Corporate Governance

Discount grocer Aldi is not about to let any new competitors — home-grown or fellow German imports — get the best of it.    The retailer has announced an aggressive $1.6 billion investment in its stores, with plans to remodel and expand more than 1,300 of its locations by 2020. The announcement comes as competition heats up in the value grocery segment, which is bracing itself for the entry of Germany’s Lidl. At the same, Whole Foods Market continues to expand its new, less pricey format, 365 by Whole Foods.

"It makes me feel really, really sad. I hate to even go up that way. Sometimes I go up that way because I go to the movie theater and I got to ride by it, and it's just heartbreaking, and to see the mall gone,” Owings Mills, Maryland resident Glenn Watlingon told WMAR-TV about the demolition of the Owings Mills Mall.   

Target Corp. leads other retailers when it comes to reaching and attracting qualified talent.    The discounter ranked the highest (at No. 26) among Fortune 500 retail-ers for employment branding in a study by global talent solutions com-pany WilsonHCG. Target was followed by Publix (No. 42), The Home Depot (No. 50), Walmart (No. 64), Nordstrom (No. 77) and Whole Foods Market (No. 115). No retailer cracked the top 10, which was led by Gen-eral Electric, Johnson & Johnson and AT&T.       

The person charged with leading Walgreens Boots Alliance’s digital transformation, is leaving the company in March.   Abhi Dhar, who has essentially served as chief digital officer and CIO of the drugstore giant since 2015, is stepping down from the company to launch an online marketing startup for the retail sector, reported CIO.com. He will serve as CEO of the start-up.  

A retail pioneer in all-natural beauty products, ethical sourcing and environmental responsibility is facing an uncertain future.   L’Oreal is exploring a sale of The Body Shop for $1.1 billion, the Financial Times reported. The cosmetics giant bought the company, which operates some 3,000 stores across the globe, in 2006.   The Body Shop was founded in Brighton, England, in 1976 by Dame Anita Roddick. The brand has struggled recently amid increased competition from an array of brands. 

The Americans with Disabilities Act with be the focus of a special, double-session at Chain Store Age’s upcoming SPECS conference (March 12-14, at the Gaylord Palms, Kissimmee, Florida).     Presented by Joan Stein, president of Joan Stein Consulting and one of the nation’s leading ADA experts, the session will examine non-compliance issues, the impact of after-construction changes, how to avoid mitigation costs, and remediation and business interruption.  

The nation’s leading home storage products retailer is going to try on a smaller footprint.      The Container Store Group on Tuesday said it plans to open locations in Cleveland; Livingston, New Jersey; and Staten Island, New York, as well as relocate its store in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts.      

Apparently mind-challenging games and puzzles weren’t big on holiday lists last year.   Marbles: The Brain Store has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, with plans to close its 37 stores, reported The Chicago Tribune. In its filing, the Chicago-based retailer cited a "dramatic downturn" in its 2016 holiday business that left it short on cash.   

Wal-Mart Stores keeps upping its investment in JD.com.   The discounter has increased its stake in the Chinese online company to 12.1%, (worth about $4.87 billion), from the 10.8% stake it had in October, and the 5.9% stake it had in June of last year, according to a report by Business Insider.  

Disparate systems have no place in the age of “on demand” shopping.   To continue serving its increasingly demanding shoppers — and fuel its continued expansion — Smart & Final is replacing its homegrown solutions with an integrated end-to-end merchandising, planning and execution solution from JDA Software Group.