Marketing

Appliance, electronics and furniture retailer Hhgregg is looking to drive traffic to its stores via a partnership with the Chicago Bears that will award seven fans with a VIP game-day experience.

In addition, as a partner of the team, the inaugural Chicago Bears’ street team will be named the Chicago Bears Monster Squad powered by Hhgregg.

New York -- Brown Shoe Company’s Sam Edelman brand has opened a 3,500-sq.-ft. store in Beverly Hills, California.

The space has a sexy, stylish and whimsical vibe that’s meant to reflect the essence of the brand. The design, by Dagnell Folger of Architecture + Information, embraces the juxtaposition between raw and refined, mixing materials such as reclaimed wood and raw concrete with rose colored brass and black leather.

With the recent unveiling of a new corporate name and a network of retail pharmacies that are now officially tobacco-free, CVS Health continues to forge ahead on its mission to help shape the future of health care. To further communicate its purpose to both consumers and press and to discuss how the company’s unique, integrated model is making a difference in healthcare, Larry Merlo, president and CEO of CVS Health, spoke on Friday before the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.

Boise, Idaho - Albertsons and Safeway Inc. announced the new senior leadership team and division leaders  for the combined company that will take effect upon the closing of their proposed merger. The deal is expected to close in a few months.

Safeway president and CEO Robert Edwards will serve as CEO of the combined company and current Albertsons CEO Bob Miller will become executive chairman.

Seattle -- Nordstrom on Friday opened its first store in Canada, at Chinook Centre in Calgary, Alberta. The two-level, 140,000-sq.-ft. store is also the department store retailer’s first location outside the United States.
 
"Being in business for 113 years, this is really a historic time for us as we open our first store in Canada - our first international store," said Sheila Wooldridge, Nordstrom Chinook Centre store manager.

St. Louis -- Brown Shoe Company has invested $9 million in Jack Erwin, an online men’s shoe brand that launched last year. It’s Brown’s first investment in a startup.

Founded by Ariel Nelson and Lane Gerson, Jack Erwin creates high-quality men’s shoes, selling them directly to consumers for under $200 a pair.

New York -- Fairway Group Holdings Corp. has named Jack Murphy, a veteran retail executive with strong experience in specialty food retailing, as CEO.

Murphy was a co-founder of natural foods grocer Fresh Fields, which was sold to Whole Foods Market. Most recently he served as CEO of Earth Fare, an organics and natural food chain with locations in the Southeast and Midwest.

Pittsburgh -- GNC Holdings named Jeffrey R. Hennion as executive VP, chief marketing and e-commerce officer. Hennion most recently served as president and CFO of mobile commerce provider Branding Build.

Prior to Branding Brand, Hennion led GNC's marketing and e-commerce efforts in 2011 and 2012.  He also spent 10 years with Dick's Sporting Goods in a number of senior leadership roles, including executive VP, chief marketing officer and head of e-commerce.

Houston -- JLL announced it has expanded its retail tenant representation capabilities in Houston with the addition of Matt Parsons. In his new role, Parsons will be responsible for identifying and securing new space for expanding retailers in the market, and will partner with Mark Raines, who joined JLL in July to lead the firm’s Houston retail brokerage practice.



Dublin, Calif. -- dd’s Discounts, a division of Ross Stores, Inc. will open a new store in Arizona, on Sept. 27. The store is located in the Squaw Peak Plaza in Phoenix.  

Including this new location, dd’s Discounts operates approximately 150 locations in 13 states and is on schedule to complete its expansion plan to open approximately 20 locations in 2014.