Department Store

Dodgeville, Wis. – The second quarter was nothing short of a fiscal landslide for Lands’ End as the specialty retailer posted its third straight disappointing quarter. Revenue fell 10% and profit was down by more than a third.

“The results that we are sharing today do not represent the true potential of our company,” Federica Marchionni, president and CEO, told analysts during a conference call.

Washington, D.C. -- The National Retail Federation continues to turn up the heat on the Labor Department’s proposal to expand overtime pay.   

Despite reporting ho-hum sales for July, Costco said Thursday that its comps for the fourth quarter and fiscal year were up an impressive 6%.

Austin, Texas – Labor Day is supposed to be a day of rest, but consumers are planning to work at shopping for the upcoming Labor Day holiday Sept. 7.

According to a recent RetailMeNot-Kelton survey, two in three (67%) people planning to spend money this Labor Day will spend an average of $144.

In addition, 13% anticipate their Labor Day spend will exceed $200. While 67% of consumers do actually plan to relax at home, one in three intend to visit the mall.

The CEO of Genesco Inc. says the company had strong sales despite the later start to the back-to-school season and some pressures to right-size inventories.

Target Corp. has a new finance chief and executive VP. Cathy Smith officially joined the discounter on Sept. 1, coming from Express Scripts, the nation’s largest pharmacy benefits manager, where she was also CFO.  

A seasoned retail leader, Smith also held CFO positions at Walmart International, GameStop, and others. Target recently posted a Q&A with Smith on its Bullseye blog. Here are some highlights:

What made you decide to take on this role at Target?

Online retailer ThinkGeek is teaming up with GameStop on a new concept retail store focused entirely on collectibles.

The first store will open in the Florida Mall in Orlando on Sept. 25.

New York – Macy’s Inc. on Wednesday officially entered one of the industry’s fastest-growing store segments: off-price retail.

The company unveiled its newest banner, Macy’s Backstage, with the opening of three New York City -area stores, with locations in Brooklyn, Queens and Melville (on Long Island).