Events

A central theme of the Oracle Industry Connect conference, held in Boston March 25-26, was “Commerce Anywhere,” or the new customer experience paradigm that requires enabling the consumer to purchase products how they want, when they want and to do so in a connected, nearly seamless fashion. IT also entails delivering targeted assortments, making inventory transparent and accessible to customers and employees in real-time, and integrating the systems supporting retail operations.

San Francisco — CBRE has introduced AIG Global Real Estate to Associated Estates Realty Corp. The two companies have formed a 50:50 joint venture partnership to develop a 3.36-acre mixed-use project at 8th and Harrison in San Francisco, Calif. The project will be known as 350 Eighth.

Located in the South of Market or SoMa neighborhood of San Francisco, 350 Eighth will consist of 410 rental apartment homes and 40,000 sq. ft. of office and retail space. Site work has begun and first occupancy is scheduled for fourth quarter 2015.

Julie Eddleman, Erik Keptner and Andy Murray are the newest inductees into the Path to Purchase Institute’s Hall of Fame which recognizes industry leaders for their contributions to the field of shopper marketing.

Eddleman, marketing director of North American brands at Procter & Gamble, Keptner, EVP of marketing at Ahold, and Murrary, SVP of creative at Walmart were recognized at a gala event held in conjunction with the Institute’s annual Shopper Marketing Summit in Chicago.

I recently attended the 2014 SPECS (Store Planning, Equipment, Construction Services) conference in Grapevine, Texas, and came away with some fascinating food for thought. The event, which is produced by Chain Store Age, celebrated its 50th anniversary this year.

Baltimore — Jamba Juice, The Fudgery and Majestic Athletic have signed with Ballpark Village in St. Louis.

Ballpark Village is a mixed-use retail, entertainment, office, and residential district being developed in partnership by the St. Louis Cardinals and The Cordish Companies.

The ability to integrate more data from more sources faster than ever to accelerate decision-making forms the core value proposition of an the new SAS Customer Intelligence solution unveiled this week at the software company’s Global Forum.
 

New York -- J. Crew Group Inc. reported a 42% decrease in its fiscal fourth-quarter profit amid higher costs. Net income fell to $5.92 million in the quarter, which ended Feb. 1., down from $10.2 million in the year-ago period.

Revenue increased 6.7% to $686.2 million. Retail store sales rose 5% to $438.6 million and direct sales jumped 10% to $238.1 million

Same-store sales, which includes direct sales, rose 3%. Excluding a calendar shift, comparable-store sales increased 4%.

Oracle Industry Connect starts today, and promises to bring retailers two full days of their peers providing in-depth insight into the latest trends and pain points facing retail technology professionals. The event, being held at the Marriott Copley Place, Boston, Mass., offers a stellar lineup of speakers, including Jeff Hamm, director of e-commerce at Ulta Beauty, who will speak about improving customer experience at home and on the go with Oracle Commerce. Paul McFarren, CIO of C Wonder, will discuss supporting global growth with a unique deployment of Oracle Retail Merchandising.

More than 360 select Loblaw banner stores across Canada nabbed the world record for the most wheels of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese cracked simultaneously, as declared by a Guinness World Records adjudicator. Officially, 1,008 wheels were cracked in more than 360 Loblaw banner stores simultaneously across Canada.

Lane Bryant hosted its first-ever designer runway show this week, featuring the retailer's collaboration with Isabel and Ruben Toledo. The show took place at the Seagram Building, in New York.

The fashion show featured portions of the spring and fall collection. Models walked the runway in sheath dresses and coats adorned in Isabel's signature patterns, tunics and cocktail dresses. Designs were presented in black, white, gold and soft grey. Pieces were color blocked and complemented with hints of patterns.