Apparel

Framingham, Mass. -- T.J.Maxx will be opening five stores in the Chicagoland area starting this week and through October.

"The opening of these five stores in the Chicagoland area marks a momentous occasion for our brand," Richard Sherr, president of T.J.Maxx, stated.

All five T.J.Maxx stores will occupy over 122,000 sq. ft. of retail space.

Omaha, Neb. -- Gordmans Stores has named Andrew T. Hall president and CEO, effective Aug. 19. He also was appointed to the company's board of directors.

Hall, 53, was president and chief executive officer of Stage Stores, from 2008 to 2012 and served as its president and COO from 2006 to 2008. At Gordmans, he succeeds T. Scott King, Gordmans' chairman of the board, who has been serving as interim president and CEO since March 2014.

Las Vegas -- A resident of Las Vegas has launched a shoe vending machine, according to the Las Vegas Business Press. The business was born of a need to change out of high heels and into more comfortable footwear.

Ashley Ross launched Rollasole, a vending machine that dispenses comfortable flats. MGM Resorts International sells the shoes in several of its retail outlets in its Las Vegas resorts. And the shoes can be purchased in stores at Wynn Las Vegas and The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas as well.

Atlanta -- Country Club Prep, an e-commerce retailer for preppy apparel, is hosting the grand opening of its first brick-and-mortar store in Charlottesville, Virginia, on Aug. 23. Launched from a basement in 2012 by two former attorneys Matt Watson and Stephen Glasgow, the concept will launch its brick-and-mortar presence at the University of Virginia.

New York -- Lane Bryant announced that American ready-to-wear designer Lela Rose will be creating a limited-edition line exclusively for the special-sized retailer. The collection is set to hit stores summer 2015, and will be sold under the Lela Rose Exclusively for Lane Bryant label.

Lela Rose will be the third designer collaboration for Lane Bryant, joining the Sophie Theallet and Isabel Toledo collections.

Framingham, Mass. -- TJX Cos. said Tuesday that its second-quarter net income increased a better-than-expected 8% on strong sales in the United States and abroad. The retailer also lifted its full-year earnings forecast.

TJX earned $517.6 million for the period ended Aug. 2, compared with $479.6 million a year earlier.

Revenue rose 7% to $6.92 billion from $6.44 billion, beating Wall Street's estimate of $6.88 billion.

New York -- Dick’s Sporting Goods reported second quarter net income of $69.5 million, below expectations, compared to $84.2 million the prior year. Its results included a $20.4 million charge related to restructuring of the company’s golf business,

The retailer reported $1.7 billion in revenue, up 10.3% from the same period last year and in line with estimates. E-commerce sales increased to 6.3% of sales, from 5.6% of sales the prior year.

The story of Houston, Texas has added some exciting new chapters in recent years. With low unemployment, a booming economy and one of the fastest-growing populations of any city in the nation, Houston’s rise alongside some of the most prominent cities in the nation continues unabated. Trailing only New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago in size, Houston’s growing influence as a cultural and financial icon has made it a player on the national and international stage.

Dick’s Sporting Goods overcame weakness in its golf and hunting businesses to generate much better than expected second quarter same store sales and made further inroads in e-commerce.

Better than expected second quarter sales and profits at TJX Companies prompted CEO Carol Meyrowitz to strike an optimistic tone about the discount retailer’s future prospects.