Department Store

Union, N.J. -- Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. has provided preliminary information on its fiscal fourth quarter 2013, including the impact of adverse weather conditions during the period. The company's same-store sales for the fiscal fourth quarter increased by approximately 1.7% as compared with its previous model of an increase of approximately 2% to 4%.

Plano, Texas – Two major J.C. Penney Co. Inc. executives who left the company in April 2013 did so without receiving severance pay. According to a regulatory filing from Penney, neither former CEO Ron Johnson nor former chief talent officer Daniel Walker were paid any severance when they left the retailer.

Kmart and Sears are among a group of companies identified as “the least engaging brands of 2014,” in a recently released index of customer loyalty.

"A brand can't do well in today's marketplace if it can't engage consumers, no matter how many ads are run, and no matter how much social networking one does," said Robert Passikoff, founder and president of Brand Keys, a New York-based brand loyalty and emotional engagement research consultancy.

Phoenix — An eight-screen Cinemark Movie Bistro will open at Rayzor Ranch Town Center, a new open-air retail and entertainment destination set to break ground later this year in Denton, Texas.

The state-of-the-art cinema will join a 126,000-sq.-ft. Dillard’s in anchoring Rayzor Ranch. Both are planning grand openings for summer 2015.

Columbus, Ohio — Lane Bryant has opened a new store at The Shops at Pembroke Gardens, a lifestyle center in Pembroke Pines, Fla.

The grand opening celebration will take place March 7 – 9. Lane Bryant, a wholly owned subsidiary of Ascena Retail Group, owns and operates 805 stores nationwide.
 

Dublin, Calif. -- Ross Stores recently opened a total of 30 Ross Dress for Less and seven DD’s Discounts stores in 14 different states. These openings are part of the off-price retailer's 2014 expansion plans for about 95 new stores, which will include continuing to build presence in existing markets and grow in the newer markets initially entered in 2011.

Ross believes that long-term expansion opportunities include 2,000 Ross Dress for Less stores and 500 DD’s Discounts stores.

New York — An ~exhale MINDBODYSPA has leased 3,027-sq.-ft. location in Manhattan’s Flatiron District, where Flatiron and Chelsea meet. It is a strong retail neighborhood with national fashion and specialty retailers along Fifth Avenue including Anthropologie, J.Crew, Club Monaco, kate spade, Nike, Intermix and Sephora. There are larger format retailers in the area, too: Bed Bath & Beyond, The Container Store, Sports Authority, Staples, Men’s Wearhouse, Trader Joe’s and Marshalls along Sixth Avenue.

Belk is gearing up for its bi-annual Kidfest in-store event Saturday, March 29, from noon–3 p.m. at all locations.

It's an innovative way for the Charlotte, N.C.-based department store, which operates 299 locations in 16 Southern states, generate customer traffic, not to mention buzz among shoppers as moms talk about their kids being in the show.