Finance & Capital Management

Target CFO John Mulligan ably represented the company in testimony before a Senate committee on Tuesday, but the one in the hot seat should have been chairman, president and CEO Gregg Steinhafel.
 
Recall when the nation’s bankrupt automakers needed a bailout, it was the CEOs of General Motors and Chrysler who appeared before legislators. And when big banks came under fire for their role in the housing crisis it was the financial firms’ CEOs who endured lawmakers pointed questions.

Inclement weather was not enough to keep Walgreens from posting January sales of $6.4 billion, an increase of 3.7% as compared to the year-ago period.

Total front-end sales increased 2.4% compared with the same month in fiscal 2013, while comparable store front-end sales increased 1.6%. Customer traffic in comparable stores decreased 2.2% while basket size increased 3.8%.

Hoffman Estates, Ill. -- Sears Holdings announced that Norman Miller will join the company as senior VP and president, Automotive. Miller, who most recently served as president and COO of Dollar Financial Corp., will be responsible for the oversight and leadership of the company's automotive business, including Sears Auto Centers.

New York -- RadioShack Corp. will close about 500 stores within months as part of its ongoing restructuring, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday. The retailer, which is due to report results for the fourth quarter later this month, has about 4,500 locations.

Austin, Texas -- Whole Foods Market has acquired leases from Safeway Inc. for seven locations formerly operated as Dominick's stores. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Philadelphia -- Five Below will enter the state of Tennessee, with plans to open up to five new stores in the market by spring of this year. With this new market, Five Below will operate stores in 20 states.

Hong Kong – Global luxury retailer Michael Kors increased net income during the third quarter of fiscal 2014 77% to $229.6 million from $130 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2013. Retail net sales grew 51.3% to $503.4 million, driven by a 27.8% increase in same-store sales and 98 net new store openings since the end of the third quarter of fiscal 2013.

Corpus Christi, Texas - Steve DeSutter, president and CEO of Susser Holdings’ retail segment, is leaving the company, effective Feb. 28, 2014, to accept an opportunity to lead a significant company outside the convenience store industry. That segment will now report directly to Sam L. Susser, chairman and CEO of Susser Holdings, on an interim basis.

Canton, Mass. - Dunkin' Brands Group, the parent company of Dunkin' Donuts and Baskin-Robbins, opened more than 50 non-traditional U.S. locations in 2013, at airports and other mass transportation terminals, casinos and resorts, military bases, and colleges and universities around the country.  

Dunkin' Brands currently has more than 600 non-traditional locations in the U.S.

Dallas - Corner Bakery Cafe has awarded its first multi-unit development agreement of 2014, and plans to open nine new restaurants in the Central Valley area of California with new franchise partner C&L Cafe, LLC. The group of veteran restaurant operators plans to open its first cafes in 2014 and the remaining sites over the next five years.