Strategy

Los Angeles -- Westfield Group shopping center owner said in a statement that it has agreed in principle to joint-venture with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey the new retail precinct at the site of the New York World Trade Center.

Westfield, upon completion of the deal, would manage and lease out the retail space expected to open in early 2015.

Seattle -- Starbucks Corp. reported Thursday that it scored record results in the quarter ended July 3, prompting the retailer to accelerate its 2012 new store opening targets to 800 net new stores globally.

Starbucks grew profits 34% in the third quarter, to $279 million from $208 million in the year-ago period. Sales rose 12% to $2.9 billion from $2.6 billion, topping Wall Street estimates.

Same-store sales globally surged 8%, buoyed by a 6% increase in traffic and a 2% increase in average ticket.

BENTONVILLE, Ark.  — The Walton Family Foundation revealed Wednesday that it will donate $50 million to Teach For America, a commitment that stands to nearly double the size of the organization’s teaching ranks.

The charity that was created by the founder of Wal-Mart Stores will mete out half of the funds over a three-year period, and will increase the number of teachers to 15,000 by 2015. The remaining half of the donation will support the training of existing Teach for America instructors in seven communities.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Grocery distributor and retailer Spartan Stores reported that its net sales for the first quarter increased 4.4% to $602.6 million compared with $577.2 million in the same period last year. Both the distribution and retail segments reported improved sales during the quarter, the company said.

TOANO, Va. — Lumber Liquidators second-quarter sales increased 4% to $175.5 million, up from $168.7 million in the same quarter last year.

But at comparable-stores decreased 7.9%, and net income decreased to $5.3 million in the second quarter, down from $9.1 million in the second quarter of the prior year. 

ARLINGTON, Va. — The Food Marketing Institute on Wednesday named Heather Garlich as the association’s director of media and public relations. She will be responsible for managing communications outreach and information activities related to FMI’s strategic goals, including government relations, food safety, conferences and events, and industry relations.

SIDNEY, Neb. — Despite heat waves throughout the country that made leaving the indoors unbearable this summer, consumers still took the time to enjoy the great outdoors, as evidenced by the strong first-quarter results reported by Cabela's. The outdoor sporting goods retailer reported that total revenue for the first quarter increased 7.7% to $562.1 million. For the quarter, comparable-store sales increased 4.4%. 

TOPEKA, Kan. — The desire for affordable, stylish shoes is something shared by U.S. and international consumers alike, which is why Collective Brands' Payless ShoeSource unit has been able to build a successful franchise business overseas. The company announced Thurday the opening of its 100th franchise store, which is located in Cirebon, Indonesia.  The store represents the 7th store in Indonesia to date.

BENTONVILLE, Ark. -- A Wednesday report by Bloomberg said that Wal-Mart Stores has named Morten Knudsen as CFO for Asia, as the retailer recasts its leadership roles in the region amidst top-heavy turnover.

Knudsen, who was previously VP for corporate finance in Asia for Danone, takes the financial chief spot for Wal-Mart Asia effective Sept. 1.

Since May, Walmart has lost Japanese chief Toru Noda and three of its top executives in China, including the CFO and COO Roland Lawrence and Rob Cissell, respectively.

CAMP HILL, Pa. — Rite Aid’s same-store sales increased by 1.9% in July, the retail pharmacy chain said Thursday.

During the four-week period ended July 23, comp sales jumped 3.1% on the front end and 1.4% in the pharmacy, including a 151 basis point reduction resulting from introduction of new generic drugs. Prescription counts decreased by 0.4%. Total sales during the four-week period were about $1.92 billion, a 1.6% increase over July 2010.