Retail

So far so good. The third quarter at Target is off to a solid start as Target reported a 4.1% same-store sales increase that was squarely in the middle of the company’s guidance range, which called for an increase in the low to mid single digits.

NEW YORK — Lord & Taylor unveiled a new concept called Lord & Taylor Home on Friday, at Fashion Center shopping center in Paramus, N.J.  A second location, in Shrewsbury, N.J., is expected to open in several weeks. Lord & Taylor is owned by NRDC Equity Partners, which also owns Canada’s Hudson Bay Co.

PURCHASE, N.Y. — The apparel, e-commerce, grocery, and luxury segments all showed continued growth in August, as the hardware, restaurant, and automotive repair sectors returned to positive territory, according to MasterCard Advisors SpendingPulse, a macroeconomic report tracking national retail and services sales.

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. — Stater Bros. Supermarkets, which operates 167 stores in Southern California, announced that it will be the title sponsor of the largest car show on the West Coast as well as the largest Supermarket Chain sponsored event in America.  

The Stater Bros. Route 66 Rendezvous will be held from Thursday, Sept. 15 through Sunday, Sept. 18 along the historic streets of downtown San Bernardino.  This is the 15th straight year that Stater Bros. has been the title sponsor.

The economic challenges sweeping the country have been tough, but, like most things in life, it’s not the challenging times that define you, but what you do during them. For leaders in the retail industry the last few years have led to great innovation, providing the retail industry every opportunity to reinvent in areas across their operations including in the area of environmental sustainability. 

SAN ANTONIO — H-E-B announced that it has launched an early childhood literacy initiative to help educate Texas parents and caregivers about the importance of reading to children a minimum of three times per week and to provide families with the tools and resources they need to prepare their early learners for school.

NEW YORK — Sears and Kmart stores announced that they are supporting emergency relief efforts in a dozen states to help residents recover from Hurricane Irene’s damaging winds and floodwaters.

Sears and Kmart stores will offer discounts on recovery items in stores throughout Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont.

Key discounts include:

Kmart:

NEW YORK — Macy’s reported that its same-store sales rose 5% in August, beating estimates. The retailer said sales would have been higher by 1.5% points without the impact of Hurricane Irene. Industry analysts had warned that the storm would impact department stores and specialty retailers the most as consumers focused on buying generators and other emergency and recovery items versus back-to-school and discretionary products.