Steal Your Holiday Season: Preserving Your Right to Rebuild Your Business After a Disaster
11.05.2013      
The one-year anniversary of 2012’s Hurricane Sandy has just passed, which is a fitting occasion to think about how or if your business could be rebuilt after suffering complete or near destruction.

Don’t Let Liability Exposure Be the Grinch That Ruins Your Holiday Season
10.15.2013
With the holiday season quickly approaching, it’s a particularly good time to check your internal procedures. As you are certainly aware, a disappointed customer, or worse, an injured user, can assert claims against manufacturers, distributors and retailers, among others, in many U.S. jurisdictions. In this increasingly global economy, it can be more difficult than ever to make sure you are properly and fully protected against these types of risks.

Dressing Up Your Trademarks for the Holidays
06.24.2013      
Are you contemplating dressing up your trademarks for the holidays? Adding a jaunty Santa hat and garlands to your company name on your website and shopping bags? Animating your logo to spin like a dreidel or fly like Rudolph? Maybe adorning your word marks with candy cane stripes? Using your trademarks to embrace the holiday spirit can freshen your brand image, infuse it with energy and differentiate it from your competitors.

2012

The Retail Point of Sale Goes Mobile
12.20.2012      
Mobile point-of-sale payment terminals have experienced explosive growth over the past year. Unlike a traditional point-of-sale terminal, a mobile terminal communicates wirelessly when processing payment cards. There are different types of solutions in the market, but one popular type is an application within a mobile device, like a smartphone or tablet, that uses a hardware attachment to swipe payment cards.

Don't Let a Data Breach Diminish Your Retail Profits This Holiday Season
11.28.2012     
For the first time, online retail sales exceeded $1 billion on Black Friday and reached nearly $1.5 billion on Cyber Monday this year.  Analysts expect this increase in e-commerce to continue, and Forrester Research estimates that online sales this holiday season will exceed $68.4 billion—a 15 percent increase over 2011.

An Addition to Your Holiday List: Seasonal Tenants and Lease Reviews 
09.11.2012    
Retail property owners and retailers alike are always looking for ways to increase their revenues in a cost-effective manner, especially during the holiday season when a large percentage of a retailer's profits are typically earned.

Making a List, Checking It Twice: Are Santa and His Elves Your Employees? (This and other wage-hour issues to consider during the holidays.) 
08.16.2012  
In the holiday rush, it's easy to overlook wage-hour issues. This Wrapping Paper discusses common ones to which you should be alerted.

2011

'Tis The Season of Employee Theft: Steps to Ensure Your Fidelity Insurance Will Cover Your Losses
11.15.2011      
Increased store traffic, the shift in management's attention to keeping stock available and the barrage of seasonal employees create an environment ripe for crimes of opportunity such as employee theft.

Ho, Ho, Hold On! Do We Have the IP Rights for This Campaign? 
11.08.2011    
The winter holiday season poses high sales potential for most retail companies. Your designers and marketing groups are likely already hard at work developing products and advertising campaigns to take advantage of the season and its opportunities.

Holiday Music – 'Tis the Season to Secure Music Licenses and Examine Fourth Quarter Royalty Fees 
10.20.2011      
Music and holiday shopping go hand-in-hand. Chances are, your final plans for holiday-themed décor, events and websites will all involve music. This wrapping paper is designed to help your creative team design and implement a music protocol that protects intellectual property ("IP") rights without breaking your holiday budget.

2010

Keyword Advertising Update – Navigating Unsettled Waters to Protect Your Mark and Promote Your Business
10.08.2010  
This is the second update in the 2010 Perkins Coie Wrapping Paper Series. Over the next few months, Perkins Coie will be publishing additional updates regarding issu...

Washington State Retail Sales Tax Litigation
10.08.2010      
Retail & Consumer Products industry group is proud to introduce its fifth annual "Perkins Coie Wrapping Papers." These updates highlight legal issues facing retailers during this critically important sea...

2009

Despite Flurry of Claims, California Courts Gift Retailers With Narrow Interpretations of Song-Beverly Credit Card Act: Some Tips for Compliance Under Recent Rulings 
11.16.2009      
If you are a retailer with brick-and-mortar stores in California and accept credit cards for payment, take note. You may want to take a few simple steps to avoid liability for an increasing number of claims under an old law that has received a lot of recent attention.

The H1N1 Flu: Retailers – Be Prepared
11.11.2009    
The Holiday season this year carries with it not only high hopes for successful sales but the threat of widespread – and increasing – influenza outbreaks. Retailers are uniquely threatened by the flu: sales personnel are routinely exposed to hundreds of shoppers in close quarters, shaking hands, handling merchandize, and exchanging cash. But careful planning can help minimize the impact on your sales force.

The Truth About "Green" Advertising Claims 
10.22.2009      
Environmentally friendly advertising claims effectively grab the attention of consumers hungry for "green" products and services. But as you prepare your holiday advertising, there are several things to keep in mind if you are making "green" claims.       

Combating Counterfeiting, Piracy and Gray-Market Goods
10.01.2009    
Remember the hype surrounding Tickle Me Elmo in 1996, Sony's Playstation in 1995 and, if you're old enough, the Cabbage Patch Kids in 1986? Each holiday season features new "must-have" gifts—that toy your child just cannot live without or that next generation video game or console or that one special pair of boots.

Loss of Shopping Center Tenants – What Can You Do To Salvage Your Holiday Season? 
09.16.2009      
A center with a high vacancy level will likely experience a significant drop-off in holiday shoppers visiting the center, so you need to be proactive to minimize the impact.

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