Retail

Minneapolis -- A Friday report by Bloomberg said that coffee purveyor Caribou Coffee has lost interest in opening shops inside J.C. Penney Co. stores.

The revelation comes just six months after Penney CEO Ron Johnson announced Caribou Coffee as a potential partner.

Caribou CEO Mike Tattersfield said in a Friday emailed statement that the company “does not have plans to move forward with a partnership at this time.” Tattersfield has not elaborated on the reasons for the change of heart.

Pleasanton, Calif. -- Safeway Inc. said that Bruce Everette, 61, is retiring as EVP retail operations after a 44-year career at Safeway. He will be replaced by Kelly Griffith, currently the president of merchandising.

“We are deeply grateful to Bruce for his significant and lasting contribution to our company's success," said chairman and CEO Steve Burd. "He is the consummate operating executive whose results and people-oriented approach to the business leave an unmistakable imprint on who we are as a company."

Jim Crowcroft, VP market development, TCP Inc., Aurora, Ohio, [email protected].

With 'intelligent design' emerging as yet another buzz phrase in an industry full of them, Chain Store Age talked with Jim Crowcroft about how TCP incorporates smart design into its lighting products and projects, as well as what hot lighting trends he is seeing for 2013.

What do you see as the main elements of intelligent lighting design?

New York -- Swedish fast-fashion powerhouse H&M is revving up its U.S. expansion. The retailer opened 40 stores in the United States in 2012, and hopes to open even more this year, according to a report in Women’s Wear Daily.

H&M, as previously reported, will open a 42,500-sq.-ft. flagship at 4 Times Square, in Manhattan, that will boost an enormous LED billboard signage display. The retailer will also open a store on Fifth Avenue at 48th Street that, at 57,000 sq.-ft., will be its largest in the world to date.

Many areas of the Affordable Care Act remain unsettled

Retail companies should expect this year and 2014 to be a wild roller coaster ride of health insurance changes for retailers. That assessment came from Neil Trautwein, VP, employee benefits, National Retail Federation, who said that retailers need to take prudent actions to comply with the requirements of the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

From mobile wallets to QR codes to apps, Macy's is making all the right moves

Mobility is sure to play an increasingly important role in Macy's omnichannel future, both in commerce and marketing. But don't look for the company to take a cookie-cutter approach.

New York -- Costco Wholesale Corp. will expand its Issaquah, Wash., headquarters, according to published reports on Friday.

The Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce reported Friday that Issaquah's director of economic development, Keith Niven, said the club retailer would expand the headquarters to take up as much as 1.5 million sq. ft.

The Tacoma, Wash., News Tribune reported that the company currently takes up three buildings that are full.

Automated tools deliver on customer service and leverage operational efficiencies

Retailers are putting an increased emphasis and value on how and when they use their workforce. And in doing so, they are on the right path, according to research from The Wharton School. The study found the associate payroll was the most important factor in determining revenue. A mere additional dollar (properly applied) on labor could reap rewards of $4 to $28 in return.