Strategy

That’s not exactly the question a couple college professors ask in a new booked called, “The Physics of Business,” but it might as well have been. The authors suggest the forces of scale and efficiency are trumping innovation at U.S. companies of which Walmart is the largest.

Harrisburg, Pa. -- Pennsylvania governor Tom Corbett said Thursday that PetSmart will open a new distribution center in Bethel Township, Berks County, Pa.
 
PetSmart will construct an 870,000-sq.-ft. distribution center in Berks Park 78, a new industrial park located in Bethel Township. The company will start construction on the $50 million distribution center in the fall of 2012, with completion expected in first quarter 2014.

The project is expected to create at least 500 new jobs by 2016. 

Yikes! After a monstrous earnings miss, Supervalu suspended its earnings guidance and dividend and said it was exploring strategic alternatives.

Santa Ana, Calif. -- A report released Thursday by the New York Times said that three ex-managers of Wet Seal have filed a federal race discrimination lawsuit, claiming bias against African-American employees. The trio alleges the retailer has a high-level policy of firing and denying pay increases and promotions to blacks because they did not fit the retailer’s “brand image,” according to the Times report.

Indianapolis — In light of poor performance in its video category, electronics retailer Hhgregg has lowered its fiscal 2013 guidance.

Hhgregg is expecting net sales for its first quarter to be approximately $490 million, an increase of approximately 13.5% as compared with the $431.5 million of net sales reported in the fiscal first quarter last year. The company attributes the sales growth to the net addition of 30 new stores during the quarter.

LOS ANGELES — Katie Bayne, president and general manager of sparkling beverages for Coca-Cole North America, has been elected to the American Film Institute's board of trustees.

Lawrenceville, Ga. – Indianapolis-based Simon Property Group said that Crazy 8 will open a store at its Discover Mills property, Atlanta’s largest outlet, value retail and entertainment destination.

Gymboree Corp.’s Crazy 8, slated to open this fall, will join newly announced tenant Old Navy Outlet at the center.

Discover Mills features more than 180 retailers, as well as four full-service restaurants and entertainment venues.
 

Deerfield, Ill. — Walgreens on Tuesday extended its innovation in mobile technology with the introduction of a developer portal that allows third-party software developers to integrate the Walgreens QuickPrints software development kit, enabling photo printing directly from iPhone and Android mobile devices.