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Online delivery service provider Instacart has hired a veteran of a company known for extreme efficiency to take charge of its operations.

Mike Swartz, a retail veteran whose career notably includes a nine-year stint as director of operational excellence at Amazon.com from 1998-2007, is the new senior VP of operations for Instacart. Since Amazon, Swartz’ experience includes four years as senior VP of operations for specialty hair care e-commerce company Folica Inc. and four years as an independent consultant.

DSW has a robust store expansion plan in the works to tap future penetration within the U.S. market this year.

"New store growth is an important and exciting piece of the DSW formula. It allows us to bring the brand to more communities and build relationships with new customers. More stores also enable us to provide additional customers with immediate access to our full assortment. We look forward to engaging with these new customers and helping them find the perfect shoe at the prefect price," said Valara Gee, VP Stores

A home improvement start-up with a green conscience and niche positioning is finally ready to expand out of its Austin, Texas, hometown.

TreeHouse will serve as the anchor tenant at The Hill, a new North Dallas shopping center being revived, refreshed, and repositioned by Dallas developer, Cypress Equities. The store, which will be designed by Lake|Flato Architects, is slated to open in early 2017. It will be the retailer’s second location, but perhaps not for long.

Macy’s says cold weather in January helped the retailer report a better than expected decrease in same store sales for the fourth quarter even as the company explores an expansion of its off-price and beauty formats.

For the period ended Jan. 30, same store sales fell 4.3%, slightly less than the 4.7% fall it had estimated. Total sales declined to $8.87 billion.

Just a few weeks after reporting sales growth of 3.2% for 2015, Stein Mart is embarking on the first phase of its 2016 store expansion plan.

The Florida-based retailer plans to open 12 new stores this year, with five of those stores scheduled to open this spring.

Boston has long been known as a town that likes to imbibe now and then, and online grocery delivery service Instacart is helping to spread the cheer.

Instacart is partnering with local omnichannel liquor retailer Vinodivino to offer Boston customers same-day delivery of wine, liquor, and beer. Vinodivino is now part of the Instacart marketplace, meaning Boston residents can order alcohol online from Vinodivino through the Instacart site or app and get alcohol delivered in as little as one hour.

Cold weather in January helped Macy’s report a decline in same-store sales for the fourth quarter that was less than analysts had expected. In other news, the chain announced plans to expand its off-price and specialty beauty formats.

For the period ended Jan. 30, Macy's net income fell 31% to $543 million, dragged down by store closings and other costs.

Adjusted profits were $2.09 per share, better than the $1.86 per share estimate from analysts, according to Zacks Investment Research,