Apparel

Zappos Couture’s website has a new look thanks to new artistic director Andre Leon Talley. Talley and Zappos Couture created the imagery for the new editorial in New York City's Industria Studios in December 2013.

Toms founder and CEO Blake Mycoskie is the latest recruit to join the B Team, a nonprofit initiative, co-founded by Sir Richard Branson and Jochen Zeitz. Mycoskie is the youngest member of team.

The B Team was created to encourage businesses to be a driving force for social, environmental and economic benefit.

American Eagle Outfitters has named Jay L. Schottenstein, executive chairman of the board, as the company’s interim CEO. Schottenstein takes over for Robert Hanson, who is leaving the company.

Seattle – Nordstrom plans to open its third fulfillment center at Conewago Industrial Park in Elizabethtown, Pa. Work has begun on the approximately 672,000-sq.-ft. building, with an additional 470,000-square foot mezzanine, which is scheduled to open in summer 2015, and the company is taking bids.

York, Pa. – The Bon-Ton Stores, Inc. has reached an agreement with the city of Milwaukee to extend the lease for its Boston Store location in The Shops of Grand Avenue, Milwaukee, contingent upon the city providing financial contributions from its downtown Tax Increment Financing district.

Perhaps no single brand had a holiday season quite as rocky as Sears. When the retailer announced a string of bad news on Jan. 9, shares of Sears Holding Corp. (which includes both Sears and Kmart) went through the floor. Holiday sales at Sears stores were down 9.2% in the nine weeks prior to Jan. 6, a brutal figure when you consider that overall retail sales were up slightly over the holidays (which I’ll discuss more in my next column).

Seattle – Nordstrom plans to open a Nordstrom Rack store at Harbison Court in Columbia, S.C., and another at West Towne Crossing in West Towne, Wis. The approximately 34,000-sq.-ft. Columbia store and 30,750-sq.-ft. West Towne store are both scheduled to open in fall 2014.

When it opens, the Harbison Court Nordstrom Rack will be the company's second location in South Carolina, following the recently announced location in Greenville that will also open in fall 2014.

New York – Macy’s opened the exclusive NFL Shop at Super Bowl on the fourth floor of its flagship Herald Square in New York City on Sunday, Jan. 19. Macy’s will keep the 36,000-sq.-ft. space open through Tuesday, Feb. 4.

New York -- Eminence Capital, which owns 4.9% of the common stock of Jos. A. Bank Clothiers and has been pushing for a deal between the retailer and rival Men’s Wearhouse, has nominated two industry veterans for election as directors to the board at Jos. A. Bank's annual meeting. The nominees include: Bruce J. Klatsky, former chairman of Phillips-Van Heusen Corporation, a position he held from 1994 until June 2007, and Norman S. Matthews, former president of Federated Department Stores and active and former board member of other retail and consumer companies.

Bentonville, Ark. – Sam’s Club plans to open new stores on Thursday, Jan. 23, with a location in Warwick, R.I., and one will open in Mooresville, N.C.

Both stores will measure approximately 136,000 sq. ft. and feature a fresh bakery, a tire and battery center, and a café. A pharmacy and a hearing aid center are open to both members and the general public. The Mooresville store also offers the Click N Pull personal shopping service, as well as a fuel station.