Corporate Governance

Retailers know the Internet of Things (IoT) is coming and will bring significant changes. But their preparedness for it is less certain.

Citing favorable market conditions and a desire to “de-risk” its pension plan, nearly 14,000 participants in J.C. Penney’s retirement plan opted to receive lump sum payments.

Supervalu announced that president and CEO Sam Duncan will retire at the end of the company’s fiscal year. The company also elevated two other executives to key senior leadership roles and affirmed its commitment to exploring strategic alternatives for the Save-A-Lot retail division.

The $18 billion grocery wholesaler and retailer said Duncan would remain with the company until February 29, 2016. He joined the company in February 2013 in connection with the sale by Supervalu of five retail banners to Albertsons.

Low-price grocery chain Aldi is making some changes to the ingredients of its food products just days after Target announced it was banning various chemicals from the products it sells.

Aldi announced it has removed certified synthetic colors, partially hydrogenated oils and MSG from all of its exclusive brand food products.

The move by Aldi (and Target) comes as traditional and even upscale grocers are struggling to increase sales as shoppers increasingly turn to more discounters.

The importance of expense control at Walmart became evident on Friday when the retailer confirmed it planned to eliminate 450 positions as part of a broader restructuring effort.

Staples is bucking the Black Thursday trend by making a statement, literally, about closing its stores on Thanksgiving Day in order to allow its customers, employees and their families to enjoy the holiday.

The retailer issued a statement on Thursday saying that despite being open on Thanksgiving Day the past two years, this year it says customers and employees should have the chance to stay home with family and friends. Stores will open at 6 a.m. on Black Friday.

Midwestern discounter Meijer is looking to a former store pharmacist who worked his way up in the company to take over the reins as president.

The company announced that Rick Keyes has been appointed as president of the Grand Rapids, Mich.-based retailer. Keyes, who joined the company 26 years ago as a pharmacist in Columbus, Ohio, takes the reigns of the multi-state Midwestern retailer after this week's announcement that J.K. Symancyk is leaving the company to join a Texas-based retailer.

The highly anticipated EMV deadline of Oct. 1 has come and gone, leaving many retailers and payment solutions providers to ponder what’s next? As of Oct. 1, 2015, any U.S. retailer that does not have the necessary POS hardware, software, and operational and network protocols in place to process an EMV-compliant chip card transaction faces a shift in fraud liability.

Walmart offered a sneak peek of its new fulfillment center in the Atlanta area on Thursday on the heels of announcing that it would bring grocery pickup to the region this month. Walmart says the new facility is dedicated to filling online orders and is the latest addition to the next-generation fulfillment network Walmart is building to support its rapidly growing e-commerce business.

Rite Aid on Wednesday brought back its nationwide annual Vote for Your Favorite Pharmacy Team Member Contest to celebrate American Pharmacist Month. Through the contest, Rite Aid customers have a chance to win $2,500 in Rite Aid gift cards by nominating a favorite member of their Rite Aid pharmacy team.