Displays & Signs

SEATTLE — Amazon announced that it is now offering a new Kindle for $114, compared with $139 for its standard model and $189 for the 3G version. The catch is that the $114 Kindle requires the user to view special offers and sponsored products on screensavers and on the bottom of the home screen.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill.  -- Sears is looking to position itself as a beauty leader, by announcing Monday the installment of new cosmetics departments at more than 100 locations and Sears.com.

According to the company, these refreshed beauty departments will feature products from such brands as L'Oreal, Maybelline, Revlon, CoverGirl, Sally Hansen, Essie and Nicole by OPI. Additionally, beauty advisers staffing the departments will offer makeup tips and advice to customers who desire assistance in perfecting their look, Sears reported.

BENTONVILLE, Ark. -- With pricing studies, such as this one, revealing little difference between Walmart and Target, Walmart is looking to distinguish itself from the competition. The retailer announced that it is reinvigorating its price leadership promise, bringing back products its customers have asked for and simplifying its ad match policy. 

Hoffman Estates, Ill. -- Sears on Monday announced the expansion of beauty to more than 100 Sears locations and Sears.com.

The new cosmetics departments will include beauty products from such well-known brands as L'Oreal, Maybelline, Revlon and CoverGirl, in a range of hues for every woman. Additionally, beauty advisers staffing the departments will offer makeup tips and advice to customers who desire assistance in perfecting their look.

New York City -- Walmart is bringing back 8,500 products to the shelves of its U.S. stores and launching a new advertising campaign in a bid to end declining same-stores sales.

Walmart has long shunned outright sponsorship of a NASCAR team, while such other retailers as Target, Office Depot, Bass Pro Shops, Home Depot and Lowe’s have embraced the sport with much success. With most NASCAR fans already shopping its stores, Walmart has adopted for a more surgical approach, which is evident again this year as the company executes promotional events at stores in markets where races are being held.

 WEST DES MOINES, Iowa  -- Hy-Vee announced that it has enlisted the help of celebrity chef Curtis Stone to develop a series of recipes designed to bring families together for meals.

Under the exclusive agreement with Hy-Vee, Stone, who stars as an investor/mentor on NBC's "America's Next Great Restaurant." will be featured in the company's TV commercials, print ads and in-store promotional materials over the next two years, said Randy Edeker, president and COO of Hy-Vee.

Salem, Ore. -- Anthropologie and the Cork Forest Conservation Alliance (CFCA) announced a joint initiative in all 153 Anthropologie stores in the United States and United Kingdom to increase awareness and promote the preservation of Mediterranean cork forests, one of the planet’s most important ecosystems.

CHICAGO ─ Faced with rising food costs, U.S. consumers are turning to the cost savings tactics they’ve mastered over the past few years, according to The NPD Group.

With its outdoor underpinnings and Swiss accents, Wenger, in Boulder, Col., is the perfect showcase for the legendary 116-year-old company, which is best known as the maker of the “genuine” Swiss Army Knife. The 3,000-sq.-ft. store, which took top honors in the Association for Retail Environments’ 2011 design awards, is the firm’s first freestanding store in the United States.