Events

NEW YORK — Luxury specialty retailer Barneys has partnered with the estate of Roy Lichtenstein and Art Production Fund to launch a limited-edition collection of home goods, available exclusively at stores this summer.

ATLANTA — Kroger announced plans to host the largest Cinco de Mayo celebration in the Southeast at Fiesta Atlanta at Centennial Olympic Park this Sunday.

ST. LOUIS — Build-A-Bear Workshop reported increased net income and sales the first quarter of 2013 compared to the same quarter a year earlier, despite closing some stores. The retailer’s adjusted net income rose to $2.3 million, compared to an adjusted net loss of $500,000 in the first quarter of last year.

Consolidated net retail sales were $102.9 million with 24 fewer stores compared to $95.2 million in the first quarter of 2012, an increase of 8% excluding the impact of foreign exchange. Consolidated same-store sales increased 10.4%.

Walmart’s commitment earlier this year to hire 100,000 veterans over the next five years prompted the USO to award Walmart U.S. COO Gisel Ruiz its 2013 Woman of the Year Distinguished Service Award.

Ruiz was presented with the award at the USO’s 47th annual luncheon where she said the honor was humbling and a surprise.

Walmart and Sam’s Club are scheduled to hold the 8th Annual Sustainable Packaging Exposition next week at the John Q. Hammons Center in Rogers, Ar.

Deerfield, Ill. -- Walgreens on Wednesday will celebrate the official opening of its latest flagship, located at School and Washington streets in Boston. The store is located in an old Borders store.
 

Goodlettsville, Tenn. -- To support its strong growth and fill current vacancies, Dollar General is planning to hire 10,000 employees in May for its store and distribution center locations. Career fairs to recruit candidates will be held throughout the month in the 40 states the company serves.
      

Columbia, S.C. -- Golfsmith International is opening its first South Carolina store, in the state capital of Columbia, with a grand opening celebration on May 3 to May 5.
   
The 23,500-sq.-ft. store is part of Golfsmith's aggressive growth strategy in the Carolinas. Adding to its current Raleigh location, the company recently expanded with new stores in Charlotte and Greensboro — with another new store opening in Myrtle Beach later this spring.

NEW YORK — Macy’s will honor contributions made by Asian-Pacific Americans during Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month this May at select Macy’s locations nationwide. 

The retailer will host the platinum-selling recording group Far East Movement for a series of performances and appearances in six markets across the country geared toward highlighting and celebrating the unique influence of Asian-Pacific Americans on American culture and pop music.

In the 18 months since I joined the National Retail Federation, I’ve been struck repeatedly by how rapidly our industry continues to evolve. As we all know, retail has always changed and adapted — and in just the past 20 years we’ve advanced from then-radical game changer Amazon.com to more recent models like Hointer, which boasts what amounts to online shopping in a store.