Department Store

Empire Outlets, the outlet center taking shape on the Staten Island side of the Staten Island Ferry, has turned to Manhattan and Holly Nichols to help promote the center.   Nichols’s illustrations have guided campaigns for Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman-Marcus, not to mention New York and Boston Fashion Weeks. Her work has 600,000 followers on Instagram, and originals sell to collectors on Etsy.  

Chain Store Age announced the selection of the Advisory Board for SPECS/2018, the annual retail event produced by CSA and attended by retail and food-service executives who plan, design, build, and maintain stores and restaurants nationwide.     Now in its 54th year, SPECS will host its 2018 conference in Dallas, at the Gaylord Texan, March 18-20. The event will focus on what’s next, and what is shaping the future of physical retail.  

Amazon’s Australian online store is one step closer to launching.   In addition to announcing the site of its first Australian warehouse, the online giant also named a German executive as its country manager. Both moves indicate that Amazon is preparing to launch its online store in the world's 12th-biggest economy, according to Reuters.  

Uniqlo will be popping up at airports and malls across the nation — but not through retail storefronts.   Putting a new spin on the term “fast fashion,” the Japanese retailer is launching 6-ft.-high vending machines that will enable customers to purchase T-shirts and lightweight down jackets, the Wall Street Journal reported. Merchandise is packaged in boxes and cans.  

Saks Fifth Avenue is partnering with Disney to celebrate the holidays.   Saks' annual holiday window display at its New York City flagship on Fifth Avenue will be devoted to "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs." The collaboration with Disney also includes special Disney-inspired fashion, accessories and giftable items created by premier designers and available across Saks' 41 stores in the U.S. and Canada, and Saks.com.   

Walmart is making good on its promise to open 200 learning centers by year’s end.   The discounter is planning to open another employee training academy. The new location, which will be in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, is expected to open by end of 2017, according to the Argus Leader, a division of USA Today.  

The owner of Ann Taylor, Loft, DressBarn, Lane Bryant and other brands is consolidating its executive leadership structure as part of its efforts to reinvigorate top-line growth.  

Godiva has opened its first in-store cafe in the United States, in Manhattan's Rockefeller Center.

The newly renovated store features a seating area where customers can enjoy a new collection of French-style desserts or Godiva’s signature chocolates, along with beverages. Godiva first introduced its cafe concept in London, where it operates a 40-table cafe on the second floor of the famous Harrods department store.