Labor & Employment

BevMo has made a move to further boost its store experience.   Matt Navarro was named senior VP of operations for the beverage retailer, responsible for all store operations, customer service and loss prevention. In this position, Navarro will be tasked with elevating BevMo’s in-store shopping experience, including driving customer loyalty, enhancing its service model and strengthening employee development programs.  

Walmart shared the results of its 47th annual shareholders meeting held June 2.  

Billabong has a new finance chief.   The board sports apparel retailer has named Jim Howell as CFO, effective June 12. He will replace Peter Myers, who has served in the role since January 2013. Howell has spent the last 10 years leading the finance and treasury division at luxury retailer Nordstrom. In this role, he oversaw significant cost management improvements, capital management and growth initiatives.  

It is the end of an era in retail. One of the most prominent — and legendary — chief executives in retail is stepping down.   Millard “Mickey” Drexler will step down after almost 15 years as J. Crew’s CEO as of July. He will continue in his role as chairman. Drexler is the former CEO of Gap Inc., which he built into a retail powerhouse. He was abruptly fired in 2002 by Gap founder Donald Fisher amid slumping sales and the chain's falling stock. (Prior to Gap, Drexler oversaw a turnaround of Ann Taylor.)

Coinciding with its recently announced growth plan, Dollar General opened a new distribution center.    The new $100 million facility resides in Janesville, Wisconsin. It is the company’s 14th warehouse. The approximately 1 million-sq.-ft. depot, which began shipping merchandise in January, serves approximately 800 stores in nine states in the upper Midwest, and employs more than 500 employees. Along with more than 130 store locations in the state, Dollar General now has more than 1,300 employees in the state of Wisconsin.

Amazon is bolstering fulfillment efforts in the Golden State.   The online giant will open an 855,000-sq.-ft. fulfillment center in Fresno, California. The new facility will specialize in handling smaller-sized items such as books, electronic devices and children’s toys.   The Fresno facility will be the fifth warehouse in the state’s Central Valley. Amazon currently operates three fulfillment centers in Tracy and Patterson, and a fourth facility under construction in Sacramento.

The unemployment rate has hit a new, but welcomed milestone.   The U.S. unemployment rate is now 4.3%. This is the lowest it's been since 2001.    However,  job gains missed the mark by a wide margin. The economy only added 138,000 jobs last month, missing the 185,000 mark expected by analysts. Job gains have occurred with an average monthly gain of 181,000 over the past 12 months.  

Walmart is no stranger to innovation. However, when defining the secret to the company’s success, Walmart’s chief executive Doug McMillon said he just has to look within the company’s proverbial four walls.