Consumer Affairs & Relations

NEW YORK — Cosmetic brand Clinique has promoted Jean-Christophe Jourde to the newly created position of SVP and GM of North America. Jourde will be responsible for driving sales and market share growth for the brand in the region and will report to Ricardo Quintero, SVP and global GM of market development. 

Wayne, N.J. -- Toys "R" Us reported a loss of $111 million for the first quarter, compared with a year-earlier loss of $60 million. It was the struggling chain’s worst quarter in a decade.

Net sales for the quarter, ended May 4, declined 7.8% to $2.4 billion. Same-store sales were down 8.4% domestically and fell 5.8% internationally.

Home Depot has plans for a major hurricane preparedness initiative this year, but the program doesn’t begin until nearly two months after residents of storm prone areas should already have plans in place.

Calabasas, Calif. -- Broader regional economic growth and improved consumer and retailer finances bode well for retail real estate investments in well-located properties, according to “The Retail Outlook” from Marcus & Millichap Research Services’ second quarter 2013 mid-year outlook for the national retail market and U.S. economy.

Brussels, Belgium -- Jean-Pierre Hansen is resigning from the board of directors of The Delhaize Group effective June 30. Hansen, who initially joined in 2011, said the position required more time than he anticipated and he needed to attend to commitments in the energy sector and other unspecified duties.

“I have very much enjoyed working with great colleagues on the Board and wish the company well in its future growth," said Hansen.

Food Lion store manager Charles Inman got a big surprise on Monday when some folks from the Brussels-based home office of parent company Delhaize Group showed up at his store.
 
Inman was selected from more than 3,400 Delhaize Group store managers to receive the company’s Store Manager of the Year award and company officials decided to surprise Inman with a ceremony at his store in Clayton, N.C.

Overall economic growth in Europe is slower than in the U.S., but the opposite is true when it comes to e-commerce sales, according to figures published by Internet Retailer.
 
U.S. e-commerce sales grew 15.9% to $225.54 billion in 2012 from $194.61 billion the prior year, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce while the Centre for Retail Research in the U.K. said European e-commerce sales increased 16.6% to $302.2 billion from 260.4 billion.

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Red Legacy, a commercial real estate developer for shopping centers, has hired Stacy Scheelk as its new senior director of new business development.

Scheelk is a shopping industry expert with a background in local, regional and national business development and marketing. She will be charged elevating and maximizing the potential of each development by fomenting partnerships, securing sponsorships, creating specialty retail and increasing ancillary income.