Strategy

Cincinnati -- Macy’s Inc. announced that Peter Sachse, the company's chief marketing officer and chairman of Macys.com, will succeed Ron Klein as chief stores officer, effective Feb. 13. Klein will retire from Macy's effective March 31, after 36 years with the company.

Martine Reardon, executive VP marketing, will succeed Sachse as Macy’s chief marketing officer, effective Feb. 13.

Deerfield, Ill. -- BioScrip Inc. said it will sell certain assets of its community specialty pharmacies and centralized specialty and mail service pharmacy businesses to Walgreens for about $225 million.

The deal includes about $170 million in cash at closing and retention by BioScrip of associated accounts receivable and working capital liabilities of about $55 million.

Framingham, Mass. -- Staples announced the appointment of Mike Edwards to executive VP, U.S. retail merchandising. He previously served as president and CEO of Borders Group and had also served as the company’s chief merchant.

Dallas -- Zale Corp. announced that Ken Brumfield has been appointed senior VP financial products. In this role, he will be responsible for all customer financing, warranty, insurance and repair product offerings.

New York City -- The nation’s apparel retailers reported mixed results for January as shoppers remain cautious about spending in the uncertain economy.

“It was as tough month as retailers battled holiday hangover, lack of incentive to shop and mild winter that killed outerwear clearance," said Ken Perkins, president of RetailMetrics Inc., in a Reuters report.

As the first month of the year, January accounts for only 20% November-January sales, and 7% of annual sales, according to RetailMetrics.

New York City -- Ann Inc. said that the president of its Ann Taylor brand, Christine Beauchamp, is leaving to pursue other opportunities. She will be replaced by Brian Lynch, who had been president of the Ann Taylor Factory and Loft Outlet divisions and led the website sales for those brands.

The news came as the chain cut its revenue prediction for the quarter that ended in January to a level below analyst expectations, citing slumping sales at its Ann Taylor stores. 

SEATTLE — Amazon.com enjoyed tremendous sales growth in the fourth quarter, but it came at a steep price as expenses grew faster than sales due to investments to support future growth.

Rochelle Park, N.J. -- A Wednesday report by Bloomberg said that United Retail Group Inc., parent to plus-size retailer The Avenue, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The retailer cited disproportionately high leasing costs for the move and also announced plans to sell the company.

According to Bloomberg, an affiliate of Philadelphia-based private equity firm Versa Capital Management will serve as the stalking-horse bidder in a court-supervised auction.

Little Rock, Ark. -- Dillard’s said Wednesday it has made a strategic investment in e-commerce company Acumen Brands in a move toward enhancing the department store retailer’s website dillards.com, as well as Acumen’s 12 e-commerce sites.

Armonk, N.Y. -- IBM said Wednesday it has completed its acquisition of Emptoris Inc., expanding IBM’s cloud-based analytics offerings that provide supply chain intelligence, or smarter commerce.

“Developing the right procurement strategy and an adaptive supply chain are keys to achieving the business objectives of smarter commerce,” said Craig Hayman, general manager, IBM Industry Solutions. “Together, Emptoris and IBM's integrated solutions will transform how clients manage compliance and mitigate supply risk.”