Cue the street-vendor chestnuts and red-kettle Santas: New York is firing up its Christmas retail engines with the annual unveiling of holiday windows.  And it’s more than a quaint tradition, even if sidewalk throngs feel like a throwback to a pre-Amazon existence. Not only do the windows stoke fourth-quarter tourism, they also provide an opportunity for retailers to differentiate themselves from one another, and strike whatever mood they think will lure pedestrians from the street.  Windows of opportunity.

How to market to millennial consumers is a great mystery for most mainstream marketers. It turns out that one of the best ways to reach millennial music fans - particularly superfans - is a very old school form of advertising - billboards. And its even better if those activations are supported in social media. Making the most of the drive to Coachella.

Modeled after the company’s Korean D’light experience in its native Seoul, Samsung is opening a new location in NYC that is not a retail store, but rather everything from what they call a “cultural destination” to a “digital playground.” Store visitors won’t be able to buy anything in the building, but will be able to get access to Samsung product experts for one-on-one advice, repairs, and workshops. Visitors will also be treated to demos, presentations, art installations, and enjoy the latest in virtual reality via the VR Tunnel Watch a video introducing the new store.

Tired of wearing the same old shoes everyday? Take your sneaker game to the next level with customizable high tops decked out with curved electronic displays on their sides. Using a companion app the wearer can update the shoes screens to display whatever they want, including their own artwork/videos or even rent the space on their shoes to promote brands or products. Pre-order yours today.

Founded by four Nest alums, B8ta is a 1,400 square foot brick-and-mortar store in Palo Alto dedicated solely to the sales of Internet-connected devices. The store is designed to give consumer a hands-on experience of the products, all of which are unboxed and out on out shelves for consumers to explore. Additionally, the store is looking to differentiate from traditional retailers by offering startups that sell their products at B8ta real-time sales data of their items, providing the companies with opportunities to experiment and update marketing materials that appears on the digital signage in the store. Read more about the new B8ta store.