Strategy

Foothill Ranch, Calif. -- The Wet Seal said it has hired financial advisors and adopted a poison pill that discourages an investor from acquiring 10% of the company.

The move comes as Clinton Group, an investor with a 3.9% stake in the chain, has been putting pressure on the company to put itself on the block.

“We took this action to ensure the board has sufficient time to consider any option,” said Wet Seal chairman Harold Kahn.

DALLAS — Tuesday Morning's net loss widened to $2 million, or 5 cents per diluted shared for its fourth quarter, from $1.4 million, or 3 cents per diluted share for the same period last year.

ROANOKE, Va. — Advance Auto Parts has announced the promotions of Kurt Schumacher to SVP, national field operations and Joe Gonzalez to area SVP.

Schumacher will lead the company's  nearly 3,500 Advance Auto Parts stores and asset protection. Mr. Schumacher will report to Darren Jackson, president and CEO. Gonzalez will lead store operations in Florida, the Southeast, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. He will report to Schumacher.

MINNEAPOLIS — Best Buy reported dismal second quarter results Tuesday morning, missing analysts’ estimates by a wide margin one day after the company raised eyebrows by selecting a CEO with no retail experience to engineer a turnaround.

WAYNE, N.J. — Toys"R"Us is taking aggressive steps toward becoming a bigger player in the highly competitive baby products market, by expanding its offerings under the Babies"R"Us brand.

The company has introduced a new infant feeding line and an expanded assortment of bedding and room decor, food, formula, snacks and other essentials and now offers customers more than 1,600 products.

NEW YORK — Barnes & Noble saw increased sales and a narrower loss for its first quarter thanks in large part to the steamy series, "Fifty Shades of Grey."
 
“During the first quarter, we continued to see improvement in both our rapidly growing Nook business, which saw digital content sales increase 46% during the quarter, and at our bookstores, which continue to benefit from market consolidation and strong sales of the 'Fifty Shades' series,” said William Lynch, CEO of Barnes & Noble.

The Philadelphia chocolate-and-peanut bar that started as a World War I ration is back — even though it didn't really go anywhere. Candy company Just Born announced that it has overhauled its Peanut Chews' brand image to better reflect its roots.

CHICAGO — SymphonyIRI Group Inc., a provider of innovative solutions and services for consumer, retail and healthcare companies, has named Beverly Grant as president of retail solutions. She will report to Mark Parise, president of IRI, SymphonyIRI.

DALLAS — Karen Katz, president and CEO of The Neiman Marcus Group, announced that Joseph Weber will be joining the company Sept. 4, as SVP, chief human resources officer.  Weber will be responsible for all areas of human resources and loss prevention including associate relations, learning and development, recruitment, compensation, internal communications and benefits.

STERLING, Va. — Former Walmart executive David Hoodis has joined the corporate advisory board of Natural Insight, a private retail technology company engaged in workforce management.

“We feel privileged to have access to David’s respected experience in workforce innovation. His success with numerous leading retailers brings us an added perspective that enables us to stay even further ahead of market need,” stated Stefan Midford, president and CEO of Natural Insight in making the announcement.