Corporate Governance

Hickory Farms has launched a new website featuring faster page load times, easier navigation and improved search and checkout functions. Customers can shop on-the-go with the site's mobile- and tablet-friendly design.

In addition, running through Christmas Eve, customers can participate in Hickory Farms' Holiday Hunt Sweepstakes for a chance to win one of six daily instant prizes and be entered to win a $2,500 Visa gift card. Consumers can visit the Hickory Farms Facebook page daily to find the clue for that day's instant prize, which they will find on HickoryFarms.com.

Amsterdam, Netherlands – Staples Europe has launched new websites in both Germany and Netherlands. The sites offer a refreshed look and feel and many new features, such as personalized shopping with product recommendations based on customer preferences.

New features also include an updated search engine and filtering tools, easy reordering for frequently used products, quick checkout with a mini-cart that makes it easy to insert coupons, save addresses, and review orders, and a new store locator and ship-to-store functionality.

New York -- Beginning on Friday, Dec. 20 at 7 a.m., 37 Macy’s stores in select cities across the country including Macy’s Herald Square in New York City; Union Square in San Francisco; and State Street in Chicago, will stay open overnight for four days in a row of non-stop shopping until Christmas Eve on Tuesday, Dec. 24 at 6 p.m.

In addition to the 24-hour stores, mostly all stores nationwide, except furniture galleries and select locations, will offer extended hours each night until 2 a.m. through Dec. 23.

Cincinnati – Macy’s will build a major direct-to-consumer fulfillment center near Owasso in Tulsa County, Okla., to support continued sales growth driven by Macy’s omni-channel strategy. The company is expected to invest more than $170 million in the facility, including the latest technology in material handling equipment and warehouse management systems.

L'Orèal USA has introduced a new app for owners of a device that allows them to use tablet-like apps on television through an Internet connection.

The cosmetics maker announced the launch of OnBeauty, which it created under a partnership with Roku and Brightline. Roku created the app for users of connected TV, or CTV, and L'Orèal said OnBeauty would be the go-to beauty hub for CTV users. The app will feature a majority of L'Orèal USA's brands.

New York — Cushman & Wakefield Inc. has appointed Edward C. Forst president and CEO, effective January 6, 2014.

Forst, 53, comes to Cushman & Wakefield from Goldman, Sachs & Co. where he served as global co-head of the Investment Management Division, as a member of the firms management committee and previously as the firm’s chief administrative officer.

He has more than 30 years of experience working in international asset management, capital markets and operational leadership.
 

The flurry of activity continued at Office Depot as the company which resulted from the merger of Office Depot and OfficeMax laid groundwork for growth in 2014 by identifying some key leaders.

A little more than one month after Roland Smith was named chairman and CEO of Office Depot and one week after choosing Boca Raton, Fla., as the merged company’s headquarters, Smith announced a slate of senior executive positions that touch every aspect of the company along with several roles that are yet to be filled.

Seattle -- Shoefitr, which provides improved fit and sizing information for customers buying shoes online, has partnered with Nordstrom to help customers shopping on Nordstrom.com find the right fit. As part of the partnership, Nordstrom has also made an investment in Shoefitr.

The capability is now live on Nordstrom.com and uses Shoefitr's 3-D imaging software to provide size and fit recommendations on some of the company's most popular shoe styles that the customer is interested in buying.