Corporate Governance

New York -- In a long-awaited decision, the National Labor Relations Board has made it easier for contract workers and other temporary employees to more easily unionize.

Business groups and associations, including the National Retail Federation, criticized the decision.

Pembroke Pines, Fla. -- General Growth Properties and AMC Theatres announced the addition of a new 40,000-sq. ft. theater to Pembroke Lakes Mall in Pembroke Pines, Florida. Construction is set to begin early 2016, with an expected opening in early 2017.

The nine-screen AMC theatre will also feature power-reclining seating for up to 1,000 guests, a Marketplace food and beverage area, IMAX and Dolby Cinema.
 

Indianapolis -- Simon announced the opening of an additional 250,000 sq. ft. of outdoor shopping space, significantly increasing the footprint of Chicago Premium Outlets in Aurora, Illinois. New stores including Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th, Columbia Sportswear, UGG Australia, Vince, and the first Midwest outlet stores for Robert Graham and Clarins have joined existing brands such as Coach, Cole Haan, Michael Kors, Nike Factory Store, Skechers, Under Armour, and Vera Bradley who have expanded their presence.

GameStop Corp. grew sales and revenue in the second quarter, but it also took steps to expand its non-gaming business.

For the second quarter ended Aug. 1, the retailer’s net income rose 3% to $25.3 million from $24.6 million. Total global sales rose 2% to $1.76 billion from $1.73 billion, and consolidated global same-store sales increased 8.1% (10.8% in the U.S. and 1.8% internationally).

The turnaround plan at Big Lots, which is helping the retailer grow profit and same store sales, is also prompting some management changes.

For the second quarter ended Aug. 1,  same store sales increased 2.8%. Net sales increased 1.2% to $1,209.7 million. Big Lots reported a profit of $17.6 million, or 34 cents a share, down from $19.9 million, or 36 cents, a year earlier. Excluding certain items, per-share profit rose to 40 cents from 31 cents. Revenue edged 1.2% higher to $1.21 billion.

Ulta Beauty is continuing to deliver blockbuster financial results by attracting blockbuster numbers of shoppers to its stores. 

The beauty retailer reported a 7% increase in customer traffic for the second quarter ended Aug. 1 and average spending rose by 3%. The company also raised its outlook for the second time this year: Comps are now targeted at rising 9%, rather than the 8% the Ulta team forecast in May. 

Specialty men’s retailer Destination XL Inc. reported Thursday that it shrank its net loss in the second quarter.

Workwear brand Carhartt has opened a flagship in the city where it was founded in 1889.  

The CEO of Michaels says an improved merchandising strategy and a focus on the customer experience helped drive sales growth at the specialty retailer in the second quarter.

Total sales increased 3.8% to $984.3 million in the second quarter ended Aug. 1 at Michaels and same store sales increased 2.9%. Michaels reported a profit of $35.7 million, or 17 cents a share, vs. a loss of $46.8 million, or 26 cents a share, a year ago.

Would-be experts are portraying a federal appeals court ruling in the Neiman Marcus data breach case as a tipping point toward victims of cyber fraud, one that may lead to a wave of successful class-action lawsuits filed against retail chains.

This interpretation is premature.

It is an overreach rooted in a lack of appreciation for the overall procedural context in which the court reviewed the case, without accounting for the most important part of any class action lawsuit – class certification.