Human Resources

The chief executive of a regional supermarket chain ranks among the nation's highest-rated CEOs.   Charles C. Butt, CEO of H-E-B, based in Austin, Texas, was the only retail chief executive to crack the top 20 of Glassdoor's annual Employee Choice Awards, which honor the 100 highest rated CEOs of large companies across the United States. Butt ranked #16. (The number one position was held by Benno Dorer, CEO of Clorox.)   

Sears Canada is looking to reinvent itself.    The long-struggling department store retailer said it expects to close 59 of its 225 stores and cut 2,900 of its approximately 17,000 workers as part of its restructuring. Sears Canada filed for protection from its creditors under Canada's Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act, the equivalent of Chapter 11 bankruptcy, on Thursday.    

The nation's retailers lost a staggering amount of money in 2016 due to shoplifting, organized crime, internal theft and other types of inventory shrink.    Inventory shrink totaled $48.9 billion in 2016, up from $45.2 billion the year before, as budget constraints left retail security budgets flat or declining, according to the annual National Retail Security Survey by the National Retail Federation and the University of Florida. The thefts amounted to 1.44% of sales, up from 1.38%.  

Dollar General has added a Vitamin Shoppe veteran to its ranks as executive VP and chief merchandising officer.   Jason Reiser, most recently executive VP and COO of Vitamin Shoppe, will join the discounter, effective July 12. He replaces the recently retired Jim Thorpe.   Reiser brings with him to Dollar General more than 30 years’ experience in retail management, private brand sourcing and regulatory affairs. He also is a trained pharmacist.  

The recent announcement that Amazon intends to purchase Whole Foods Market has the retail and grocery store industry reeling as traditional grocers assess the near and long-term impact that the online giant’s much larger position in the marketplace may have. And with good reason. Amazon is the classic “disruptor” and has changed the face of every industry it touches. But aside from the competitive aspects, this move potentially has significant political and policy impacts as well.   

As Amazon continues to ready its cashierless convenience store concept for the public, the company has lost one of the project’s technology leaders.  

J. Crew just bought itself some more time with its lenders.   Lenders holding approximately 88% of the outstanding principal amount of loans under J. Crew’s term loan agreement have approved a term amendment. The amendment, initially proposed in mid-June, was offering to exchange its $566.6 million of outstanding pay-in-kind notes due 2019. The notes were issued by Chinos Intermediate Holdings, an indirect parent to J.Crew.  

There have been a couple of changes in the C-suite at Things Remembered.