Marketing

Lands' End is adding two highly regarded retail veterans to an executive team led by newly appointed CEO Federica Marchionni.

The company announced that Joseph Boitano is bringing his more than 30 years of retail and wholesale experience to a new role at Lands' End as executive vice president, chief merchandising and design officer and will lead all aspects of merchandising and design.

Cincinnati -- Macy’s on Monday announced two more pilot store locations in metro New York City for its new off-price format, Macy’s Backstage. The additional stores brings to six the total number of Macy’s Backstage for launch. All are expected to open in fall 2015 and average about 30,000 sq. ft.

The added locations are at Fordham Place in The Bronx, and Essex Green Shopping Center, West Orange, New Jersey, where an existing Macy’s store will be converted to Macy’s Backstage.

Torrance, Calif. -- Sanrio, the global lifestyle brand best known for pop icon Hello Kitty, and Universal Parks & Resorts have announced their partnership to develop Hello Kitty interactive retail experience shops scheduled to open later this year at Universal Orlando Resort and in the future at Universal Studios Hollywood.

EXETER, N.H. -- Bauer Hockey announced today that it will open its second retail store, in Bloomington, Minnesota. The Bloomington location is the second to be announced by Bauer Hockey, with the first-ever store expected to open in Burlington, Massachusetts, this summer.

Jewelry and accessories retailer Charming Charlie has opened its largest store yet, a three-level, 16,000-sq.-ft. flagship on Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue. Designed in partnership with Callison Architects, Seattle, the store features a two-story, 30-foot tall glass façade and 20-ft. tall double doors in the brand's signature vibrant pink lacquer.

New York -- Rising rents are causing another national chain to exit a high-profile location in Manhattan. Home-furnishings retailer Crate & Barrel will close its flagship on Madison Avenue (at 59th Street) on Aug. 2, after negotiating an early exit from its lease, according to the Wall Street Journal. The store opened in 1995.

The closing will leave the city with just one Crate & Barrel, in the Soho section of downtown Manhattan.

Photo: Fred Morganthall has been named senior VP of retail divisions for The Kroger Co.

Hoffman Estates, Ill. – A reduction in selling, general and administrative expenses helped Sears Holdings Corp. reduce its first quarter net loss even as its sales continued to slide. The results came in as the chain prepares for the launch of its real-estate investment trust this week to raise cash. Sears said it expects the REIT transaction to raise $2.6 billion.

The retail industry is accustomed to weak same store sales at Sears and Kmart, but the magnitude of the decline the company experienced in the first quarter was large even by its standards.

The first of Macy’s new off price Backstage stores aren’t due to open until this fall, but already the retailer is adding more locations for an off price format heralded as a key growth initiative.

The nation’s largest department store retailer created a stir earlier this year when it disclosed plans to open its first four Backstage stores in the greater New York area. The two additional locations are also in close proximity to New York. The stores are about 30,000-sq.-ft. and are staffed by 30 to 45 employees.