Strategy

The Grocery Manufacturers Association inducted Richard Jurgens, chairman and CEO of Hy-Vee Inc. and Dean Pappas, CEO of Clement Pappas and Company Inc., into its Hall of Achievement.

The recognition came at a gala dinner Sunday night as GMA held its annual executive conference in Colorado Springs. The Hall of Achievement Award represents the highest honor given by the more than 100 year-old association.

MINNEAPOLIS — Richard Schulze has moved one step closer to achieving his goal of acquiring Best Buy. The company has agreed to let its founder and former chairman access to certain due diligence information and form an invesment group so that he may continue his efforts to attempt to buy the company.

NEW YORK — A switch to LED lighting technology in its refrigerated coolers has resulted in combined energy and maintenance savings of more than $1 million annually for convenience store operator Wawa.

The new technology, Immersion from GE Lighting Solutions, has been installed in Wawa’s 600 locations across the Mid-Atlantic region, and has reduced refrigerated cooler/freezer electricity and maintenance expense by a combined 78% since its adoption.

AMSTERDAM — Royal Ahold's U.S. subsidiary saw net sales rise 3.4% in light of challenging market conditions, the retailer reported last week.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — The Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) and its Associate Member Council (AMC) have awarded E. & J. Gallo Winery and PepsiCo Inc. with the 2012 CPG Awards for Innovation and Creativity. The award is given annually to companies that have demonstrated creativity, innovation, and have made a significant impact on the industry knowledge base.
 

Armonk, N.Y. -- IBM has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Kenexa, a provider of human resources software and consulting services for approximately $1.3 billion in cash.

The acquisition helps make the Armonk, N.Y., company more competitive with database maker Oracle Corp. and German business software maker SAP AG, said Rick Sherlund of Nomura Equity Research, Kenexa’s software is intended to help companies recruit and manage talent through online social networking, collaboration and consulting tools.

Indianapolis -- The Finish Line announced that Harvey Bierman has joined the company as VP digital technology.

Bierman comes to Finish Line after seven years with Demandware, where he most recently served as senior director, global strategic solutions.

“Harvey’s appointment is an important step toward driving long-term growth for Finish Line through aggressive expansion of our digital business,” said Chris Ladd, executive VP chief digital officer for Finish Line.
 

York, Pa. -- The Bon-Ton Stores Inc. said that it plans to close its Carson's store in the River Oaks Mall in Calumet City, Ill., when the lease expires in January. 

The department store company said doesn't expect costs tied to the closing to be material.

Bon Ton received the leasehold interests in the store as part of its Northern Department Store Group acquisition in 2006.
 

New York -- Koninklijke Ahold will open its first grocery store tailored to singles, in Germany, according to Bloomberg, which cited a report by Financial Times Deutschland.

The first store will open in the city of Aachen Sept. 12, with 11 more locations to follow in the state of North-Rhine Westphalia, the report said.
 

Teen apparel retailer Delia's has debuted a new prototype at Providence Place Mall, in Providence, R.I. The store has a stylish, youthful vibe that reflects its core customer. The design met objectives to increase floor and wall fixture capacity and reduce overall store size while maintaining brand identification.
 
Shremshock Architects & Engineers, Westerville, Ohio, provided design, purchasing and construction management for Delia's store redesign in collaboration with Asset Strategies Group, also based in Westerville, Ohio.