Corporate Governance

Washington, D.C. -- Import volume at the nation’s major retail container ports is expected to increase a modest 1.1% in July over the same month last year, but a slow summer should be followed by significant increases as retailers head into the holiday season this fall, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released Wednesday by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.


Cincinnati -- FRCH Design Worldwide has named Tom Custer as VP, marketing and client development.

Custer is tasked with leading the company’s positioning in the marketplace, including its marketing and PR efforts. In addition, he will assist with new business development for FRCH and build a professional sales strategy for the company.

Prior to FRCH, Custer worked with Interbrand Design Forum in Dayton, Ohio, where he served as executive director, business development.

New York -- Office Depot and OfficeMax Inc. on Tuesday moved one step closer to becoming one company as their shareholders voted to approve the merger between the two office supply rivals.
 

By Greg Henry, DecisionPoint Systems Inc.

Minneapolis  -- Target has announced the winner of the $75,000 grand prize in its Retail Accelerator contest: a mobile retail concept called “Divvy.” Jointly promoted by Target and Fast Company, the Retail Accelerator competition was designed to foster digital innovation in retail by challenging developers to build a new mobile experience for Target.

New York -- Walmart confirmed in an op-ed in the Washington Post that it will pull the plug on three planned stores in the Washington, D.C., area if the D.C. Council passes a bill setting a higher minimum wage for large retailers. The bill, the Large Retailer Accountability Act (LRAA) of 2013, is scheduled for a vote on Wednesday.

Seattle -- Nordstrom plans to open a third Houston-area Nordstrom Rack location. The approximately 38,000-sq.-ft. store is scheduled to open in fall 2014, at Willowbrook Mall is owned and managed by General Growth Properties  

"We've been looking for opportunities to better serve Houston customers as we continue to grow," said Geevy Thomas, president of Nordstrom Rack.

New York -- Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th announced that it plans to open a new store in Atlanta, Georgia on July 18.

The 28,000-sq.-ft. store will be located in the Outlet Shoppes at Atlanta at Woodstock.

The store will be the third Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th in metropolitan Atlanta, but will be the first store to be modeled after the company’s “luxury-in-a-loft” store design, which highlights the merchandise and facilitates easy shopping.

Dallas -- Tuesday Morning Corp. reported that its fiscal fourth-quarter revenue rose 2.9% to $202.1 million. Same-store sales for the period ended June 30 increased 4.6%.  

The discounter Tuesday Morning Corp. said traffic climbed 6.2%. The average receipt fell 1.6%.

The retailer's full-year revenue was up 3% to $838.3 million from $812.8 million. Same-store sales rose 3.9%.  
 

Madrid, Spain – Spanish apparel retailer Grupo Cortefiel is supporting growth across multiple fast-moving product categories and Springfield, Cortefiel, women’secret and Pedro el Hierro retail brands using product lifecycle management (PLM) technology from Centric Software Inc. Grupo Cortefiel will deploy the Centric PLM suite to users in its costing, design, product development and product management departments.