Apple, Inc.

New York City -- Amazon plans to open a store in its Seattle hometown to display and sell its growing line of electronic devices, reported Reuters, which cited industry blog Good E-Reader as its source.

Analysts said Amazon could be inspired by the success of Apple in the retail arena.

There has been a lot of chatter in our industry circles — really, everywhere — about the recent big announcement from J.C. Penney CEO Ron Johnson regarding the iconic brand’s plans for the future. Anyone who’s visited a J.C. Penney lately — present company included — can see the brand needs to make some changes. They’ve been losing traction to competitors like Target and Kohl’s in recent years, and, in my opinion, have had some trouble defining themselves in a fairly crowded and competitive segment. Similar to the issues facing Sears, J.C.

CUPERTINO, Calif. — Apple Monday named a replacement for former retail head Ron Johnson, who left the company last year to become CEO of JCPenney. The company announced that John Browett will join the company as SVP retail, reporting to Apple CEO Tim Cook. Browett comes to Apple from European technology retailer Dixons Retail, where he has been CEO since 2007. Beginning in April, he will be responsible for Apple’s retail strategy and the continued expansion of Apple retail stores around the world, the company said in a press release.

New York City -- Apple Inc. has hired John Browett, CEO of Dixons Retail PLC, the United Kingdom’s largest consumer-electronics retailer, to lead its retail store division. The appointment marks the end of a seven-month search to replace Ron Johnson, who left the world’s most valuable technology company last year to become CEO of J.C. Penney Co.

JCPenney got a lot of love this week from investors and the media after the company’s senior leadership unveiled a simplified pricing and promotional strategy that sounded an awful lot like another well-known retailer’s success formula.

Walmart will report fourth-quarter and full-year results in a few weeks, and the numbers, while they are sure to be extraordinarily large, will pale in comparison to the superlative-defying figures that Apple posted earlier this week.

New York City -- Apple stores around the world are pulling in an annual average of $4,709 sales per square foot, CNN Money reported.

While a handful of super-high-end luxury retailers with limited floor space in New York City and foreign capitols may do better, Apple’s numbers make it by far the most valuable chain in the United States. Apple’s closest chain competitor is Tiffany & Co., which garners an average of $2,974 per square foot, according to the report.


 

PLANO, Texas — Another former Apple executive has joined the ranks at JCPenney. The company announced Wednesday that Kristen Blum, a former director of supply chain and International retail for Apple Inc., has been named EVP and chief technology officer, effective Jan. 23. 

Blum reports to COO Mike Kramer, and has responsibility for the  company's JCP.com business and information technology systems.