Retail

When Blake Fohl addressed the True Value Company’s retailers at the co-op’s most recent Reunion in Chicago, he let them in on a secret: The True Value Rewards program had gone “in-house.”

Visual social media network Instagram is taking a new step toward becoming a platform for commerce.

Instagram has launched a new program called Instagram Partners that is designed to help companies advertise on the social network. Each certified partner must have expertise in at least one of three defined areas: ad tech (buying and selling ads at scale), community management (managing comments and gaining consumer insights), and content marketing (sourcing and delivering content at scale).

New York-based Janson Goldstein LLP has been tapped as the design firm for the Neiman Marcus store at Hudson Yards in Manhattan, Women’s Wear Daily reported.

The firm has a wide-ranging practice that includes both residential, hospitality and retail work, with a roster of clients that includes Holt Renfrew, Intermix and Saks Fifth Avenue.

Macy’s blamed warm weather, weak foot traffic and excessive inventory for the company's worse-than-expected third quarter results and said it is studying real estate options for some of its most iconic stores.

American Apparel’s preliminary results for its third quarter are not looking very good.

The beleaguered retailer said it could not meet the deadline to file a quarterly report for the three months ended Sept. 30, noting that efforts related to its Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in October have taken up a good deal of its time.

But American Apparel released estimates in which net sales for the quarter were down 19.1% to $126 million.

Bethesda, Md. -- EDENS announced the appointment of Rob Wyant as COO. Wyant brings over 30 years of experience in the retail real estate industry, with most of his career spent at General Growth and Westfield. He will use his vast knowledge in leasing, property managements, legal and tenant coordination functions, to inspire operational excellence at EDENS.

Telehealth is coming to more users of Walgreens’s mobile app. The company has announced that it has expanded MDLive’s telehealth services through its app to users in 20 additional states — bringing the total states eligible to 25. The company also launched an updated telehealth experience within the app.

Pier I Imports is getting personal in its online marketing efforts, delivering individualized content to customers that is based on their previous shopping activity.

The retailer has partnered with Certona, a provider of real-time omnichannel personalization, to deliver a “hyper-personalized omnichannel experience” to shoppers.