Direct To Consumer (DTC)

Under Armour on Tuesday reported a drop in profit for the second quarter, related to the closing of The Sports Authority. The athletic wear brand also revealed plans to plant its banner on prime real estate in Manhattan.    

Five specialty retailers are deploying a cross-border shipping solution to make it easier for international customers to buy from their sites.   The retailers — Evolue, Kathy Kuo Home, The Land of Nod, The New York Times Store and Soludos — are expanding their online reach through the Pitney Bowes Borderfree solution. The technology and cross-border shipping services enable global shoppers to simply and conveniently buy items online in over 70 currencies from more than 220 countries and territories.  

Online retailer Hollar is looking to take sales away from a segment that, to date, has proved relatively immune to digital growth: dollar stores.  

Personalization continues to be the trend that just won’t go away, probably because it’s the new normal in how consumers want to interact with brands and retailers. Personalized videos hold the promise to surprise and delight (and covert), especially as we collectively spend more and more of our time viewing videos online. And personalized promotions help retailers maximize scarce marketing dollars, ensuring the right customer gets the right call to action at the right time.

Forrester Research has identified the retailers with the most and least satisfactory experience, and a very prominent name scored poorly.  

Alex and Ani is ramping up its store growth.   The Cranston, Rhode Island-based retailer plans to open 27 new locations in North America by the end of 2016, giving it a total of some 90 stores.     With the majority of its stores located on the East Coast, Alex and Ani, which is privately held, is now looking further afield. It will make its Southern California debut this fall, in Orange County.    

Party City Holdco Inc. on Thursday named Daniel J. Sullivan as CFO.   Sullivan succeeds Michael A. Correale, who is stepping down as Party City CFO to focus on the newly created position of executive VP chief accounting officer and treasurer, effective Aug. 29. In his new role, Correale will be responsible for all of the company’s external financial reporting, treasury functions, banking and credit relationships.  

Consumer goods giant Unilever is paying a reported $1 billion to buy an online retail start-up that has yet to turn to profit.   Unilever PLC announced it is buying Dollar Shave Club, the razor delivery subscription service known for its irreverent brand positioning and viral You Tube videos. Terms of the deal were not announced, but The New York Times and other media outlets reported Unilever is paying $1 billion in cash for the scrappy company, which has yet to turn a profit but expects to do so by yearend.