Marketing

New York – L’Oreal USA is venturing into e-commerce via a partnership with with StyleSeat, an online platform for beauty and wellness services. Consumers already use StyleSeat to research and book appointments with hair and nail professionals, and it now offers salon-only L’Oreal authentic products for sale, as well.

Each purchase on StyleSeat can be made through the individual stylist pages. Users can also receive personalized email recommendations from stylists about products to use in between trips to the salon.

Weak retail traffic and fewer sales at Sears hurt Lands’ End Inc. during the peak holiday season.

The retailer said it expects that for the period ending Jan. 30, earnings are expected to fall 20% to 26% from the year-earlier period to between $34 million to $37 million. On a per-share basis, the retailer forecast earnings of $1.06 to $1.16. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had been expecting $1.38 a share in earnings.

Dollar General CEO Rick Dreiling had planned to retire in a few months, but after Family Dollar shareholder’s snubbed his company’s buyout offer, Dreiling said he’ll stick around a bit longer.

Sears Holdings has a new leader for its Kmart pharmacy division. The company announced that it has hired  Phil Keough as SVP and president, pharmacy.

Keough most recently served as CEO and president of Millennium Pharmacy Systems, a long-term care pharmacy provider, and led the sale of the company to PharMerica.

In his new role with Sears Holdings, Keough will be responsible for leading the Kmart Pharmacy business unit and driving Shop Your Way member engagement to enable online and in-store growth of the company’s Health & Wellness businesses.

Barnes & Noble Inc. is embarking on a social media-based campaign to inspire more customers to read and promote its Nook e-reader.

The Nook Reading Challenge is a social media-based reading challenge with the goal of inspiring participants to read more and interact with their friends and the book community about what they’re currently reading, the company said.

To participate in the challenge, readers have to commit on their Facebook page to read one or more books between Jan. 24 (National Readathon Day) and Feb. 28 using the hashtag #NOOKReadingChallenge.

New York -- Ebay Inc.  plans to cut about 2,400 positions, or 7% of its workforce, across eBay marketplaces, PayPal, and eBay enterprise in the current quarter to simplify its organizational structure.

The company also said it will explore strategic options for eBay enterprise, including a sale or an IPO.

New York -- Whole Foods Market plans to open six new locations in Chicago, four of which will open in May, according to Crain’s Chicago Business.

The new stores will be located in former Dominick’s locations.

“We took the time to design and build a brand new store for each community that would offer not just a full-service grocery, but also a place to meet friends and share each other’s company,” said Michael Bashaw, president of Whole Foods Market’s Midwest Region, in a statement.

New York -- Target Corp. is launching a brand new plus-size line, Ava & Viv, which will be sold both online and in stores starting on Feb. 22.

While this is not Target's first foray into plus-size fashion, the news does signify a new direction for the store. Not only does Ava & Viv boast a broad range of sizes, it was also created with great style in mind, something that previously seemed like less of a priority for the brand.

Seattle -- Nordstrom announced three new upcoming locations for Nordstrom Rack.

The company will open a 36,000-sq.-ft. store at Wayne Towne Center in Wayne, New Jersey, in fall 2015. This will be the sixth Nordstrom Rack in New Jersey.

In fall 2016, Nordstrom Rack will open a 35,540-sq.-ft. store at Hamilton Crossing in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The property is owned and being developed by The Goldenberg Group.
 

Washington, D.C. -- Madison Marquette announced that Brad Muth has joined the company as senior managing director, portfolio management. With more than 25 years of real estate investment experience, Muth will oversee portfolio management and asset management functions for Madison Marquette. He will be based in the San Francisco office.