Corporate Governance

Head Francesca’s merchant resigns
Houston – Francesca’s Holdings Corp. is looking for someone to run its merchandising operation. Sei Jin Alt, chief merchandising officer of Francesca’s, will be resigning from the company to spend more time with her family and pursue other interests.

Francesca’s has initiated a search for a new chief merchandising officer. To facilitate a smooth transition, Alt will remain in her current role until Nov. 20, 2015.
TravelCenters shareholder urges buyback
New York - RDG Capital Fund Management, a shareholder of TravelCenters of America, is recommending a major financial step. RDG has delivered a letter to the TravelCenters board of directors strongly recommending a $100 million share buyback that RDG estimates would increase stock price by more than 33% to $17 per share.

Walmart's turnaround taking more time

Bentonville, Ark. -- Wal-Mart saw respectable U.S. sales growth in the second quarter, but it wasn't enough to overcome expense pressures and a weak dollar. These negative factors caused the company to turn in one of its worst quarterly profit performances in recent memory.
Oops! This grocer bit off more than it could chew

New York -- Almost as quickly as tiny northwest grocer Haggen became a regional player by acquiring 146 former Safeway and Albertsons stores the company is retrenching and has plans to close a large number of stores.
Dick's Sporting Goods scores with omnichannel

Dick's Sporting Goods says its focus on omnichannel retailing is yielding fruitful results, as the company reported an increase in profit and sales for the second quarter.

Dick’s reported net income of $90.8 million, or 77 cents per share, up from $69.5 million, or 57 cents per share, a year ago. That beat Wall Street’s average EPS estimate of 75 cents. Net sales were $1.8 billion, up 8% from $1.7 million during second-quarter 2014. Same-store sales for Dick’s Sporting Goods rose 1.5%.
Home Depot builds on its winning streak

The world's largest home improvement chain is benefiting from Americans spending more on their homes than on their wardrobes, as Home Depot reported record sales and earnings in the second quarter.
TJX still attracting cost-conscious shoppers

Consumers may be shying away from department stores but they are still flocking to off-price retailers such as TJX, which posted impressive sales and revenue growth in the second quarter.
Walmart taps brakes on Neighborhood Markets

In a shift to quality over quantity, Walmart has cut expansion plans for its Neighborhood Market stores despite the format’s consistently strong top line growth in recent years.
Abercrombie hopes shakeup will revive sales

Abercrombie & Fitch Co. has formed a new brand leadership team to help drive the struggling company forward.
Kohl's board gains workforce expertise

Kohl's Corp. is adding some labor market expertise to its board.

The retailer says Jonas Prising has been elected as a new board member, effective immediately. He has been elected to a term expiring at Kohl's 2016 annual shareholders meeting and will be eligible for re-election by Kohl's shareholders at that time. He will initially serve on the Board of Directors' Governance and Nominating Committee.
Target reaches deal with Visa over data breach

Target has reached an agreement with Visa card issuers to reimburse costs related to a data breach at the retailer in 2013.

According to The Wall Street Journal, agreement, which could entail as much as $67 million in reimbursement costs, comes three months after a proposed $19 million settlement between Target and Mastercard fell through.

Read more about the deal by clicking here.
Francesca's on the hunt for new CMO

Specialty retailer Francesca's is losing its head merchant.

CMO Sei Jin Alt is resigning to spend more time with her family and pursue other interests, the company said. The company has initiated a search for a new Chief Merchandising Officer. To facilitate a smooth transition, Alt will remain in her current role until Nov. 20.