Finance & Capital Management

The Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) has named Even Armstrong as VP of government affairs, effective Aug. 1.     Armstrong will lead advocacy efforts related to workforce and employment issues before Congress and federal agencies, including the Department of Labor (DOL), the EEOC and NLRB.     

Sears Canada is losing another top executive who has been on the job for less than a year.   The retailer announced that Carrie Kirkman is leaving her role as president and chief merchant to transition to an “advisory role.” In a statement, the company said Kirkman had been “brought aboard to focus on strategic brand partner development,” and that new brands will debut this fall. Kirkman will reportedly leave her post after July 30.  

Simon Property Group reported a 5% drop in net income to $527 million for the second quarter, yet declared positive results based on other measures. Total portfolio net operating income, which tracks comparable property and new property growth, grew 7.4% over second quarter 2015 and growth in comparable funds from operations rose 9.1%.   The Simon board declared a 6.5% increase in its stock dividend for the quarter and raised its guidance for full-year 2016 net income to be within a range of $6.04 to $6.12 per diluted share.

Supervalu Inc. on Wednesday lower-than-expected profit for the first quarter amid ongoing efforts to spin off its Save-A-Lot division.   The supermarket operator reported a profit a profit of $46 million for the quarter, down from $61 million, in the year-ago period. Adjusted for charges related to the potential separation of Save-A-Lot and other factors, earnings declined to $53 million from $65 million last year.   Supervalu’s net revenue fell 3.9% to $5.20 billion.  

Retailers should be cheered by the latest forecast from the National Retail Federation.    With increases in consumer spending expected to remain solid during the remainder of the year, the NRF on Tuesday upped its forecast for retail sales in 2016 to 3.4%, from the 3.1% forecast earlier.    Online and other non-store sales, which are included in the overall figure, are expected to increase 7% to 10% year-over-year rather than the 6% to 9% forecast earlier.  

Under Armour on Tuesday reported a drop in profit for the second quarter, related to the closing of The Sports Authority. The athletic wear brand also revealed plans to plant its banner on prime real estate in Manhattan.    

Avison Young announced completion of the sale of Shoppes at Vickery Village, a 77,794sq.-ft., 11-building center in Cumming, Georgia. The real estate services firm reports that the purchase price was 20% more than the seller paid for the property only 18 months ago.  

While consultants have argued for decades that workforce management (WFM) is a mixture of art and science, it is neither. It comes down to profit and applying practical – not over-engineered – workforce management practices that enable higher performing retail operations.   

Hastings Entertainment is going out of business.

The Dallas area is getting its sixth Nordstrom Rack store.   Nordstrom said it will open a Nordstrom Rack at The Centre at Preston Ridge in Frisco, Texas. The approximately 33,000-sq.-ft. store is scheduled to open in fall 2017. The property is owned by Brixmor Property Group.