Labor & Employment

GREENSBORO, N.C. — The Fresh Market has appointed Randall A. Young as the company’s SVP of real estate and development, effective Sept. 30. 

Young will oversee the company's real estate and development functions, including market strategy development, site selection, store design, construction, store relocations and renovations.

SAN FRANCISCO — Shutl, a same-day and same-hour delivery platform, has appointed John Kelly as the company’s EVP of retail. In his role, Kelly will be responsible for recruiting leading multichannel retailers to Shutl's same-day and same-hour delivery platform on a global scale.

DALLAS — Leading closeout retailer Tuesday Morning has appointed retail industry veteran Jeffrey Boyer as the company’s EVP, chief administrative officer and CFO.

Boyer will fill the existing chief administrative officer vacancy and will replace Stephanie Bowman as CFO. Bowman, who served as the company’s CFO since April 2008, has decided to pursue other professional interests but will remain with Tuesday Morning in a consultative capacity to facilitate a smooth transition.

WASHINGTON — The National Retail Federation confirmed that the retail industry added 43,600 jobs last month, particularly in general merchandise, electronics and clothing.

The numbers were based on calculations from the NRF, out of a total 169,000 jobs that the Bureau of Labor Statistics said the economy added in August, bringing the country's unemployment rate down to 7.3%.

PHILADELPHIA — Leading automotive aftermarket service and retail chain the Pep Boys has acquired 17 discount tire centers in Southern California from AKH Company, Inc.

The tire centers are located throughout the greater Los Angeles market, from Bakersfield to Orange County. They will re-open on September 12 under the Pep Boys banner and provide full-service vehicle maintenance and repair, including brand-name and private-label replacement tires.

Nature's Sunshine Products, a leading natural health and wellness company, has appointed former Clorox executive Beth Springer, to the company's board of directors.

"We are excited to welcome Beth Springer to our board of directors," said Gregory L. Probert, Nature's Sunshine chairman and CEO. "Beth brings significant, broad operational and financial experience to Nature's Sunshine and the board that I know will benefit the company and its shareholders. We look forward to her guidance and strategic thinking as a member of the board."

Washington, D.C. -- The National Retail Federation calculated retail industry job gains at 43,600 in August, with marked increases in clothing, general merchandise and electronics stores.
 

Bentonville, Ark. – Three members of a group of about 20 people protesting working conditions at Walmart were reportedly arrested in Manhattan yesterday. According to the AP, the protestors, which included current and former Wal-Mart employees as well as supporters, gathered outside a New York City building where a member of Wal-Mart’s board of directors has an office.

San Jose, Calif. -- Togo's Eateries announced the signing of two multi-unit franchise agreements with an existing franchise group to develop 20 new restaurants in Oregon and California over the next several years.

Togo's franchisee Mark Fischer will open 10 restaurants in Portland, Ore., and 10 additional locations in Los Angeles County, with the first location scheduled to open in Portland, Ore. in first quarter 2014.

This new development is part of the chain’s plan to grow the brand to 400 restaurants along the West Coast.

The husband of a woman who died following a bizarre series of developments precipitated by a shopping trip to Walmart is pursuing an even more bizarre lawsuit alleging the retailer and its manufacturer of plastic bags are at fault.