Department Store

A full-service event design company is extending its brand.   White Lilac has opened its first retail location, a home décor store, at South Coast Plaza, Costa Mesa, Calif. The company specializes in large-scale parties, exclusive weddings, corporate functions, and private parties.     The boutique showcases a whimsical collection of gifts, housewares, accessories, furniture, décor and more inspired by White Lilac event designs for celebrity clients, dignitaries and iconic venues.

Not many companies can follow up its own record-breaking Thanksgiving online sales -- but Kohl’s did.   The chain’s president and CEO Kevin Mansell said that the chain hit double-digit, record-breaking online sales and solid brick-and-mortar traffic to stores on Thursday, Nov. 24 and early Friday, Nov. 25, reported Milwaukee Business Journal.  

The TJX Companies isn’t letting a federal judge’s decision to block the Obama administration rule expanding overtime pay get in the way of its plans to comply with the rule.   

One of the nation’s top mall operators is expanding an innovative concept is designed to solve the top pain point of online shopping: returns.    Macerich is expanding its Happy Returns service to three additional malls: Fashion Outlets of Chicago, The Shops at North Bridge, and Tysons Corner Center. The service builds on the success of the mall operator’s first Return Bar, at Santa Monica Place, Santa Monica, Calif.  

Move over Cyber Monday, Cyber Week is the new buzz term.    Cyber Week, comprised of Thanksgiving Eve, Nov. 23 through Cyber Monday, Nov. 28, is attracting more shoppers as they “grow more and more comfortable shopping on their phones and tablets, opening up the timetable for brands to reach them during the holiday shopping season," said Tony Zito, CEO, Rakuten Marketing.  

Sarah Jessica Parker will be among the retail tenants at a new luxury retail center.   The actress-cum-designer will open her first freestanding store on Dec. 8, at MGM National Harbor, a new resort and upscale retail center just outside of Washington, D.C. The store, called SJP by Sarah Jessica Parker, will feature the brand’s collection of shoes, handbags, accessories, and its new LBD (little black dress line) line. (The SJP brand launched in 2014 in upscale department stores.)  

When it comes to holiday inventory, most retailers use their intuition and industry knowledge to make their sales projections, plan their promotional calendar, and schedule product reorders. This was fine when the season’s promotions were merely percentages off and customers purchased products in stores. But as the retail world becomes more complex, so too must retailers’ holiday plans. With an estimated 40% of retailers’ yearly profits on the line, intuition this holiday season just isn’t enough.  

In a new post on Target's A Bullseye View blog, Target CIO Mike McNamara explains the reasoning behind the retailer's decision to offer an extensive Cyber Monday promotion: 15% off site-wide and store-wide from Nov. 27 to Nov. 28.   McNamara says the retailer's move to combine stores and online for a more seamless holiday shopping experience marks a new chapter in Cyber Monday history.