Corporate Governance

The end of summer is often a sad time, but workers at U.S. Starbucks stores have more to look forward to with the coming of autumn than football and the changing of leaf colors.   Effective Oct. 3, 2016, the coffee retailer is giving all employees and managers in U.S. company-operated stores an increase in base pay of 5% or greater. The range of increase will be determined by geographic and market factors.  

Stater Bros. Markets is decreasing electricity output this summer.   The San Bernadino, California-based regional supermarket chain is voluntarily reducing lighting energy use by 50% in all 168 Stater Bros. locations during the summer months. This reduction will decrease electricity use by 425,000 kWh per month, which is the equivalent of powering 470 homes per month. It also reduces the possibility of rotating outages during the summer.  

Sales and purchases of shopping center assets at Kimco Realty Corp during the second quarter of 2016 exceeded $1 billion dollars, according to details released by the company.   The Hyde Park, New York-based Kimco sold 22 Canadian shopping centers totaling 28 million sq. ft. for $474.4 million, which included the assignment of $213.5 million of existing mortgage debt. It also disposed of 12 unencumbered U.S. properties totaling 1.5 million sq. ft. for $220.5 million.  

Barnes & Noble has previously ventured into new product categories such as e-readers and toys and games, but the bookseller is going further outside its established niche than ever before.  

Walmart has reportedly begun deployment of shelf-stocking carts designed to improve the produce shopping experience.   According to Reuters, the retailer has so far implemented what it calls “quality carts” at 500 U.S. stores, with plans to have them available at almost all locations in the U.S. by the end of the third quarter.   

Specialty arts and crafts retailer The Michaels Companies Inc. knows that customer loyalty is not its own reward.  

DDR fired president and CEO David Oakes and replaced him with 40-year industry veteran Thomas August. A company press release says Oakes’ termination was unrelated to financial or operating results, though DDR showed a net loss of $93.5 million in 2015 after posting income of $91.3 million the previous year.  

A shift in the timing of a major holiday was cause for celebration at home furnishings retailer Havertys Furniture Companies Inc.   Sales in the second quarter of fiscal 2016 at Havertys rose 4% to $194.8 million, from $187.7 million the same period a year earlier. Same-store sales increased 2.8%. Written total and same-store sales for the second quarter both rose 6%.  

Two mid-sized U.S. and Canadian chains are joining forces to create the third-largest pet specialty retailer and the largest small format, neighborhood specialty pet retailer in North America   Pet Valu and Pet Supermarket have merged to create a combined business named Pet Retail Brands. With more than 930 stores, it is expected to generate approximately $1 billion in system-wide retail sales across the U.S. and Canada. Pet Retail Brands will have stores from the East Coast to the West Coast and from Miami to Vancouver.  

Staples Inc.is looking north of the border for an executive to lead its North American operations.   The office supply giant is promoting Steve Matyas to president of North American retail. Matyas had previously served as president of Staples Canada/Bureau en Gros since July 2000, and will continue to serve as a member of the company’s executive committee.