Who says the brick-and-mortar experience is dead? A new survey released by Nielsen suggests many American consumers prefer shopping in-store for a multitude of reasons, ranging from safety to reliability.

While shopping online was voted the overall favorite by 59 percent of the respondents polled, they noted there are several instances in which they would rather head to a physical storefront. For example, more than three-quarters (77 percent) said shopping in-store was safer than buying products online. Additionally, 69 percent said it was more reliable and had fewer chances for disruptions, such as shipping information getting jumbled up.

On the flipside, the survey also noted some key areas where customers preferred other shopping channels, and this insight could be used to improve store operations. For example, only 13 percent of respondents said in-store purchasing was the most convenient, compared with 68 percent of online shoppers and 38 percent of mobile buyers.

Another pain point is ease of use – only 20 percent said brick-and-mortar shopping was easy, compared with 68 percent in favor of online shopping and 27 percent for mobile purchasing. Overall, only approximately one-third of respondents (31 percent) agreed that shopping in-store was their favorite way to buy retail goods.

Improving store operations

With the Nielsen survey in mind, it's crucial that brick-and-mortar retailers integrate this data – they need to be looking for ways to bolster their convenience and ease of use.

In terms of convenience, many retailers are deploying new technology such as tablets to help engage shoppers. With a combination of high-value retail software and new mobile devices, sales associates can help customers by answering questions about products, checking inventory of goods and providing them with coupons and other incentives. This provides more value to customers and encourages them to shop – and more importantly, buy – from brick-and-mortar locations.

Ease of use is another area that can be addressed by technology. Merchants shouldn't be afraid of outfitting their stores with technology that enables shoppers to research products, read reviews and run price comparisons. Some retailers, such as Best Buy, are already rolling these solutions out in-store.

Retail Pro is one of these solutions, and can be leveraged as a way to better manage inventory and improve customer satisfaction and loyalty.

As the economy continues to tighten, so too are consumers' wallets and purses. According to a recent report from Empathica, a number of shoppers are spending less money on specialty retail categories – such as apparel – in order to buckle down on key commodities, like food and gasoline.

As many as 58 percent of surveyed respondents said they are cutting spending on clothing and apparel, while 65 percent plan to devote less of their budget to electronics. Of the top 10 retail segments that American consumers plan to spend less money in, four were specialty retail categories. Conversely, nine out of 10 customers send they are spending the same or more on gas, while only 20 percent intend to reduce grocery expenditures.

"The economy as a whole is still on the mend, and although we are starting to see an uptick in the job market, it doesn’t necessarily mean consumers are eager to spend," Gary Edwards, chief customer officer at Empathica, explained. "Uncertainty still remains among consumers with continued caution around spending on nonessentials."

With consumers spending less money, it's crucial that retailers trim the fat on their offerings. Merchants should consider integrating Retail Pro's inventory management solutions as a way to identify which products are still making money for businesses.

The summer break may just be starting for many school children, but parents are already planning their budgets for the upcoming school year, according to a new report from PriceGrabber.

The survey suggests 46 percent of online shoppers plan to spend more for school supplies this fall than they did during the same timeframe last year. Comparatively, only 13 percent of respondents said they would spend more money in 2012, suggesting consumers are in a financially sound position right now. Meanwhile, approximately 35 percent plan to spend just as much money in 2012 as they did last year.

"In today's challenging economic climate, it's important for families and students to save on back-to-school items," explained Graham Jones, general manager of PriceGrabber. "Many consumers are harnessing the power of the internet to find deals, compare prices, set price alerts, print coupons and take advantage of online promotional codes and free shipping to save extra cash."

Retailers can encourage more consumers to come and buy back-to-school products by improving store operations. By staffing up and making deals more apparent, businesses may better meet the needs of these back-to-school shoppers.

Healthcare retail is gaining traction throughout the globe, with key acquisitions highlighting the profitability of the sector.

For example, the largest drugstore in the United States – Walgreens – recently finalized a deal to acquire 45 percent of Alliance Boots in the U.K. Alliance Boots is Britain's largest pharmaceutical stores, which means Walgreens now has control of nearly half of the brand.

Walgreens paid upward of $6 billion to complete the strategic partnership, Retail Digital reports. The move should cement Walgreens' place as one of the largest players in the category.

"This strategic transaction represents a further vital step in achieving our vision of becoming a global healthcare leader," said Stefano Pessina, the Italian businessman who invested millions into Boots, as quoted by the news source. "The fit is natural; Walgreen's consumer profile in the U.S. is similar to Boots in the U.K. in many ways: a trusted and much-loved pharmacy brand with a strong heritage."

With an aging baby boomer population, the pharmaceutical retail market is expected to explode over the next few years.

In the United Kingdom, consumers are still spending cautiously as uncertainty stemming from the European debt crisis and other factors loom overhead, Retail Gazette reports.

