Strategy

NEW YORK — Tiffany & Co. plans to open a two-level shop in Moscow’s GUM department store, the city’s leading luxury shopping destination, located in Red Square. The 4,520-sq.-ft. space is the jeweler’s first wholly owned retail business in Russia, and is expected to open in the first quarter 2014.

Santa Monica, Calif. — Private investment firm Clearlake Capital Group has begun the process of acquiring the Retail Solutions Group of Agilysys through a newly formed affiliate, Kyrus Solutions. The transaction is expected to close in the early summer. 

Bentonville, Ark. -- Wal-Mart Stores Inc. will hold its Annual Meeting of Shareholders on Friday, June 7, including an executive update by president and CEO Mike Duke.

As many as 14,000 global Walmart associates are also attending the event, most arriving in time for elaborate pre-meeting activities. "Our success is only possible because of the hard work and dedication of our 2.2 million associates around the world,” said Susan Chambers, executive VP global people, at Walmart.

The world of e-commerce is gearing up for the 9th annual Internet Retailer Conference and Exhibition, which will be held at Chicago’s McCormick Place West from June 4-7. This year's theme is "Breaking Barriers."

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Genesco, a specialty footwear and apparel retailer operating numerous brick-and-mortar and online retail brands including Journeys and Lids.com, reported declines in earnings and net sales for the first quarter of fiscal 2014.

The company’s earnings declined 11% to $18.5 million from $20.8.

Net sales decreased 1.5% to $591 million from $600 million. Same-store sales fell 4%. Earnings remained slightly ahead of the company’s expectations.

SAN FRANCISCO — Pottery Barn Kids, part of Williams-Sonoma’s brands portfolio, has launched its Summer Reading Challenge in partnership with PBS Kids. 

The challenge, which runs through August 26, is designed to promote a love of learning and literacy in kids and their families throughout the summer months. It also draws foot traffic into its brick and mortar stores, and is an exercise in brand awareness, as young children will recognize the brand and associate it with the reading challenge, making them potential future customers. 

Starbucks Coffee Company is extending its indoor no-smoking policy to the outdoors. The company will prohibit anyone up to 25 feet from a Starbucks store from smoking, effective June 1, where permitted by its leases. 

The new rule will apply to the 7,000 shops owned and operated by Starbucks Corp., regardless of whether they have outdoor seating areas. 

MOLINE, Ill. — Deere & Company has elected Cargill CEO Gregory R. Page to its board of directors. Cargill is an international producer and marketer of food, agricultural, financial and industrial products and services. 

Based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the privately held company employs about 140,000 people in 65 countries and has annual sales of more than $130 billion.