Events

Hoffman Estates, Ill. -- Sears and Kmart stores nationwide will participate in the global Earth Hour initiative by turning off or dimming all non-essential lighting March 26 from 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., including every other television and most computer monitors. The company anticipates saving 80,000 kilowatt hours as a result.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill.  -- Kenmore announced that it has launched an online reality series, "So You Wanna Be a Designer."

For six weeks the reality show will stream live on Kenmore's Facebook page to show budding designers at work, making their dreams a reality. Through the series, contestants will learn how to navigate the barriers of entering the design world: how to create and launch a brand, and how to price, present and promote designs successfully, among other things.

New York City -- Optimism was in the air at Chain Store Age’s 47th annual SPECS conference, in Grapevine, Texas. Spirits were up, and so was attendance, dramatically so, among both the show’s attendees and exhibitors.

Ronald Sargent and Frank Brown -- the CEO of Staples and the dean of an international business school, respectively -- have been nominated for election to The Home Depot's board of directors at the company’s upcoming annual meeting on June 2.

Separately, David Batchelder has informed the company that he has decided not to stand for re-election at the annual meeting. Batchelder, founder and principal of Relational Investors LLC, has been a director since 2007.

Recently I had one of the most immersive, exciting shopping experiences ever. I got to play with a bunch of cool products and to engage with employees and other shoppers who had similar tastes and interests as mine. The experience whetted my appetite for more products and I left totally pumped up about several brands. I told several people about my experience and they wanted to go check it out themselves. 

Walmart International takes center stage next week with investors, as international division president and CEO Doug McMillon and other members of senior leadership offer insight into operations in China and Japan.

Grapevine, Texas -- GameStop Corp. reported Thursday that net earnings for the quarter ended Jan. 29 rose 10.1% to $237.8 million, compared with $215.9 million in the year-ago period.

Total sales increased 4.8% to $3.69 billion, from $3.52 billion. Same-store sales increased 2.6%.

For the year, total sales increased 4.3% to an all-time high of $9.47 billion, in comparison to $9.08 billion in fiscal 2009. Same-store sales increased 1.1%. Net earnings increased 8.1% to a record $408 million.

New York City -- Chain Store Age will host a Webinar, “Concrete Floors and Moisture Testing,” on Tuesday, April 12, at 2 p.m. (EST). Sponsored by Independent Floor Testing & Inspection, this educational webinar will provide an introduction to concrete floor slabs, the causes of moisture-related floor-covering failures and the latest industry-standard test methods.

Click here to register.