Discount Store

Nordstrom’s full line stores saw first quarter same store sales decline but the department store operator’s off price Rack division is doing just fine.

New York -- From indie favorites to mass-market British brands, here are seven retailers getting ready to make their U.S. brick-and-mortar debut:

1. Nasty Gal

The Dollar General Literacy Foundation has awarded more than $6 million in grants to 700 schools, nonprofits and literacy organizations across the 40 states Dollar General serves to support adult, family and summer literacy programs.

Dallas – DGSE Companies Inc. swung to a net loss of $523,000 from a net profit of $300,000 in first quarter 2014. The retailer cited significant decreases in both bullion and scrap sales resulting from a drop in gold prices as affecting its performance, which included a 32% drop in revenue to $19.9 million from $29.2 million.

DSGE has closed 23 stores since February 2014 and expects $3.7 million in non-recurring charges in 2014 as part of discontinued operations.

Bentonville, Ark. -- Wal-Mart Stores posted disappointing results for its first quarter, with earnings down 5% as harsh winter weather kept shoppers away. The company also gave a weak earnings forecast for its current quarter that fell short of analysts' estimates.

For the period ended April 30, Wal-Mart earned $3.59 billion, compared with $3.78 billion a year ago, less than analysts expected. In addition to the unusually harsh winter weather, a higher-than-expected tax rate also hurt earnings, the retailer said.

Arlington, Va. - The Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA), along with several retail brands, has launched the Retail Cyber Intelligence Sharing Center (R-CISC), the centerpiece of which is a Retail Information Sharing and Analysis Center (Retail-ISAC).

Melville, N.Y. - Global Facility Management & Construction is naming two new members of its management team. Bruce Wollmuth has been named construction manager, leading a team of construction project managers.

At a time when sluggish-to-modest industry numbers have seemingly become the norm, and a protracted economic recovery inches forward, the recent spate of seemingly good retail and economic news has industry analysts and observers like myself raising a collective eyebrow.