Strategy

PAWTUCKET, R.I. — Hasbro announced that it is reorganizing its global games business and moving its games marketing and games development employees from East Longmeadow, Mass. to Rhode Island. 

New York — Nordstrom Inc. is scouting out sites to expand into Canada, Dow Jones reported.

"We already know we have a lot of Canadian customers," Nordstrom spokesman Colin Johnson said in the report. Also, Canadians make up the biggest share of Nordstrom's international online customers.

Johnson did not give a timeframe when Nordstrom might make a formal announcement, but did say the company would start with its full-priced stores before opening any Nordstrom Rack outlets in the country, according to the report.

WASHINGTON — Target announced that it will provide new libraries for 42 schools in the United States as part of the 2011 Target School Library Makeover program.

New York — Walmart and The Home Depot have each pledged $1 million to help rebuilding efforts in tornado-ravaged Joplin, Mo.

Each of the retailers had a store in Joplin that was leveled in the storm. Both stores had fatalities inside them.

In a statement, Walmart said it has accounted for all of its associates working at the store at that time, but still is reaching out to all of its employees in the area. It also is working to direct truckloads of water, food and other basic items to Joplin.

Anaheim, Calif. — Pacific Sunwear of California announced that net sales for the first quarter of fiscal 2011 were $186 million, a decrease of 2% from net sales of $190 million for the first quarter of fiscal 2010. Total company same-store sales increased 1% during the first quarter of fiscal 2011.

The company reported a net loss of $31 million, or 48 cents per share, for the first quarter of fiscal 2011 compared to a net loss of $31 million, or 47 cents per share, for the first quarter of fiscal 2010.

Pittsburgh — General Nutrition Centers, has added PayPal's Mobile Express Checkout to its mobile site. The integration was made exclusively by mobile and social commerce provider, Branding Brand, without any involvement from third-party service providers, and makes GNC one of the first to implement this feature on its mobile site.

St. Louis — Brown Shoe Company Inc., which operates Famous Footwear stores, said Wednesday that its first-quarter earnings tumbled, despite rising revenue caused by higher costs.

The company earned $3.7 million, compared with year-ago earnings of $10 million. Excluding special charges for restructuring and other items, the company earned $7 million.

Revenue rose to $624.6 million from $597.7 million a year earlier. Revenue declined at the company's Famous Footwear and specialty retail operations, but wholesale revenue jumped 27%.

NEW YORK — Royal Ahold executive Kimberly Ross is joining beauty company Avon as EVP and CFO, reporting to Andrea Jung, Avon's chairman and CEO.

Ross currently is EVP and CFO and a member of the executive board of Royal Ahold N.V., a Netherlands-based international group, with more than 2,970 stores and supermarkets spanning Europe and the United States.