Corporate Governance

On the heels of soaring profits and revenues in the fourth quarter, Hudson’s Bay Company said it will make higher than normal investments in growth initiatives this year, including a dramatic increase in the number of Saks Off 5th stores, store renovations and investments in technology.

Retailers estimate they could earn an extra 10% in revenue — which translates into $100 million annually for a $1 billon company — by offering customers and employees a highly individualized experience.

That’s one of the key retail takeaways of new report by Oracle, which surveyed 300 C-level executives across 10 industries to understand how prepared organizations are to address the fact that consumers increasingly expect, and even demand, to have it their way—whether shopping, communicating, working, or enjoying leisure time.

Sears Canada is again calling on Becky Penrice to lead an important aspect of its nearly 300 store operation.

Penrice was named executive VP and COO after serving in that role in an interim capacity for little over a two months. Penrice has worn several hats at Sears Canada since joining the company on Dec. 1, 2013 after holding supply chain and human resources roles role at Hudson’s Bay Company.

The rise of fast-fashion, changing fashion tastes and online commerce may be claiming another teen apparel retailer.

Pacific Sunwear of California Inc. is preparing to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, according to Bloomberg, which cited people with "knowledge of the situation.” The report said the filing could occur as early as next week.

PayPal announced it is cancelling plans to open a new operations center in North Carolina after the state passed a law that many see as restricting protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. The news comes as leaders of the High Point Market, the largest furnishings industry trade show in the world, warned that “hundreds and perhaps thousands” of customers will not attend the Market, held in High Point, North Carolina in April, due to their opposition to the new law. The Market attracts retailers, designers, suppliers and manufacturers.

When it comes to marketing spending, Deckers Brands is doing more with less.

The Goleta, California-based vertical apparel retailer is performing advanced predictive analytics on the performance of different marketing activities for its North American direct-to-consumer Ugg specialty footwear business. This includes an e-commerce site, as well as 45 stores.

Amazon.com is serving notice to Apple, PayPal and other leading online payment providers that it is looking to challenge their turf.

The online retail giant is launching a new program called the Amazon Payments Partner Program that enables e-commerce platforms to provide Amazon Payments functionality to their users. Previously, Amazon had made its proprietary payments service available to individual third-party online retailers.

Amid ongoing pressure from investors to maximize the value of its real estate holdings, Macy’s has appointed Douglas W. Sesler as executive VP for real estate, effective April 5.