Labor & Employment

UTRECHT, Netherlands — Sara Lee Corp. has appointed Luc Volatier as SVP supply chain and operations of its international coffee and tea business effective April 1.  Volatier, 44, will be in charge of all procurement, supply chain and manufacturing operations. He will continue to serve in the same role once the international coffee and tea business is spun-off from Sara Lee Corp. in the first half of 2012.

New York -- Belgian supermarket operator Delhaize Group said that its fourth quarter net profit dropped 48%, hurt by impairments resulting from its restructuring. It also announced that Mats Jansson will be the new chairman of the board, and that Pierre Bouchut will succeed Stefan Descheemaeker as CFO, effective March 19.

The company, whose U.S. holdings include the Food Lion, Hannaford Bros. and Sweetbay banners, said it will accelerate the revamp of its stores in the United States and Belgium to increase its competitiveness.

Sacramento, Calif. -- Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market opened its first two stores in the Sacramento region.

Three additional locations are scheduled to open next week on March 14.

In total, Fresh & Easy will open five stores in the region this month, creating more than 150 new jobs.
 

DALLAS — Kimberly-Clark has elected Tony Palmer, SVP and chief marketing officer, to the role of president global brands and innovation.

In his expanded role, Palmer will leverage the company's scale to build brands and drive growth for its businesses around the world.  He will partner with K-C's regional business leaders to achieve their business objectives.

Target ranked 25th on Fortune’s listing of the 50 Most Admired Companies, which is the lowest level in the past six years. The decline could be viewed as troubling, but only if you buy into the notion that the list is the definitive report card on corporate reputations.

It is not, at least as far as retailers are concerned. In 2011 and 2010, Target was ranked 22nd, down from 2009 when it was ranked 19th and considerably below 2008 when it nearly broke into the top 10 with a ranking of 11th after a ranking of 13th in 2007.

Incoming Target CFO John Mulligan and outgoing CFO Doug Scovanner participated in a Target sponsored meeting last Friday at the New York stock exchange. The event gave Wall Street analysts an opportunity to get to know Mulligan, and the consensus is the guy is a strong replacement for longtime CFO Scovanner whose tenure ends March 30.

Minneapolis — Target has donated $37,500 in monetary support and product to assist with tornado relief efforts underway in the central United States. The donation includes $25,000 cash for the American Red Cross to aid their efforts and an additional $12,500 that can be used either as cash or product donations to local organizations in Alabama, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky and Missouri.

Secaucus, N.J. — The Children's Place Retail Stores reported a drop in fourth-quarter net income. Children's Place also reported a drop in income from continuing operations after tax to $24.2 million, from $32.7 million in the year-ago period. The company said that comparable-store sales for the quarter declined 2.7%, and net sales were up only slightly (0.9%) to $457.5 million, from $453.2 million for fourth quarter 2010.

The chain said fourth-quarter sales performance was negatively impacted by the unseasonably warm weather this winter.

Paint manufacturer Valspar has announced that John Wardzel has joined the company as senior VP global operations, reporting to Steven Erdahl, EVP. In this role, Wardzel will provide executive leadership of Valspar’s global operations and becomes an officer of the company.

SEATTLE — Recreational Equipment Inc. will make its Florida debut in the spring of 2013 with the opening a a store in Jacksonville, Fla. The company also announced that it will open its eighth store in Texas in the city of San Antonio in the fall of 2012.

The company's first Florida store in Jacksonville will occupy nearly 23,400 sq. ft. and will be located at The Markets at Town Center. The San Antonio location will occupy 27,500 sq. ft.