Retail

The Co-operative Group’s new 24-hour flagship in London belongs to a class of stores that, while still relatively small, is fast-growing: It is illuminated completely with LEDs.

SAN BRUNO, Calif. — Walmart announced that its Vudu entertainment service is now available Xbox 360. Xbox LIVE customers can now shop Vudu’s library using new, interactive features such as voice search, voice control and Kinect gesture commands to rent or own the latest Hollywood hits, TV shows, cinema classics and independent gems in standard or high definition, the company said.

As an incentive to get customers to try Vudu on Xbox, Walmart announced that Vudu is offering a $4.99 credit toward their first rental or purchase. 

Pittsburgh -- American Eagle Outfitters announced Wednesday that it has opened stores in three new international markets — Morocco, Jordan and Egypt.

The company said it also opened its third store in Saudi Arabia, and has plans for a second store in Lebanon in early 2012. The retailer currently operates in Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE through its franchise partner, M.H. Alshaya.

New York City -- From the shimmering windows at Harrods in London to the gold-draped storefront at Gucci in New York, Chain Store Age has put together a collection of the best of this year’s holiday windows from around the world.

Click here to view our slideshow and prepare to be transported.

PITTSBURGH — With the opening of stores in the new international markets of Morocco, Jordan and Egypt, as well as expansion plans in Saudi Arabia and Lebanon, American Eagle Outfitters is establishing quite a presence in the Middle East.

Chicago -- A report released Wednesday by ShopperTrak found that holiday shoppers boosted sales 21.7% over the previous week and 1.3% over the same week last year.

According to ShopperTrak, sales increases during the week ending Dec. 17 made this December on pace to have higher retail sales than last year. Month-to-date figures are up 0.5% over December 2010.

Deerfield, Ill. -- Walgreen Co. reported Wednesday that profit for the quarter ended Nov. 30 dropped 4.5% to $554 million, compared with $580 million in the year-ago period. The drugstore operator cited a slow flu season and the decision to leave Express Scripts pharmacy network among the reasons for the performance dip.

Revenue for the quarter climbed 4.7% to $18.16 billion – a chain sales record – but missed Wall Street’s forecasted $18.24 billion in revenue. Total same-store sales rose 2.5%; front-end comps increased 2.4%.

Throughout the industry, retailers are reinventing strategies, changing formats and resizing footprints. While many are downsizing prototypes, Casual Male Retail Group is transitioning from traditional 3,500 sq. ft. Casual Male XL stores to a big-box Destination XL format. Dennis Hernreich, who holds the dual titles of COO and CFO for Casual Male Retail Group (CMRG), talked with Chain Store Age contributing editor Connie Gentry about the opportunities and challenges of transforming the business to better serve an expanded market.