Bed Bath & Beyond, Inc.

The new fiscal year is off to a good start at Bed Bath & Beyond according to CEO Steve Temares who credits a wide range of omnichannel initiatives.

Sales in Bed Bath & Beyond’s first quarter ended May 30, increased 3.1% to $2.738 billion and same store sales increased 2.2%. Net income declined to $158.5 million from $187.1 million while a strong stock buyback program allowed earnings per share to remain flat.

Union, N.J. – Bed, Bath & Beyond Inc. missed Wall Street expectations for profit and same-store sales during a not-so-comfy first quarter of 2015. Net earnings dropped 18% to $158.5 million from $187.1 million, with increased selling, general and administrative (SG&A) and interest expenses offsetting higher gross profit.

Net sales totaled $2.74 billion, an increase of 3% from $2.66 billion. Same-store sales increased by 2.2%, including the negative impact of Canadian currency fluctuation.

Chicago - Mid-America Real Estate Corp.’s Investment Sales team recently brokered the sale of Randhurst Village in the Chicago suburb of Mount Prospect. Tarrytown, New York-based DLC Management Corp. purchased the 1,009,937-sq.-ft. regional power and lifestyle center.

Randhurst Village national tenants include Costco, Home Depot, Jewel-Osco, AMC Theaters, Carson Pirie Scott, Bed Bath & Beyond, Sports Authority, TJ Maxx, Old Navy, PetSmart and World Market.

Waban, Mass. - Chick-fil-A took the second spot in the annual Temkin Customer Service Ratings, tops among all retailers and food service chains. Other retailers and food service companies in the top 12 include Aldi, Trader Joe's, Publix, Panera Bread, H-E-B, Amazon.com, and Bed Bath & Beyond.

Supermarkets, retailers, and banks, as an industry, earned average ratings of "strong.” Retailers RadioShack and Sears were ranked at least 15 points below retail industry average.

Waban, Mass. -- Supermarket companies Hannaford and Publix took the top spots in the 2015 Temkin Effort Ratings, which rates how easy or difficult companies are to work with. The ratings examine 293 companies across 20 industries.

Ace Hardware is America’s favorite home improvement store and Costco is the favorite for home furnishings, according to a new survey by Market Force Information.

Louisville, Colo. -- Ace Hardware is America’s favorite home improvement store and Costco is the favorite for home furnishings, according to a new nationwide survey by Market Force Information. The findings are based on consumers’ satisfaction levels and their likelihood to recommend the retailer to others.

In the home improvement sector, Ace Hardware earned the top spot with a composite loyalty score of 61% (out of a potential 70%). Menards came in second, at 50%, followed by Lowe’s, Home Depot and Walmart.

Retailers who rely on a steady stream of new products from suppliers to drive sales will find a new source of digital inspiration in a product development deal between Mattel and the online collaboration community known as Quirky.