Finance & Capital Management

Lululemon Athletica, manufacturer of yoga-inspired athletic apparel has announced that its chief product officer, Sheree Waterson, will be leaving the company effective April 15.

“We appreciate the many contributions that Sheree made during her time with lululemon, particularly in the area of design,” said Lululemon’s CEO Christine Day.

Waterson joined Lululemon in 2008 and has more than 25 years of consumer and retail industry experience.

NEW YORK — Abercrombie & Fitch in its annual report revealed that it plans to open Abercrombie & Fitch flagship stores in Seoul and Shanghai in 2013, as well as 20 international Hollister stores. The news sent the teen retailer’s shares rising on Wednesday.

The company also said in the report that it is maintaining its focus on boosting profitability by simplifying processes, eliminating less-profitable parts of its business, shoring up efficiencies and cutting expenses.

WEST CHESTER, Pa. — QVC and the Fashion Footwear Association of New York have announced a $140,000 grant to fund research at The Wistar Institute on a specific and deadly form of breast cancer called triple negative.

CAMP HILL, Pa. — Same-store sales at Rite Aid decreased 2% in March, including a 3.8% increase in same-store sales on the front end and a 4.5% decrease in pharmacy sales.

The 4,621-store chain reported total sales for the month of $1.939 billion, a 2.5% decrease compared with $1.989 billion in March 2012, while same-store prescription count increased 0.3%.

The company said that of the 3.8% increase in front-end same-store sales, 3% came from a shift in timing of Easter, which fell on March 31, as opposed to April 8 last year.

MERRIMACK, N.H. — Brookstone announced that it has accepted the resignation of Stephen Bebis, its president and CEO and a member of the company's board of directors. Bebis' resignation will be effective April 4. Bebis joined Brookstone in May 2012.  

Effective upon Bebis' resignation, James M. Speltz, the company's VP, COO has been appointed as the company's new president and CEO.

AUSTIN, Texas — SecureNet Payment Systems, an innovative payment technology company directly connected to the major card networks, announced the company has exceeded $19 billion in annual transaction volume and increased its number of merchant partners to over 16,000. Additionally, SecureNet announced four new merchant service provider partnerships that will greatly expand the company's rapidly growing network of partners.

Empty shelves at Walmart are getting a lot of attention these days, but the situation isn’t new and can’t be blamed entirely on store staffing levels.

New York -- In its annual report filed Tuesday, Abercrombie & Fitch revealed that it plans to open Abercrombie & Fitch flagship stores in Seoul and Shanghai in 2013, as well as 20 international Hollister stores. The news sent the teen retailer’s shares rising on Wednesday.

The company also said in the report that it is maintaining its focus on boosting profitability by simplifying processes, eliminating less-profitable parts of its business, shoring up efficiencies and cutting expenses.

Oklahoma City -- CVS Caremark Corp. will pay $11 million to settle federal claims that the company’s pharmacies in the state violated record-keeping requirements of the Controlled Substances Act.

Federal prosecutor Sanford Coats said Wednesday that CVS has agreed to the settlement to resolve all allegations. However, while CVS said that its stores must comply with the record-keeping requirements, it does not admit liability.

Hampstead, Md. -- Jos. A. Bank Clothiers reported Wednesday that net income for the fiscal year ended Feb. 2 slid to $79.7 million, from $97.5 million in the prior year.

Annual sales rose 7.1% to a record $1.05 billion, from $979.9 million. Same-store sales decreased 0.5%.

Jos. A. Bank had warned that net income for fiscal year 2012 was expected to be approximately 20% lower than net income for fiscal year 2011.