Retail

CAMP HILL, Pa. — Rite Aid has promoted Tammy Royer to group VP of managed care. Royer will report to Chris Hall, SVP of pharmacy services.

Royer most recently worked in the company's pharmacy division. In her new role, she will oversee all aspects of managed care, including contracting, maintaining relationships with managed-care organizations, pharmacy benefit managers and third-party payers and developing new strategic partnerships.

San Francisco -- Gap Inc. will open its first franchise-operated Old Navy stores in the Philippines in 2014. Earlier this year, the company announced that it would begin franchising Old Navy stores internationally.

Gap will partner with Stores Specialists, which operates Gap brand and Banana Republic stores in-market, to open two Old Navy locations in the beginning of 2014 with plans to open additional stores by the end of the same fiscal year.

Mooresville, N.C. -- Lowe’s Companies announced that Michael P. McDermott will join the company as senior VP and general merchandising manager- building and maintenance, a new position.

McDermott will be responsible for the lumber & building materials, millwork, hardware & tools and rough plumbing & electrical divisions. He will report to chief merchandising officer, Michael A. Jones.

Global consumer products company Jarden Corp. agreed to acquire Yankee Candle for $1.75 billion in cash from its private equity owner Madison Dearborn Partners.

Jarden offers more than 120 well known brands in three major categories – outdoor solutions, consumer solution and branded consumables – but Yankee Candle will instantly become one of, if not the most, recognizable brand in the lineup. Yankee Candle brand products are sold in roughly 35,000 retail locations in North America.

New York -- Hedge fund manager Richard Perry has upped his already substantial share in J.C. Penney Co. Perry’s Perry Capitol LLC now ranks as Penney's second-largest investor after George Soros.
    
It was disclosed on Friday that Perry bought an additional three million shares of Penney in a secondary offering for $12.90 a share, and that it now owns 8.62% of the company, up from its previous 7.3% stake.
      

Jeff Zoss and Scott Simerlein have joined The Grocery Shopping Network, Inc., a provider of digital shopper planning and marketing tools for grocery retailers, consumer packaged goods companies and shoppers.

New York -- A controversial bill requiring Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and other large retailers to pay their employees a "living wage" of at least $12.50 an hour has been sent to District of Columbia Mayor Vincent Gray.   
    
The mayor has 10 business days, starting Tuesday, to either sign or veto the bill, which was passed by the D.C. Council at the beginning of July.

London — C.P. Hard will open the doors to its new showroom in the Chelsea area of London during this year’s London Design Festival, which takes place Sept. 14 to Sept. 22.

The new retail space will provide architects, interior designers and consumers with a creative and informative working studio featuring products from C.P. Hart lines.