Retail

The Fresh Market is heading into the new year with fresh leadership changes at the top.

The specielty grocery retailer announced that Craig Carlk, president and CEO, and a member of the board of directors, has left the company and has resigned as a member of the board.

The board has appointed Sean Crane, EVP and COO, as interim CEO while the company evaluates candidates to replace Carlock.

New York -- The National Retail Federation announced that The Container Store chairman and CEO Kip Tindell has been elected chairman of the NRF board of directors and chairman of its executive committee, succeeding Stephen I. Sadove, retired chairman and CEO of Saks, Inc.  

Tindell was elected at the Board of Directors meeting held Sunday during NRF’s 104th Annual Convention and EXPO, Retail’s BIG Show.

Matthews, N.C. -- Family Dollar is urging its shareholders to support a buyout offer from rival discounter Dollar Tree with less than two weeks remaining before a vote on the pending deal.  Family Dollar shareholders are scheduled to vote Jan. 22. on whether to accept the Dollar Tree offer.

Retailers loking to take retail innovation to the next level may want to look at GameStop and its new omnichannel partnership with Microsoft.

The video game retailer announced Monday at NRF’s Big Show that it will use Microsoft's Azure cloud-powered network "enhance the in-store engagement of its customers in interactive, informative, and entertaining ways."

GameStop will be one of the first retailers to use Azure to stream video game and promotional content direct to customer and store associate mobile devices.

INDIANAPOLIS and LOS ANGELES  — In what is being touted as the first iBeacon-wearable integration at retail, Marsh Supermarkets and inMarket have announced the deployment of a closed-loop iBeacon platform, enabling shoppers with smartphones and Apple Watch to have their favorite apps come alive in-store.

NRF president Matthew Shay told attendees of retail’s Big Show in New York City this week that the industry is well-positioned for 2015 – with a little help from friends in Washington, D.C.

New York -- At the National Retail Federation’s Annual Convention & EXPO on Monday, Microsoft Corp. and CKE Restaurants Inc. (parent company of Hardee’s and Carl’s Jr.) showcased a self-order kiosk solution running on Windows 8 devices that enables Hardee’s customers to customize and place their own orders.

After posting stronger than expected holiday sales, Burlington Stores Inc. has named a new chief financial officer.

Marc Katz, formerly the company’s EVP of merchandise support and information technology, is replacing Todd Weyhrich, who retired this month.