Retail

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.

Regional discount retailer Fred’s is making some big changes to its merchandising and operations groups to begin 2014 and has retained several firms to review strategic opportunities.

New York – Robert Graham has signed a new lease agreement to open a branded retail store featuring the full Robert Graham collection in The Shops at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Conn. The store will carry the complete range of Robert Graham apparel products.

Walmart COO Gisel Ruiz and president of health and wellness John Agwunobi are listed as speakers at events taking place within the next 30 days in Northwest Arkansas.

New York – Barnes & Noble reported decreases in revenue for both its retail and Nook segments during the nine-week 2013 holiday season as compared to the same period in the prior year. The retail segment, which consists of the Barnes & Noble bookstores and BN.com, had revenues of $1.1 billion, decreasing 6.6% from the prior year.

Former shopper marketing executive turned Walmart SVP of creative Andy Murray will share his views on the retail industry’s evolving omnichannel landscape during a keynote presentation at the annual Shopper Marketing Summit.
 

Union, N.J. -- Bed Bath & Beyond Inc.’s third quarter net earnings rose to $237.2 million, less than Wall Street expected, from $232.8 million in the year-ago period, as higher costs and expenses impacted sales growth. The company trimmed its full-year earnings outlook.

Revenue for the three months ended Nov. 30 rose 6% to $2.87 billion, from $2.7 billion. Same-store sales increased 1.3%.

Pier 1 president and CEO Alex W. Smith expressed extreme disappointment over the company’s December sales results, which came in well below expectations despite having kicked off the holiday selling season with a record post-Thanksgiving weekend.