eCommerce

Pittsburgh -- GNC Holdings has acquired A1 Sports Limited, which operates under the Discount Supplements moniker. The company is the leading multi-brand sports nutrition e-commerce retailer in the United Kingdom. Terms of the deal, which was funded with cash on hand, were not disclosed.
 
Following the acquisition, GNC.com, LuckyVitamin.com and Discount-supplements.co.uk will continue to operate as separate businesses, each with its own product offerings and target customers.

Miami -- By moving its ecommerce operations to Oracle Commerce, online health supplements retailer PureFormulas will take advantage of Oracle’s multi-site architecture to support expansion, while significantly enhancing its customer experience and personalization capabilities.   
 

New York -- Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th plans to open a second store in Orlando, Fla., on Oct. 3. On the same date, the retailer plans to open its newly relocated store at Potomac Mills in Woodridge, Va.

According to Shop.org, more than half (55%) of all retail-related Internet time in June 2013 originated on smartphones and tablet devices combined, compared with just 45% originating from desktop devices. 

Shop.org teamed up with comScore and the Partnering Group to generate the report, released at Shop.org's Annual Summit, which found that smartphone Internet usage in June 2013 totaled 44% of retail Internet minutes, up from 17% in June 2010. Tablet internet usage accounted for 11% of total minutes on retail sites.

San Bruno, Calif. -- Walmart announced it is opening two new warehouses dedicated to filling online orders, one in Fort Worth, Texas, and one in Bethlehem, Pa., which will be its largest center to date. The new facilities are part of a next-generation fulfillment network that the retailer said will deliver U.S. customer orders faster and at a lower cost.

Amazon is getting ready for the holiday shopping rush and creating more than 70,000 full-time seasonal jobs across its U.S. fulfillment centers to meet an increase in customer demand — a 40% increase over last year’s seasonal hires. 

In 2012, Amazon converted thousands of seasonal employees into regular, full-time roles after the holidays, and expects to do the same this year. On average, seasonal employees earn 94% of Amazon fulfillment center employee starting wages and are eligible for health care benefits.

Dallas – Neiman Marcus Group is offering free standard shipping and returns for all domestic purchases made online through Neimanmarcus.com and Bergdorfgoodman.com as well as Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman stores.

"The customer has always been at the center of the Neiman Marcus business model. Permanent free shipping and returns have been a top request and we are happy to be able to make this change just in time for the holiday shopping season." said Wanda Gierhart, chief marketing officer, Neiman Marcus Group.

New York -- Steven Newman, CEO of Loehmann’s, will appear on CBS's popular television show, "Undercover Boss," on Friday, Oct. 4 (8 p.m.-9 p.m., ET/PT).

The executive of the original off-price retail chain, with 39 stores in 11 states, went undercover in a few stores around the country in a variety of roles, including order processing at the Loehmann's distribution center, visual merchandising, personal shopper, and sales associate.