Marketing

By Mark Ledbetter, [email protected]

There's a season for everything, and that's no less true for retailers. Merchants have historically enjoyed a central position in the retail universe, driving everything from pricing to availability. How quickly things have changed. Today, try telling a 19-year-old that she can't get a discount on the slightly frayed jeans she found on the discount rack. She'll buy a similar pair online and Tweet about it so fast, it will make your head spin!

GREEN BAY, Wis. — Shopko announced that Michael Cooper has joined the company as SVP marketing. In this role, Cooper will lead Shopko's branding strategy and marketing initiatives. He will report to Jill Soltau, president and chief merchandising officer.

Green Bay, Wis. -- Shopko said Wednesday that it has named Michael B. Cooper as senior VP marketing for the company, charged with leading the branding strategy and marketing initiatives.  

Cooper joined Shopko from Office Depot, where he was most recently VP marketing, and directed the office supply retailer’s strategic planning and allocation of the company’s marketing budget.

NEW YORK — Macy's has launched a new contest to find America's best griller. Customers can enter the "Macy's Great American Grilling Guru" contest via Facebook.com/macys from April 9 through April 27. Six finalists will be pitted against each other in a "Sizzle Showdown" on June 8 in Atlanta. One winner will earn the coveted title of America's Greatest Grilling Guru and receive the grand prize: $10,000 and a trip to Macy's 4th of July Fireworks in New York City. 

Abilene, Kansas -- Alco Stores Inc. said Wednesday it is moving its corporate headquarters from Abilene, Kan., to a suburb of Dallas, citing the need to be “in a more metropolitan area.”

The new Coppell, Texas offices will give the company easy access to many of its stores, other major retailers and transportation for its workers and business partners, CEO Rich Wilson said in a Wednesday statement.

The move is slated to occur in June.

BOSTON — Roam, a leading mobile commerce platform provider, has appointed Scott Goldthwaite as SVP operations. In this role, Scott will assure that the firm’s operations and business processes are aligned with the rapidly evolving needs of its customers as they deploy mobile point of sale solutions. This includes the management of Roam’s Help Desk, IT, data center operations, payment gateway and quality assurance functions.

NEW YORK — Myron E. (Mike) Ullman has rejoined Penney as CEO, effective immediately, replacing Ron Johnson, who is leaving the company. Ullman, who served as CEO of Penney until late 2011, has also been elected to the board of directors.

Johnson’s departure was not all that unexpected given the chain’s mounting losses and sales declines. But it was still a stunning reversal of fortune for the former golden boy of Apple, who left the tech giant amid great fanfare for the top job at Penney.

New York -- OfficeMax and Office Depot on Tuesday announced they have formed a search committee to select a CEO for the combined company. They also said they have received a request for more information from the Federal Trade Communication about their planned merger.