Department Store

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — Kmart announced that Roger Mason, Jr. of the New York Nets and Deion Branch of the New England Patriots will be featured in the company's social campaign for Protege, the company's exclusive footwear and apparel collection.

NEW YORK — Loehmann's, which operates 40 off-price apparel stores in 11 states, announced that it is kicking of New York Fashion Week with its first-ever runway fashion show at its New York flagship store in Chelsea on Sept. 8. The event, in celebration of Fashion's Night Out, will feature more than 25 creative looks complete with silhouettes and styles from Loehmann's famous "Back Room" collection of high-end designer collections, the company reported. 

New York City -- While it may take some to fully assess the damage, the impact of Hurricane Irene on retail sales is likely to split among retail sectors: Home-improvement stores selling emergency preparation products and clean-up items are likely to benefit the most from the storm, while apparel retailers and department stores selling non-essential items are likely to take a hit.

NEW YORK — Payless announced that it has expanded its partnership with designer Christian Siriano. His expanded collection will arrive Sept. 7 in 2,400 Payless stores across the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico and Payless.com.

This seasonal collection features a range of modern looks for everyday styling with an assortment of shoes and handbags offered at more moderate, accessible prices starting at $23 an item. 

COLUMBUS, Ohio — DSW's model of bringing designer goods to a budget-conscious consumer continues to pay off, as the company posted sales and earnings growth for its second quarter. DSW Inc. reported that net sales for the second quarter increased 4.7% to $476.3 million from $415.1 million in the second quarter of 2010. Comparable sales for the second quarter increased 12.3%. 

Reported net income was $139.9 million, or $3.96 per diluted share. This compares with reported net income of $26.9 million, or $1.00 per diluted share.

New York City -- Japanese fast-fashion giant Uniqlo is set to open its largest global flagship to date, an 89,000-sq.-ft. store on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. The store, which will also be the larger single retailer on Fifth Avenue, will open on Oct. 14.

One week later, Uniqlo will debut a second flagship in Manhattan, a 64,000-sq.-ft. store 34th St. It will be the chain’s second largest global flagship

Madison, Miss. -- Chattanooga, Tenn.-based CBL & Associates Properties has announced the start of construction on Phase II of The Forum at Grandview, a community center in Madison, Miss.

The 83,000-sq.-ft. second phase will include anchors Ulta, Homegoods, Petco and a national arts and crafts retailer, along with 14,000 sq. ft. of specialty stores. The opening of phase II is scheduled for summer 2012.

NEW YORK — Barnes & Noble reported that total sales for the first quarter were $1.4 billion, a 2% increase compared with the prior year. Sales through BN.com increased 37% as compared with the prior year to $198 million, with comparable sales increasing 65%. This increase was driven by strong demand for the Nook product line, including the continued success of the Nook Color, the mid-quarter launch of the Nook Simple Touch Reader and a quadrupling of digital content sales over last year’s first quarter.