Marketing

Dallas -- Alliance Data Systems Corp. said Thursday that it has signed a new long-term agreement to provide private-label credit card services for Christopher & Banks.

Under terms of the agreement, Alliance Data will provide Christopher & Banks and CJ Banks with private-label credit card services, as well as beefed-up loyalty benefits.

SEATTLE — The popularity of Amazon.com's Kindle e-readers continues to help boost Amazon.com's sales. However, net income for the third quarter was disappointing.

Amazon.com reported that net sales for the third quarter increased 44% to $10.88 billion in the third quarter, compared with $7.56 billion in third quarter 2010. Net income decreased 73% to $63 million in the third quarter, or 14 cents per diluted share, compared with net income of $231 million, or 51 cents per diluted share, in third quarter 2010.

WAYNE, N.J. — Toys“R”Us announced that it has established business operations in Poland and plans to open its first store in the country at the end of November. The first Toys“R”Us store in Poland will open in the country’s capital city of Warsaw just in time for the holiday shopping season, with several additional locations slated to open in major cities throughout the country in 2012, the company reported.

NEW YORK — Macy’s is positioning itself as a leader in fashion, beauty, home and lifestyle news and trends with launch of mBLOG at macys.com/mblog. According to the company, the website will include tips from Macy's staff as well as experts from such sites as Fashionista.com and FoodRepublic.com. 

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — Big 5 Sporting Goods announced that it has appointed Dominic DeMarco to serve on its board of directors, thereby expanding the board to seven members. DeMarco is director, co-chief investment officer and chief compliance officer for Stadium Capital Management LLC, an investment advisory firm whose affiliated funds have been shareholders of Big 5 since 2006 and taken together are the company's largest current shareholder.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Books-A-Million has announced that it will open 41 new BAM! stores in markets across the U.S. in early November. The company has also closed 21 underperforming locations during its third quarter. 

Birmingham, Ala. -- Books-A-Million (BAM), which has been taking over the leases of former Borders locations, will transform 41 of the sites into BAM stores in early November. Most the locations, which are across the nation, represent new markets for the bookseller.

New York City -- Wal-Mart Stores is closing its U.S. apparel office in New York City as it shifts its focus from trendier fashions to more basic clothing. News of the move was first reported by Women’s Wear Daily and Reuters.

Canton, Mass. -- Dunkin' Donuts has 86 new restaurants slated for development in the Washington, D.C., market by 2020. The company said 15 development agreements were signed over the past year that will deliver 64 new restaurants, in addition to 22 restaurants that were previously contracted.

Fort Worth, Texas -- RadioShack Corp. reported Tuesday that profit for the quarter ended Sept. 30 plummeted to $300,000, compared with earnings of $46 million in the year-ago period. The retailer cited the transition from T-Mobile offerings to Verizon Wireless as a major reason for the performance decline, although that was offset somewhat by new mobile service and sales centers in Target stores. The company launched Verizon Wireless in more than 4,400 stores on Sept. 15, as well as ramped up its Target Mobile centers rollout in the same period.