Apparel

Katy, Texas - Academy Sports + Outdoors announced a third planned Louisville-area store, in Elizabethtown, Kentucky, scheduled to open in 2015. Academy previously announced stores opening in Louisville and Middletown, which will both open prior to the 2014 holiday season.

All three locations were developed in partnership with GBT Realty Corporation. Academy Sports + Outdoors also announced new multi-year partnerships with both the University of Louisville Cardinals and also the University of Kentucky Wildcats.

New York -- The American Apparel saga continues, with the beleaguered chain receiving a notice of default from its longtime lender, Lion Capital.
   
The default notice was based on the claim that founder Dov Charney ceased to be CEO of the company, according to a regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission today. (Lion had a stipulation in its loan agreement, which was signed last year, stating that if Charney left the company, it would be in default.)
  


There have been more than a few headline-grabbing leadership transitions in the retail world recently. And, to be honest, “transitions” might be too gentle of a euphemism: some big names from some big-name brands have left, been fired, forced out, voted off the board, or otherwise pressured to step down in the last few months.

Sidney, Neb. -- Cabela’s Incorporated announced today plans to open a store in Calgary, Alberta. Construction is scheduled to begin later this year, with a fall 2015 opening.

The 70,000-sq.-ft. store will be located adjacent the Deerfoot Mall, which is currently under plan review as an open air shopping center redevelopment project.

It will be Cabela’s third location in Alberta, joining two locations in Edmonton, which opened in 2011 and May of this year.

Having passed the calendar’s mid-point, we thought it would be interesting to take a look at the most viewed stories of the year to date on Chainstoreage.com.

New York -- ImagineX Group, Asia’s leading retail, brand management and distribution company, and Authentic Brands Group, LLC, the new owner of Juicy Couture, today announced a long-term franchise partnership to drive Juicy’s market expansion and category development in China. The partnership will provide the momentum to add more Juicy Couture stores throughout Asia; expand the brand’s reach with new product lines; and support further regional growth initiatives.
 

New York - Stuart Weitzman Holdings LLC has named Monica Schwartz as chief global digital and e-commerce officer. In this newly created position, Schwartz will oversee all aspects of global e-commerce and digital strategies for the stuartweitzman.com platforms in the United States, Canada, Europe and Hong Kong, as well as the soon-to-be-launched e-commerce site in China.

Stuart Weitzman has named Monica Schwartz as chief global digital and e-commerce officer. She will report directly to CEO Wayne Kulkin and will be based out of the company's international headquarters in New York.

In this newly created position, Schwartz will oversee all aspects of global e-commerce and digital strategies for the stuartweitzman.com platforms in the United States, Canada, Europe and Hong Kong, as well as the soon-to-be-launched e-commerce site in China.