Direct To Consumer (DTC)

A Walmart initiative begun a year ago to offer an online assortment of products from small women-owned businesses has expanded to the retailer’s stores.

Amazon continues to power ahead with record first quarter sales, solid bottom line improvement and intriguing new initiatives to drive future performance.

Sales increased 23% to $19.7 billion during the quarter ended March 31, compared to $16 billion the prior year. The sales figure was comprised of product sales which grew 18.3% to $15.7 billion and service sales which grew 44% to slightly more than $4 billion. The company’s fulfillment costs increased 29% to $2.3 billion.

Atlanta -- Boutique accessories and jewelry designer Kendra Scott will add two new Atlanta-area stores – one in Buckhead at The Shops Around Lenox, and the other in Alpharetta, at the Avalon Center.

The Shops Around Lenox store opens April 26, and will feature an interactive Kendra Scott Color Bar, where customers can design and personalize one-of-a-kind jewelry.

The Avalon Center store in Alpharetta is slated to open fall 2014.

New York – Faith Hope Consolo, chairman, and Joseph Aquino, executive VP of Douglas Elliman's Retail Group are bringing Philadelphia-based, international Society jeweler, Paul Morelli, to 895 Madison Avenue, at the intersection of 72nd Street.

The jeweler has been a presence at Bergdorf Goodman since 1981. The multi-level first New York store will offer 40 feet of double frontage and face two Ralph Lauren mansions.

Dublin, Ireland – Discount fast-fashion retailer Primark, the Dublin-based subsidiary of U.K. retail and consumer group Associated British Foods, plans to enter the United States, opening a location in Boston. The 70,000-sq.-ft. store will open at the end of 2015 and be on the site of the former Filene's department store in the city’s downtown area.

Seattle – Starbucks Corp. has filed building permits to open a La Boulange bakery location in Los Angeles. The permits do not specify a time when Starbucks plans to open the new store.

Starbucks purchased the La Boulange chain in 2012 and currently sells La Boulange-branded baked goods in U.S. Starbucks outlets. However, while there are 22 La Boulange stores in San Francisco, this would be the first location outside that market. Starbucks has previously said it wants to expand La Boulange nationally.

Beatrice Lafon was named CEO at specialty retailer Claire’s Stores following the release of fourth quarter results and a steep slide in same store sales.

Fort Worth, Texas – Tony Risch, executive VP of RadioShack Corp., has resigned to pursue other unspecified interests. The resignation is effective April 18, and his duties will be temporarily taken over by other executives.

Risch joined the company in December 2012. RadioShack is currently in the process of closing 1,000 stores. He previously spent 19 years at Target Corp. No timetable has been given to hire a permanent replacement.

New York -- E-commerce company Birchbox, provide subscribers with monthly boxes of personalized beauty products for a monthly fee, announced Monday that it has raised $60 million of Series B funding from a group led by Greenwich, Conn.-based Viking Global Investors, Crain’s New York reported.

Birchbox, which is set to open its first physical store this spring, now has more than 800,000 subscribers receiving 6,500 different products from 800 brand partners.

New York – Online wedding registry Zola is launching an iPhone app, which will allow couples to create and manage their Zola registry from anywhere. With the Zola app, couples will be able to create and edit their registries while on the go, scan any product onto their registry using the barcode scanner, and use app-exclusive features like Blender, which allows them to browse the entire Zola selection, one at a time, swiping right to add to their registry or left to pass.