Strategy

New York City -- Robert K. Futterman & Associates announced it has secured a long-term, 2,725-sq. ft. lease with high-end apparel and accessories retailer Intermix in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District. 

This completes the first of three phases of leasing at the building, which is situated on the southwest corner at the intersection of Washington and Gansevoort Streets, where Intermix will have two entrances. 

Mooresville, N.C. -- Lowe’s Cos. said Wednesday that it has made several key promotions and moves in its human resources, legal, merchandising, logistics and information technology areas.

Maureen K. Ausura was promoted to executive VP human resources, from senior VP in the same capacity.

Gaither M. Keener has been promoted to executive VP general counsel, secretary and chief compliance officer, from senior VP in the same capacity. 

Both will continue reporting to CEO Robert Niblock.

Columbus, Ohio -- DSW said Tuesday that it will acquire its largest shareholder Retail Ventures and turn it into a wholly owned subsidiary, helping to simplify its relationship.

According to the shoe retailer, the two companies signed a merger agreement, under which DSW will give stockholders 0.435 of a DSW share for each share they hold of Retail Ventures.

Retail Venture holds a 62% stake in DSW.

The companies are slated to hold a conference on Wednesday to discuss the deal with investors.

Irvine, Calif. -- Passco Cos. LLC announced that Brad McCord has been hired as regional marketing representative for the company.

McCord will act as an internal licensed wholesaler and work closely with the sales teams and their marketing efforts.

Plano, Texas -- J. C. Penney Co. announced Wednesday that its board of directors has elected William A. Ackman, founder and CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management, and Steven Roth, chairman of the board of Vornado Realty Trust, as directors.

The appointments had been previously announced on Jan. 24. 
 

Palatine, Ill. -- An overwhelming number (88%) of executives admit to a “moral responsibility” beyond regulatory requirement to make their companies more energy efficient, according to a recent poll of senior executives at Fortune 1000 companies. At the same time, however, 61% of respondents rank potential cost-savings as biggest motivator to save energy at the enterprise-level, outranking both environmental benefits and government regulations.

An otherwise exceptional year of sales and profits at Hibbett Sports was soiled somewhat late in the fourth quarter as consumer demand deteriorated, forcing the company to alert investors that it would come up short against earlier guidance. The 767-unit Hibbett chain continued to execute its strategy, but really bad weather in many of the company’s markets coupled with a slower-than-expected flow of tax refunds negatively affected results.

San Francisco -- Gap said Wednesday that it has expanded its Gap and Banana Republic online presence to eight additional European countries through its dedicated European e-commerce sites.

Gap debuted the dedicated sites in the United Kingdom in August 2010 and then expanded to include nine additional European countries in October 2010. The newest announcement brings the total reach of it European e-commerce business to 18 countries.