Marketing

The integration of Zales helped Signet Jewelers turn i a robust financial performance in the first quarter.

Abercrombie & Fitch Co.'s revitalization efforts appear to be paying off, as the teen retailer says same store sales are rapidly improving.

In what has become a familiar industry tale, the Belk department store chain’s investments in omnichannel drove first quarter sales growth but negatively affected profits.

The Walmart shareholders meeting is next week and while the event is great for the retailer’s associates, suppliers looking for deeper insight into new priorities and key initiatives will be better served by attending a more content rich event the following week.

That’s when the Center for Retailing Excellence in the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas plans to hold its annual Emerging Trends in Retail conference. The event, scheduled for Thursday, June 11, is especially noteworthy for several reasons this year.

Atlanta -- Arby’s Restaurant Group, franchisor of the Arby’s brand, announced that it has reached an 11%  total energy reduction per company-owned restaurant since 2011, paving the way to a goal of 15% energy reduction by the end of 2015. This follows a 2014 reported reduction of 3.3% in average year-over-year energy consumption per company-owned restaurant.

St. Louis -- Brown Shoe Co., which will soon change its name to Caleres, reported a strong first quarter, with net earnings rising 24.8% to $19.3 million amid better-than-expected same-store sales and strong margins.

Net revenue rose 1.9% to $602.3 million from $591 million in the year ago period. Same-store sales rose 3.1%.

Gross margin of 41.3% was up approximately 30 basis points year-over-year, while operating margin of 5.0% was up approximately 10 basis points.

City of Commerce, Calif. - 99 Cents Only Stores has named Andrew Giancamilli, chairman of the company’s board of directors, as interim president and CEO, replacing Stéphane Gonthier, who has resigned.

Zaandam, Netherlands – Global grocery conglomerate Ahold N.V. had a successful first quarter of fiscal 2015, reporting growth in overall net income and in U.S. market share. Net income more than quadrupled to $230.74 million from $54.16 million, aided by the elimination of discontinued operations from the same period a year earlier.

Boston – Online specialty retailer Karmaloop Inc. has named Seth Haber as CEO. Haber is the former co-owner and director of Agenda Trade Shows.

Haber's appointment follows the recent acquisition of Karmaloop by Comvest Partners and CapX Partners, which includes all of Karmaloop's businesses; Karmaloop.com, PLNDR, Kazbah and Karmaloop Europe. Comvest and CapX will acquire Karmaloop as part of the company's voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy case. The sale is expected to close in early June.
 

Ann Arbor, Mich. - Domino's Pizza has announced several key internal leadership appointments and promotions, including naming Joe Jordan, 41, as VP and chief marketing officer.

Jordan has been with Domino's since 2011 when he began serving as the VP of marketing innovation. Most recently, Jordan was VP of field marketing where he spearheaded the realignment of interdisciplinary resources to better support franchisees at the local level. Prior to Domino's, he held marketing roles at Accenture, Philips, Unilever and PepsiCo Inc.