Mass merchants, department stores and malls

Mass merchandiser Target is running mobile commerce-enabled ads to let music fans buy their favorite albums before the upcoming Grammys.

Macy’s is promoting its one-day sale and letting consumers shop limited-time deals via an SMS message the company sent out to its mobile database users.

With price comparison shopping increasingly popular these days, Target wants to discourage its customers from engaging in this activity by asking vendors to support in-store purchases with exclusive merchandise and better prices.

Office Depot is the latest big box retailer to test PayPal’s point-of-sale that lets shoppers pay for in-store purchases by typing in their mobile phone number and a PIN.

Bridal retailer David’s Bridal has rolled out a new mobile site that lets consumers browse and buy gowns while on the go.

Home improvement retailer Lowe’s is ramping up its mobile strategy with a new ad campaign that helps promote its iPhone application, as well as its products.

NEW YORK – A Printemps Haussmann executive at the National Retail Federation conference said boosting customer loyalty through interactive promotions management has helped the Parisian department store build its database.

Walmart has acquired mobile app developer Small Society in a move that signals both the growing importance of mobile applications in the retail space and retailers’ desire to control as much of the mobile experience as possible.

Now that the 2011 retail holiday shopping season is over, it is time to start assessing what worked and what did not. While mobile was one of the big success stories, it was not all eggnog and candy canes, with some mobile experiences falling short of consumers’ expectations.

Mobile performance satisfaction levels started out high over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend but degraded as the holiday shopping season progressed, according to a recent report from Compuware Gomez.