Consumer Affairs & Relations

New York -- Kroger executive Kathleen “Katy” Barclay and former Coach executive Catherine “Kate” Buggeln have joined the board of directors of Five Below. The two executives bring different strengths to the rapidly growing teen and tween retailer’s board. Barclay has more than 35 years of experience in the human resources field and currently serves as senior VP of human resources at Kroger.

After five consecutive quarters of declining same-store sales, teen retailer the Buckle may be coming out of its slump.

The Nebraska-based company reported net sales of $353.5 million, 4.3% higher than the year-ago quarter. Same store sales grew 1.1%. Net income rose by about 1.3% to $60.1 million, producing earnings of $1.25 per share, ahead of analysts’ estimates.

New York -- Walgreens Boots Alliance may soon be on the hunt for its next acquisition target in the United States, Stefano Pessina, executive vice chairman and acting CEO Walgreens Boots Alliance, told attendees of the Retail Week Live conference here on Thursday, according to a Reuters report.

New York - Nearly 80% of all businesses fail their interim PCI compliance assessment, leaving them vulnerable to cyberattacks. According to Verizon’s 2015 PCI Compliance Report, 69% of all consumers are less inclined to do business with a breached organization, making compliance with Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS) critical.

Goodlettsville, Tenn. — Dollar General announced Thursday that David Tehle, executive VP and CFO, will retire from Dollar General effective July 1, 2015. The retailer has started a search for a successor and will consider both internal and external candidates for the job.

Moorestown, N.J. – Destination Maternity Corp. swung from profit to loss during the four-month period ended Jan. 31, 2015. This period marks the transition period related to the company's previously announced fiscal year-end change from Sept. 30 to the Saturday nearest Jan. 31 each year.

Destination Maternity reported a net loss of $17.38 million, compared to net income of $3.09 million in the same period a year earlier. Higher cost of goods sold and a variety of impairment charges pushed Destination Maternity into the red.

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Phoenix – PetSmart on Wednesday named industry veteran Michael J. Massey as its president and CEO, effective immediately. Massey, who most recently served as CEO and president of Collective Brands Inc., replaces David Lenhardt, who stepped down upon the closing of private equity firm BC Partners’s acquisition of the pet supplies retailer.  Also, BC Partners managing partner Raymond Svider has been appointed non-executive chairman.

The ripple effects of Walmart’s wage action have extended to Plano, Tex., where home décor retailer At Home has upped the minimum wage ante with a more generous pay plan for hourly workers.

At Home, the company formerly known as Garden Ridge, operates 83 stores in 22 states. Beginning in May, the company said it would pay full-time hourly employees a minimum of $10 an hour and the minimum hourly rate for part-timers will increase to $9 an hour.

Walter J. Salmon, the distinguished Harvard Business School professor who influenced generations of retailers, has died at the age of 84.

Salmon, long one of the world’s leading experts on retailing, retail distribution, and marketing, who for more than 40 years influenced thousands of students, executives and other academics, was the school’s Stanley Roth Sr. Professor of Retailing Emeritus.