Finance & Capital Management

San Francisco -- Gap said Wednesday it will advance its expansion in Latin America with new store openings in Chile in October, and will introduce Gap and Banana Republic stores to Panama and Colombia in 2012.

“We believe substantial opportunity exists in Latin America and our first stores in Chile, Panama and Colombia will allow us to establish a foundation for further growth in this region,” said Stephen Sunnucks, president, International, Gap.

Dallas -- Zale Corp. said Wednesday that it has named Thomas A. Haubenstricker as senior VP and CFO, effective Oct. 17.

Haubenstricker joins Zale from Turnberry Advisors where he served as a managing director.

In past columns, I have talked about restaurant group think and the tendency of dining concepts to overfill a niche. I’m becoming concerned that athletic apparel is in danger of the same thing. We now have three big players in this space: Lululemon, Lucy, and, more recently, Gap’s new Athleta concept. It seems that each has successfully carved out a lucrative niche in the world of contemporary athletic apparel, but it feels to me like it may be the latest retail “trend-du-jour.”

BOCA RATON, Fla. — Office Depot announced that Office Depot stores hold the top three spots for retail energy efficiency gains at the midpoint of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Energy Star National Building Competition.

DALLAS — Continued softness in the home and housewares category is evident at Tuesday Morning, which said it expects the loss per share for the first quarter to be in the range of 12 cents to 13 cents.

Tuesday Morning reported that sales for its first quarter ended Sept. 30 were down 1.2% to $170.7 million from $172.8 million last year. The company said comparable-stores were down 4.1% comprised of a 5.2% decrease in traffic offset by a 1.1% increase in average ticket. 

Chelmsford, Mass. -- A report released Tuesday by Kronos said that the retail hiring levels have reached the highest mark in nearly three years. The Kronos Retail Labor Index, which characterizes the current state of the demand and supply sides of the labor market within the U.S. retail sector, rose to 3.9% in September, reflecting a strong gain in hires and a modest decline in applications, all on a seasonally adjusted basis. (A level of 3.0% means that for every 100 applications received, three hires occurred).

New York City -- The Conference Board Employment Trends Index, released Tuesday, showed a decrease in September to 100.95, down from the revised figure of 101.37 in August. The September figure is up 4.4% from the same month a year ago.

Hoffman Estates, Ill. -- An Associated Press report on Tuesday said that Hoffman Estates, Ill., trustees have passed a resolution asking the state of Illinois to try and keep the Sears Holdings Corp. headquarters located in Hoffman Estates.

Sears has said it is in discussions with two prospective destinations for its corporate headquarters, but is still talking to Illinois about staying put.

Hoffman Estates’ mayor William McLeod has said it would "devastating" if Sears moved its headquarters to another locale.

New York City -- Former American Apparel CFO Adrian Kowalewski resigned as executive VP corporate strategy, according to a regulatory filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission this morning, Women’s Wear Daily reported.

Kowalewski entered into a separation agreement, in which he will receive an unpaid base salary through the Oct. 7 separation date, any unreimbursed expenses and vesting of the 1,066,666 unvested shares of restricted stock previously awarded to him, the report said.
 

New York City -- Apparel manufacturer and retailer The Jones Group confirmed Tuesday that it is in discussions to divest its jeanswear division for between $350 million to $400 million.

The potential buyer is Israeli clothing maker Delta Galil Industries.

Jones Group, whose brands include Anne Klein and Nine West, said talks should conclude within a month, but cautioned that no deal has been reached. If the two were to reach a deal, Jones said it would use net proceeds for share repurchases.