Strategy

New York -- Shoe manufacturer Wolverine Worldwide Inc. announced Tuesday that it has partnered with equity firms Blum Capital Partners and Golden Gate Capital to acquire Payless ShoeSource parent Collective Brands Inc. for about $1.3 billion.

Boca Raton, Fla. -- Office Depot Inc. reported Tuesday that it swung to a profit of $41 million in the first quarter ended March 31, compared with a loss of $15 million in the same period last year.

Sales fell 3.4% to $2.87 billion, missing Wall Street’s expected $2.89 billion in revenue. Same-store sales at the office supply retailer’s North American stores decreased 6%, and total sales for the division dropped 8% to $1.2 billion, impacted by store closures and fewer selling days.

Burlington, Ontario -- Ikea Canada announced Tuesday that it is one of three pilot countries to bring store information via Android phones or iPhones.

Effective May 2, the Ikea Mobile Shopping Application will enable customers to browse Ikea's product range, check product information and stock availability. The new application also allows the creation of shopping lists that include the product's location for pick up in the store. Customers can also access a store map on their phone to make navigating through the store easier.

San Francisco -- Gap Inc. announced Monday that it has appointed former H&M global sales head Stefan Larsson as the new president of Old Navy, effective the end of October.

Larsson replaces Tom Wyatt, who left the company in February.

The move is expected to pay dividends for Gap as it preps to open its first overseas Old Navy store – in Japan – this July.

Hoffman Estates, Ill. -- Sears Holdings Corp. revealed in a Monday filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that the previously announced spinoff of its Sears’s Outlet and Sears’s Hometown and Hardware stores will now combine the two chains into one separate company.

The move, part of Sears’ initiative to cut expense and regain profits, will result in the newly named Sears Hometown and Outlet Stores Inc. and a public offering that is expected to raise $400 to $500 million for Sears.

NEW YORK and REDMOND, Wash. — Barnes & Noble has formed a partnership with Microsoft that will put Barnes & Noble's college and digital business under a new subsidiary, referred to for now as Newco. According to a press release, Microsoft will make a $300 million investment in Newco at a post-money valuation of $1.7 billion in exchange for an approximately 17.6% equity stake. Barnes & Noble will own approximately 82.4% of the new subsidiary, which will have an ongoing relationship with the company’s retail stores.

ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Net sales for Ingles Markets experienced a spike during the second quarter and first half of fiscal year 2012, the retailer reported Monday.

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Express has named Theo Killion has been appointed to its board of directors as a Class III director.  Killion is CEO and a director of Zale Corp.  

Sidney, Neb. -- SAP America Inc., a subsidiary of SAP AG, announced that Cabela’s Inc. has selected the SAP point-of-sale application to support its retail expansion and enhance its customer experience.

The hunting, fishing and outdoor gear retailer will leverage out-of-the-box functionality inherent in SAP POS to provide increased customer service, as well as system and sales associate efficiency, SAP said.

San Jose, Calif. -- Retail clinics and big-name medical centers are poised for dramatic expansion, according to two well-known speakers at the American Telemedicine Association's annual meeting in San Jose this week.