Casual

Houston -- Francesca’s Holdings Corp. announced Monday that it has appointed Men’s Wearhouse CFO Neill Davis to its newly created position of president. Both companies are based in Houston.

Davis, a 15-year executive of Men’s Wearhouse, has been a board member of the apparel and accessories chain for the past five years. He will officially become Francesca’s president on Aug. 6.

Westbrook, Maine -- Olympia Sports announced it has recently surpassed its 200th location and has begun a march south and west from its home state of Maine.

The company plans to open 25 stores during its current fiscal year, including its first store in West Virginia and others in states south of New York. A similar pace of expansion is expected for the following fiscal year beginning in October, said Olympia.

NEW YORK — New York & Company, a specialty apparel chain with 541 retail stores in operation as of May 17, has named Laura Weil as EVP, COO, effective immediately. Weil, an executive consultant of New York & Company since Feb. 1, will continue to report to Greg Scott, CEO, and lead the company’s planning and allocation, sourcing, product life management, real estate, and information technology areas.

New York -- New York & Co. has named former Ann Taylor executive Laura Weil as its new COO.

Weil, who has served as a consultant at the company since February, was Ann Taylor COO from 2008 to 2011.
 

NEW YORK — American Eagle Outfitters has engaged "real," as opposed to well-known celebrities, as the faces of its new back-to-school campaign.

The "Live Your Life" campaign will feature 15 people -- from fashion bloggers and stylists to musicians and actors -- each modeling a style of American Eagle Outfitters jeans.

SECAUCUS, N.J. — The Children's Place Retail Stores is expanding its presence in the Middle East with franchise agreements to open stores in the Arab Gulf States of United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman as well as Saudi Arabia. The first stores are scheduled to open in the UAE in September 2012 in Dubai and Sharjah. The first two stores in Saudi Arabia are scheduled to open during the second quarter of 2012.

Ridgefield, Conn. -- Victoria’s Secret has selected Schimenti Construction to build its store located in the Quaker Bridge Mall, Lawrenceville, N.J.
 
Construction of the 13,500-sq.-ft. store is scheduled to begin mid-June and is scheduled for completion in October. The architect for the project is Fitch, Scottsdale, Ariz.
 

Improved procurement processes at Gymboree are being eyed as a means for the specialty retailer to reduce expenses.

Gymboree, operator of 1,155 stores, said it retained the procurement management firm LogicSource after the firm conducted a detailed analysis of Gymboree’s procurement spend and identified significant savings opportunities. LogicSource will give Gymboree access to its broad-reaching procurement industry expertise, provide a comprehensive vendor network, and drive efficiencies through smart centralization, according to LogicSource.

Stockholm, Sweden -- Hennes & Mauritz AB reported Wednesday that profit for the second quarter rose 23% to $750 million, beating Wall Street estimates and marking the strongest profit increase in seven quarters for Europe’s second-largest apparel retailer.

H&M had announced on June 15 that sales for the quarter rose 15% to $4.5 billion, beating estimates and boosted by sales strength in the United States.
 

SECAUCUS, N.J. — Eric Bauer, COO of The Children's Place Retail Stores, has left the company effective June 19, the company announced Wednesday. Jane Elfers, president and CEO, will resume oversight of the company's supply chain, store operations, finance, information technology and real estate functions.

Commenting on Bauer's departure, Elfers said, "We thank Eric for his contributions and wish him well in his future endeavors."