Consumer Affairs & Relations

Walmart plans to improve the customer experience, invest in its grocery business, and put pressure on suppliers to drive down prices, according to a Bloomberg report.

On the heels of questions over quality control standards for its herbal supplements, GNC has announced three new marketing partners.

GNC said the new agency partners – Consigliere (brand management/creative/advertising), CROSSMEDIA (media/communications planning) and 22squared (digital and social media) – will help drive profitable growth for the brand.

New York – Walmart on Wednesday sent out a tweet in which it commended Arkansas Gov. Hutchinson and legislative leaders for reconsidering a law that some people and organizations fear would open the door to discrimination against gays and lesbians. The “religious freedom” measure (HB1228) in Arkansas is similar to the one that has kicked up a firestorm in Indiana. Earlier in the day on Wednesday, Gov, Hutchinson said he wouldn’t sign the bill in its present form and called for changes to be made.

New York – Arkansas native and Walmart president CEO Doug McMillon has taken a firm stance against a “religious freedom” measure passed by the Arkansas House on Tuesday. The bill (HB1228) is similar to the one that has kicked up a firestorm in Indiana.

Home Depot, which was hit by a widely publicized data breach in 2014, has reportedly hired its first chief information security officer, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Atlanta-based Home Depot Inc. has appointed former Time Warner and Visa executive Jamil Farshchi to the new position of chief information security officer (CISO), according to the Journal.

The move comes months after the home improvement retailer said its payment systems were breached at some 2,200 U.S. and Canadian stores.

John A. Bryant, chairman, president and CEO of Kellogg Co., has been elected to the Macy’s Inc. board of directors.

Retailers have long known the value of collecting and using customer information for internal analytics and marketing. Indeed, for decades, retailers such as grocery and drug stores have benefited from the vast amount of data generated by customers using their loyalty discount cards to save on their food, toiletry and related purchases. With advancements in technology, retailers now have access to more information than ever about their customers, not only from their own collection practices, but from third parties as well.

Corte Madera, Calif. -- Restoration Hardware Holdings Inc. (RH) reported that its profit for the fourth quarter increased a better-than-expected 25% to $42.5 million from $34.0 million in the year-ago period. The upscale home furnishings company cited the West Coast port slowdown in providing first-quarter guidance that fell short of projections. But it remained upbeat about the long-term, and disclosed that it is working on two new concepts that will be revealed later this year.