Casual

Seattle -- Nordstrom said its third-quarter profit rose a more-than-expected 43% to $119 million on improved sales and margin improvements. The company raised the low end of its fiscal year profit forecast.

Revenues rose to $2.18 billion from $1.96 billion. Same-store sales increased 5.8%.

Best-selling items were jewelry, shoes and dresses.

"Our customers are highly receptive to newness and fashion in spite of the soft economic climate," company president Blake Nordstrom said in a conference call with analysts.

San Francisco -- The Gymboree Corp. reported Monday that net income for the quarter ended Oct. 30 dipped slightly to $34.4 million, compared with net income of $34.8 million in the year-ago quarter.

Revenue increased 4% to $280.9 million, compared with $269.1 million in the prior year. 

Same-store sales decreased 4%.

Miramar Beach, Fla. -- New Balance announced that it opened its first factory store in Northwest Florida at Silver Sands Factory Stores on Thursday.

The 4,825-sq.-ft. store offers New Balance shoes and apparel for women, men and children. New Balance Factory Store is located near Swarovski at the east part of the center.

“We chose Silver Sands because we wanted to open in a high-performing center that has a great portfolio of brands,” said Stephen Dix, general manager of retail operations for New Balance.

Shanghai, China -- Gap announced late Wednesday that its first four wholly owned Gap stores have debuted in China, along with the launch of its online retailer store gap.cn.

Each store will house all Gap collections: Gap, GapKids, Baby Gap and Gap Body.

New York City -- Women’s apparel retailer Cache reported Wednesday that it narrowed its loss for the quarter ended Oct.2 to $5 million, compared with a loss of $6.8 million in the year-ago quarter.

Revenue rose 1.3% to $45.5 million, from $44.9 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2009. Same-store sales were flat, as compared with a decrease of 21.7% in the prior year.