Colliers, a real estate firm, suggests the debt crisis, as well as poor weather, have created a sense of apathy among U.K. consumers, which is why they aren't spending as much on retail. While spending is up on food and beverages due to recent celebrations, many residents are still neglecting to spend money on big-ticket items until prospects improve.

"The U.K. economy in terms of retail remains soft. There may be months of more positive growth but the sector is suffering from less customer wage increases meaning people have less to spend," explained Neil Saunders, an associate at Colliers. "The general underlying trend is weak confidence which dissuades and discourages people from making purchases."

In other countries, such as the United States, prospects for retailers have been much better. Although sales growth is slowing, it has still been up in the U.S. for the past several months.

Specific regions of Atlantic Canada are due to see a slight increase in retail sales, according to the latest RBC Economic Provincial Outlook issued by RBC Economics Research.

For example, Newfoundland and Labrador has exhibited somewhat stronger than expected retail sales growth. The group attributes this rise to the high percentage of the province's population that is now working – unemployment recently fell to the lowest point in a year.

Meanwhile, Prince Edward Island has similarly witnessed improved retail sales. Both exports and retail sales showed double-digit growth. However, the sudden surge has puzzled RBC because employment growth has been modest while population growth has also been stagnant, which are generally key drivers of improvements.

Additionally, Nova Scotia's retail sector was up and even covered the province's struggling exports.

"Excluding export performance, Nova Scotia's improved employment picture and its healthy increase in retail sales have supported moderate growth in the economy," noted Craig Wright, senior vice president and chief economist at RBC.

Retail has shown similar growth in the United States, with new data from the Commerce Department noting that while growth has slowed, it is still improving month over month.

A new government report suggests that consumer spending edged up just barely in spring. This information may worry some merchants, but analysts predict consumers will resume spending again this summer.

Gas prices have declined over the past few months, but not enough to significantly stimulate spending. However, key sectors noted significant lifts in sales. For example, furniture retailers and appliance sellers saw a significant boost in sales. Moreover, these are big ticket items, which means consumers aren't afraid to make big purchases when they want to.

"The continued fall in gasoline prices should support consumption by freeing up cash to be spent on other items," Paul Dales, senior U.S. economist at Capital Economics, told The Washington Post.

"The drop in gas prices means summer spending will accelerate," Ian Shepherdson, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics, added.

While the summer months are typically slow due to consumers spending more time outside and shopping indoors less, some seasonal retailers are particularly set to benefit from bigger sales through the back-to-school season.

India's retail sector is growing quickly. There are a number of key statistics that point to this and show the direction of the sector in the future, NDTV Profit reports.

1. The retail sector of India is expected to hit $450 billion this year, with a significant 90 percent of the market run by tiny, independent merchants.

2. However, as the retail sector pulls in more sales, larger merchants are growing interested in the region. For example, larger chains account for only 10 percent of the market now, but are growing at a rate of 20 percent per year.

3. The government recently passed a law to allow for 100 percent foreign direct investment in businesses, which makes the market even more attractive to larger global retailers. "So far U.S.-based coffee giant Starbucks has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Tata Coffee," the source adds.

As such, membership to trade groups like The Retailers Association of India (RAI) has surged as local merchants look to share best practices for tasks such as store operations and marketing.

The Retailers Association of India (RAI) was first formed seven years ago by key merchants in the region. The group recently crossed the 750 member mark in 2011, which highlights the growing prominence of the retail sector in India.

The organization serves as a way to help merchants in the emerging market develop effective best practices and create an organized and prosperous retail sector in India. While retail is still not an accorded industry in the country, RAI is still trying to stress the importance of the growing sector to the local government.

"As consumerism in India was growing, [so was] retail … witnessing an altogether new phase with new players coming in picture, modernization becoming need of the hour, etc.," explained Kumar Rajagopalan, chief executive officer at RAI. "There was no single body to represent the interest of retailers, forget a ministry. That is what led to some of the retailers coming together and laying the foundation of RAI."

The retail sector in developing markets – such as India – has largely been credited with helping local economies grow, despite the economic recession.

A number of retailers have reported increased cash flow, revenues and workforces, but they still believe they could be doing better if the economy was recovering more quickly. As a result, many are being more guarded in their long-term decisions, at least until 2014, when they believe the economy will begin recovering.

More than three-quarters of retail executives polled by KPMG said they have significant cash on the balance sheet, up 5 percent from 2011. Additionally, 56 percent say their companies have better cash positions and 64 percent indicated revenues are up. Still, 65 percent believe the economy still has room to improve in the future and 61 percent don't see that happening until 2014 or 2015.

"The retail sector has experienced some positive momentum in the past year, but executive leaders aren't about to throw caution to the wind," said Mark Larson, KPMG global retail leader. "In this year's survey, executives have pushed back their estimated timeline for economic recovery to 2014 or later, with concerns that decreased consumer confidence and continued high national unemployment are hindering … recovery."

Many businesses are scaling back their brick-and-mortar presence as a result, focusing on lower cost ecommerce.