Department Store

Minneapolis -- Best Buy Co.’s Best Buy Express plans to add nearly 100 kiosk locations in the next year spread over a variety of new channels.

The division has opened 150 Express locations in three years, and said it is adding two locations at Downtown Disney District in Anaheim, Calif., and multiple locations at college campuses, events and ferry hubs this year.

Indianapolis -- Electronics and appliances retailer Hhgregg Inc. reported Thursday that it lost $761,000 in the quarter ended June 30, compared with a profit of $2.7 million in the year-ago period. The retailer cited softness in its video business for the weakened performance.

Revenue dipped 1% to $431.5 million, from $436 million a year earlier. Wall Street expected revenue of $488 million. Same-store sales decreased 13.2%.

New York City -- Department store retailers registered solid gains in July, with Macy’s, Saks and J.C. Penney all beating analysts’ estimates. Kohl’s, however, fell short of estimates as its sales fell.

At Macy's, same-store sales rose 5% in July, beating analysts' estimates of 4.1%. The company’s online sales (macys.com and bloomingdales.com combined) surged 36.7% in July, 40.2% in the second quarter and 39.2% in the first half of 2011.

Plano, Texas -- A Wednesday report by the Wall Street Journal said that J.C. Penney Co. has launched a voluntary early-retirement program for certain employees over 55 years old.

CINCINNATI, MENOMONEE FALLS, Wis., and PLANO, Texas — Macy’s emerged as the big winner among department-store retailers this July, reporting sales growth that exceeded expectations. JCPenney also faired well for July, while Kohl’s sales disappointed. 

Macy’s Inc. reported total sales of $1.6 billion for the four weeks ended July 30, an increase of 5% compared with total sales of $1.525 billion in the four weeks ended July 31, 2010. On a same-store basis, Macy’s Inc. sales were up 5% in July.

New York City -- The nation’s specialty apparel retailers reported mixed results in July. as Hot Topic and Limited Brands turned in strong performances, while Gap and Aeropostale stumbled.

Hot Topic said its same-store sales rose 7.3% in July. far exceeding the 0.5% rise in analysts’ forecast. Hot Topic said the measure rose 6.2% at its namesake stores and rose 11.8% at its plus-sized Torrid division. The teen retailer also raised its second-quarter outlook.

Purchase, N.Y. -- Apparel continued to show gains in July, while housing-related sectors such as electronics, appliances, and furniture remained sluggish, according to MasterCard Advisors SpendingPulse, a macroeconomic report tracking national retail and services sales. (The data estimates total U.S. retail sales across all payment forms including cash and check.)

In other findings, auto parts and service posted its first decline after five months of growth.

LOS ANGELES, Calif. — Costco announced that it is bringing its Kirstie Kelly wedding gowns to the South during limited-time trunk shows at select locations.