Strategy

New York City -- Toys “R” Us will open fewer holiday pop-up stores this year, Reuters reported.

In 2010, the chain opened some 600 temporary Toys “R” Us stores nationwide. But spokeswoman Kathleen Waugh said the company has decided to open fewer stores this holiday season, according to the report.

The increases in average transaction size and customer traffic that Target credited with driving its 4.1% same-store sales increase during August is unwelcome news for Walmart. This is especially true since the biggest gains continue to come in categories where Walmart is traditionally strongest and is intent on demonstrating price leadership.

CITY OF INDUSTRY, Calif. — Hot Topic has announced that two new executives have joined the company, Don Hendricks as CIO and Jeff Allison as SVP planning and allocation.

Hendricks will lead all information technology for Hot Topic Inc. Prior to joining Hot Topic, Hendricks was the CIO at Gymboree Corp. where he led many successful major systems implementations. In addition to his IT responsibilities, Hendricks was also responsible for distribution and logistics.

When we think of our neighbors to the north in Canada, there are plenty of iconic symbols and traditions that come to mind: hockey, moose and the Mounties to name a few. When it comes to retail real estate in Canada, something else that could be considered “iconic” would be the fact that many regional malls there often have supermarkets as their major anchor.

ISSAQUAH, Wash. — First it was Steve Jobs, and now Costco’s legendary co-founder Jim Sinegal is stepping down as CEO.

New York City -- Macy’s reported that its same-store sales rose 5% in August, beating estimates. The retailer said sales would have been higher by 1.5% points without the impact of Hurricane Irene. Industry analysts had warned that the storm would impact department stores and specialty retailers the most as consumers focused on buying generators and other emergency and recovery items versus back-to-school and discretionary products.

Seattle -- Seattle's Best Coffee, which is owned by Starbucks, has opened 12 stores since April, bringing it to almost 100 locations in the United States and Canada. The expansion reflects the chain’s strategy to build upon the brand’s broad distribution network of franchised locations, company-operated stores, relationships with restaurant chains, and foodservice locations.

New York City -- Terry Lundgren, CEO of Macy’s, has been appointed to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York board of directors.

Lundgren was appointed a class B director starting Aug. 31 for the unexpired porting of a three-year term ending Dec. 11, serving the remainder of GE CEO Jeffrey Immelt’s CEO term.