Marketing

NEW YORK — Discount grocer Aldi has opened its first-ever New York City-area store in the borough of Queens.

The store, which is located in Rego Park, marks the first of three grocery stores the company plans to open in New York, including new locations in the Bronx and Bay Shore, Long Island.

Aldi, which offers a limited assortment of items, said it will bring its standard floor plan to Queens, which includes wider-than-typical 8-ft. aisles.

Indianapolis -- Electronics and appliances retailer Hhgregg said Friday it is planning to open as many as 20 new stores in the Chicago market this fall.

According to a report by the Chicago Tribune, the openings would make the Chicago area the largest market for the chain, with 11% of its 174 stores.

Hhgregg is leasing former Circuit City, Linens ’n Things and Wickes Furniture sites, and plans to open a DC to support the Chicagoland expansion, it said.

St. Louis -- Brown Shoe Co. said Thursday that it has acquired privately held athletic shoe maker American Sporting Goods Corp. for $145 million.

The acquisition broadens the reach of Brown Shoe, which makes Dr. Scholl's, LifeStride, Franco Sarto and other brands and operates Naturalizer and Famous Footwear stores. ASG's brands include Avia, Ryka women's fitness footwear and AND1 basketball shoes for men and boys.

CINCINNATI — Supermarket giant Kroger announced company EVP, Don Becker, died Wednesday after suffering an aneurysm. He was 62 years old.

Okay, stop snickering. Target this week revealed that the name of its new small format stores would be CityTarget. The company offered that nugget in connection with news that it would open a small-format store in downtown Chicago at the Sullivan Center development located in the heart of downtown at South State Street and Madison.

Walmart earlier this week named Cindy Davis EVP of a newly created global consumer insights business unit. She will be responsible for understanding broad consumer trends world wide and creating advanced analytical tools to support Walmart’s business, a sizeable task considering Walmart’s expanding global empire and the diversity of markets being served.

Walmart and Target are being blamed for driving shares of Canadian retailers to their lowest level in six years, according to a Bloomberg report this week. Bloomberg said the ratio between the S&P/Toronto Stock Exchange Retailing Index and its counterpart in the Standard & Poor’s 500 narrowed to 4% on Feb. 11, the smallest in six years. The retailing index has retreated 2.3% this year, while a separate index of companies that sell food and basic necessities has lost 1.1%, the biggest declines among 24 industries in the S&P/TSX. 

From a strictly legal standpoint Walmart may have prevailed this week in a case involving a customer who was murdered in its parking lot after a jury found the company wasn’t liable for inadequate security. Then again, the mere fact that Walmart had to appear in court to defend itself against charges stemming from a murder in its parking lot meant the company was a loser before the trial began simply because of the negative publicity.

Queens, N.Y. -- Discount grocer Aldi said Thursday it will open its first-ever New York City store on Feb. 18. The new store is located in the borough of Queens.

Aldi, which offers a limited assortment of items, said it will bring its standard floorplan to Queens, which includes wider-than-typical 8-ft. aisles.

The Queens store is the first of three grocery stores the company plans to open in the area, including new locations in the Bronx and Bay Shore areas.

New York City -- Target Corp. has updated its corporate donation policy following a corporate review that occurred in the wake of the backlash surrounding the company’s $150,000 donation last summer to a group that ran ads supporting Minnesota gubernatorial candidate Tom Emmer, according to the Minneapolis/St.Paul Buisness Journal. The donation resulted in much controversy for the chain due to Emmer’s anti same-sex marriage stand.