Consumer Electronics

Ron Boire was named president and CEO of Sears Canada after serving in that capacity on an interim basis since last October.

Boire was named acting president and CEO last October to replace Doug Campbell, the former head of the 381 unit Sears Canada operation who resigned for personal reasons. Boire was identified as the top candidate for the job at the time the appointment was made as he had spent nearly two years as executive vice president, chief merchandising officer and president of Sears and Kmart formats.

Atlanta -- PGA Tour Superstore, which is backed by Home Depot co-founder Arthur Blank, has signed a multi-year national partnership agreement with Golf Channel that includes a brand integration program and a strategic media buy.

Toronto – The board of directors of Sears Canada Inc. has named Ronald D. Boire as president and CEO. Boire has served as the company's acting president and CEO since Oct. 15, 2014.

Prior to his role with Sears Canada, Boire was executive VP, chief merchandising officer and president, Sears and Kmart Formats, Sears Holdings Corp. Prior to joining Sears Holdings in January 2012, Boire was president and CEO at Brookstone, a position he held from October 2009.

Fort Worth, Texas - RadioShack Corp. announced that it received a continued listing standards notice from the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on Jan. 15. The retailer received the notice because its average market capitalization was less than $50 million during a period of 30 consecutive trading days and stockholders' equity of the company was below $50 million.

Cupertino, Calif. – Mickey Drexler, chairman and CEO of J. Crew and former CEO and president of Gap Inc., is retiring from the board of directors of Apple Inc. as of March 2015. Apple disclosed the impending retirement in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Drexler has served on the Apple board since 1999 and is currently its longest-tenured member. No replacement has been announced. Drexler was initially recruited to the Apple board to help the company, which opened its first store in 2001, create a retail strategy.

New York – Taking money is one thing, but e-retailers aren’t always so great at giving it back. In a study of the refunds performance of 40 of the largest online retailers, analysis firm StellaService found that the majority of retailers evaluated aren’t meeting consumer expectations.

For orders placed in fourth quarter 2014, the average speed to receive a refund from the companies evaluated was 9.5 days. The majority of consumers said they expect a refund in seven days or less.

Washington, D.C. – An estimated 184 million viewers will watch Super Bowl XLIX on Sunday, Feb. 1. According to NRF’s Super Bowl Spending Survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics, average viewer spending will reach a survey high of $77.88, up from $68.27 in 2013.

Total spending is expected to reach $14.3 billion. Young adults ages 18-24 plan on spending an average of $95.92; those ages 25-34 and 35-44, however, will spend slightly more at an average of $101.54 and $102.82, respectively.

A big game bonanza is in store for retailers, with television viewership and entertainment related spending expected to hit record levels, according to a National Retail Federation survey.

According to NRF, average viewer spending will reach a survey high of $77.88, up from $68.27 last year, with fans planning to splurge on everything from game day food and new televisions to athletic wear and decorations. Total spending is expected to reach $14.3 billion.