Retail

Houston – Francesca’s Holding Corporation expects sales for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014 to be between $93 million and $95 million, including a mid-to-low-single-digit decrease in same-store sales. This compares to previous guidance provided on Dec. 5, 2013 of sales between $90 million and $95 million, including a decrease of 8% to 3% in same-store sales.

Neil P. Davis, CEO of Francesca’s cited strong holiday performance for the increase in guidance.

A majority of consumers find point-of-sale (POS) prompts, such as discount alerts on their mobile devices an invasion of their privacy, according to a recent website poll from CompuCom.

Respondents were asked, “Do you find point-of-sale technology prompts, such as a customized alert for discounts upon entering a store.” Sixty-three percent said it is Big Brother-ish/intrusive while 37% said it is helpful and cool.

The poll collected 307 responses from IT professionals across multiple industries from Nov. 16, 2013 through Dec. 17, 2013.

New York -- From mobile devices to social media to 24/7 connectivity, it’s a brave new world for retail — and one that Chain Store Age will explore at its first-ever Customer Disruption event, May 7-9, 2014, at Sofitel Hotel, Redwood Shores, Calif., the Gateway to the Silicon Valley.

With the surge in smartphone and tablet purchases in recent years, and the increasing accessibility of Wi-Fi, there is no surprise that almost 70% of consumers are now shopping online as well as in stores. Among those leading the trend are millennials (ages 18–33) making $75,000 or more a year.

New York -- Former Barnes & Noble executive Jamie Iannone has been appointed president and CEO of Samsclub.com in a restructuring that integrates Sam’s Club’s online business into the Walmart’s Global eCommerce business unit based in California. Previously, most of the warehouse club’s online business was run separately out of the retailer’s headquarters in Bentonville, Ark.

New York — O’Connor Capital Partners has acquired 150 and 151 Worth Avenue, a 142,000-sq.-ft. luxury shopping center in Palm Beach, Fla. O’Connor made the acquisition on behalf of an institutional client.

The Goodman Company developed the center from 1978 to 2001. Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus anchor the center, which is also home to Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Tory Burch and Pucci as well as several other national and local tenants.

Former Barnes & Noble executive Jamie Iannone was named president and CEO of Samsclub.com in a restructuring that elevates and integrates Sam’s Club’s online business into the Walmart’s Global eCommerce business unit based in California.

Iannone previously served as president of digital products at Barnes & Noble and oversaw the book seller’s Nook Media unit. He also spent seven years at eBay, earned a bachelor’s degree at Princeton and an MBA at Stanford.