Restaurant

Starbucks Corp. reported profit for the second quarter that exceeded expectations, but it disappointed on sales. The chain also offered a third-quarter earnings outlook that was shy of forecasts.

For the quarter ended March 27, Starbucks reported $4.99 billion in sales, up 9% from $4.56 billion in the year-ago period. Although sales set a new record for a non-holiday quarter, they but still fell short of analyst estimates of $5.03 billion.

Net income rose 18% to $575.1 million on strong U.S. sales.

Starbucks has brought its small-sized store format to the Windy City.

The coffee giant has opened a 635-sq.-ft. Starbucks Express cafe in Chicago's Union Station. This is the company’s fifth location to date for its Express concept, which features a streamlined menu that focuses on brewed coffee, espresso beverages and select food items.

The other Express stores are located in New York and Toronto.

Macy’s ranked as the department store of the year in the Harris Poll’s 28th annual EquiTrend Stud, which recognizes the strongest brands based on consumer response.

In coming out on top, Macy's unseated Kohl's, which has held the honor since 2012. Macy's also showed one of the largest brand equity increases (+7%) over a three-year period.

Emerging food service concept Maple Street Biscuit Company is the latest addition to one of Gainesville, Fla.’s fastest growing retail destinations.

Restaurant operator Johnny Rockers is celebrating its 30th anniversary year — and reaching out to millennials — by giving itself a brand refresh.

The chain is best known for its 1950s diner look, complete with jukeboxes filled with oldies songs and dancing servers dressed in nostalgic soda-jerk uniforms. But it’s rolling out a new prototype that includes a much more modern-looking exterior and interior, a new logo, a more contemporary music soundtrack, and new uniforms for associates. Also on the bill: a self-serve ordering kiosk for to-go orders.

Publix, Chick-fil-A, Amazon.com, H-E-B, and BJ's Wholesale Club are the nation’s most trusted retailers, according to an annual survey by the Temkin Group.

The “2016 Temkin Trust Ratings,” based on a study of 10,000 U.S consumers, benchmarks the level of trust that consumers have with 294 companies across 20 industries.

Starbucks founder and CEO Howard Schultz recently touched down at Target Corp. headquarters in Minneapolis as part of Target’s series of “innovation speakers.” “With Starbucks, I dreamed of building a national brand and different kind of company, achieving balance between profit and conscience, bringing people along on the journey, and impacting the communities we serve,” Schultz said. “The kind of company my parents never got the chance to work for.

Simon Property Group is adding an unconventional experiential component to its Opry Mills mall in Nashville that should add even more traffic to the already popular shopping and entertainment destination.