Corporate Governance

Atlanta -- The Home Depot announced that it has named Marc Powers executive VP, U.S. stores, effective Nov. 1, 2014. He replaces Marvin Ellison, who was recently named president and CEO designee of J.C. Penney Co.  

New York -- L'Oreal USA will acquire New York-based omnichannel beauty retailer Carol's Daughter, which sells its products through specialty beauty stores, mass retailers, HSN, e-commerce and two Carol's Daughter-branded stores in New York City.

By Chris Donnelly, managing director for retail, Accenture Strategy   What do supermarkets have to gain from a price war? Judging from the battles that have been raging around the world of late, the answer is--nothing. Experience shows that they are truly a “race to the bottom”--aside from the consumer, the only possible winner is the lowest cost provider. Food retailers, however, have options for how to avoid getting drawn into a costly price war.   

Louisville, Ky. -- GBT Realty Corp., a national real estate development company based in Brentwood, Tenn., is expanding tenant lineups at two Louisville-based regional shopping centers totaling nearly 500,000-sq.-ft. to over 90% leased. Only a combined 23,500-sq.-ft. of retail space remains at Jefferson Commons and at Middletown Commons with the first tenants scheduled to be open in November. Construction is currently underway.  

Chicago –- True Value Company has selected 360pi to provide competitive pricing intelligence spanning 50,000 branded and unbranded products over hundreds of regional zones. This improved visibility into the competitive landscape will help True Value keep and increase its competitive edge within local markets and drive conversions and revenue.  

Designer Cynthia Rowley and Staples today announced an exclusive work and home office collection that incorporates bold and artistic designs into everyday work and home spaces.   Cynthia Rowley Collection featuring visionary designs combined with new product finishes and treatments not typically seen in office accessories will debut at Staples stores nationwide beginning mid-Novermber.  

Houston –- Mattress Firm Holding Corp. has completed its $245 million acquisition of West Coast bedding specialty retailer The Sleep Train Inc. Sleep Train operates approximately 310 specialty mattress retail stores located in California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Nevada and Hawaii, and reported net sales of approximately $471 million for the 2013 fiscal year.  

The legendary Beatle Ringo Starr will be bringing his talents and style to SKECHERS where he’s agreed to appear in the footwear company’s global marketing campaign for SKECHERS Relaxed Fit footwear.  The new multimedia campaign featuring Ringo will begin in Spring 2015.   World’s most famous drummer will be a face and voice of the campaign which will kick off with a new television spot that adopts the humorous as a signature of the Relaxed Fit footwear commercials.