Consumer Affairs & Relations

This just sounds problematic. To better serve cash constrained customers and compete with dollar stores, the company wants to flow less expensive smaller pack sizes to stores during the middle and the end of the month when customers have less money while larger packs sizes would be on store shelves at those times right after customers have been paid.

By Dave Mesko, [email protected]
It’s a shopper’s market. Today, consumers have an array of options when it comes to shopping and no longer have to remain loyal to one store. In order to grow and sustain loyal customers, it’s important that retailers provide a safe environment for shoppers.

Sherwin-Williams’ loss of the paint business at Walmart didn’t affect its fourth quarter results too bad, but will represent a nearly $100 million headwind for the coming year. The company reported fourth-quarter net income of nearly $72.9 million, up 11.6% from $65.3 million on sales that advanced nearly 19% to $1.9 billion during the quarter ended Dec. 31, 2010. Sales in the consumer group, which includes such retailers as Walmart, increased 6.2% to $255 million in the quarter.

Wyckoff, N.J. -- Inserra Supermarkets said Wednesday that its redevelopment plans for a 7.6-acre underutilized site in the heart of Wyckoff, N.J., which has been vacant for more than 10 years, are progressing.

The Mahwah, N.J.-based supermarket chain plans to raze an uninhabitable 53,000-sq.-ft. building to develop a new 62,174-sq.-ft. ShopRite within the Township’s central business district.

First it was Walmart U.S. president and CEO Bill Simon at the White House with First Lady Michelle Obama announcing a healthy food initiative that generated enormous amounts of favorable publicity for the company. Now we get word out of Europe that Walmart president and CEO Mike Duke and Walmart International president and CEO Doug McMillon not only attended the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, they hosted a breakfast meeting.

Topeka, Kan. -- Payless ShoeSource announced that Vincent DeSantis has been promoted to senior VP and chief marketing officer for Payless, reporting to LuAnn Via, CEO of Payless.

Atlanta-based Newell Rubbermaid used the term "growth trifecta" to describe its 2010 performance -- strong sales, strong margins and strong earnings.

The company reported fourth quarter net income of $75.7 million, up 24.9% from $60.6 million reported for the same period last year.

Sales for the quarter ended Dec. 31 were $1.46 billion, up 3.4% from $1.42 billion reported for the same period in 2009. 

For the full year, the company reported net income of $292.8, up % from $285.5 reported in 2009.

If ever there were a case of turning lemons into lemonade, the Toys“R”Us exchange program is it. Billed as the “Great Trade-In” event, the program is positioned as a child safety initiative that enables customers to bring in used products in exchange for a 25% discount on a new item.