Corporate Governance

Manhattan Beach, Calif. -- Skechers is celebrating the opening of its 1,000th retail store. The company, which operates in more than 75 countries, hit the milestone mark with the opening of a new store in Mexico City on Wednesday, preceded by an additional store opening in Mexico earlier this week and two in California last week.  

Alexandria, Va. — Declining gas prices may increase holiday spending this year—especially among men and those ages 18-34, according to a new national survey on consumer optimism conducted by the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS).  

Salisbury, N.C. -- Food Lion has unveiled a new, easier shopping experience for customers in 45 remodeled stores in the greater Greenville, New Bern and Jacksonville, N.C., market.    "Our customers told us that they want a grocery experience where it's easy to shop, easy to save and easy to figure out what is for dinner tonight," said Meg Ham, president of Food Lion. "In these stores, we've worked to deliver just that.”

Seattle -- Starbucks’ new outpost in the Fremont section of Seattle fits right in with the artsy neighborhood. The company moved from a smaller store in the area to a spacious two-level corner site, complete with a mezzanine.    

Veteran apparel merchant Celia Clancy spent time at Bradlees, Walmart and TJX Companies. Now she is the newest member of struggling specialty retailer Body Central’s board of directors.

Planning for a wedding will never be the same thanks to a new service Men’s Wearhouse is launching in 2015 to elevate its service-based value proposition.

The retail inventory specialist firm WIS International named merchandising and marketing services veteran Jim Rose as its new president and CEO.

Rose most recently served as president of marketing services at CROSSMARK, a leading provider of marketing and merchandising services. Rose also previously served as chairman and CEO for Mosaic Sales Solutions and also held senior roles at The Nielsen Company and MPG, a global advertising and communications company.

Macy’s third quarter sales were lower than expected but the company still managed to grow profits by 30% and expressed optimism regarding the fourth quarter.

The department store retailer said same store sales declined 0.7% while total sales    declined 1.3% to slightly less than $6.2 billion during the third quarter ended Nov. 1. Net income increased 22.5% to $217 million while earnings per share, aided by the repurchase of nine million shares, increased 30% to 61 cents a share.

Walmart continues to expand its view of Black Friday and is encouraging shoppers to do the same by rethinking the practice of waiting in line on Black Friday to secure limited quantities of merchandise.

Arts and Crafts retailer A.C. Moore launched its inaugural campaign to benefit the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation with a program involving all its stores.

The company’s 140 locations will serve as official drop off locations for the program with every toy donated going to a child in the local community. In addition, the company has pledged to donate 25,000 toys and is asking its customers to help double the donation with an additional 25,000 toys to provide a total of 50,000 toys to kids this holiday season.