eCommerce

In fourth quarter 2015, mobile phones served as the primary engine of online retailing.

According to the fourth quarter “Demandware Shopping Index,” mobile phones were responsible for all growth in digital visit (112%) and basket (104%) size. Rates exceeding 100% indicate that digital visits and baskets actually shrank among users of tablets and PCs.

Mobile phones also accounted for a solid 68% of majority of digital order growth, with tablets and PCs accounting for the other 32%.

Barnes & Noble produced a same-store sales increase in its third quarter which, although meager, is an impressive accomplishment given intense competition from Amazon.

Sales for the company’s third quarter ended Jan. 30 declined 1.8% to $1.4 billion, due to lower online sales and some store closure. Same-store sales increased 0.2% and if the company NOOK products are excluded the comp increase was 1.3%.

The Sports Authority on Wednesday filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and said it plans to close or sell as many as 140 of its 463 stores nationwide. The beleaguered company has struggled in recent years under increased competition not only from online players, but also from the likes of Dick’s Sporting Goods and specialty retailers such as Lululemon that have capitalized on the “athleisure” boom in fitness apparel.

Product discovery is not a game, and GameStop Corp. is using a newly expanded ship from store program to bring goods as close to its customers as possible.

“We discovered 66% of our total unique SKUs were only represented on our store shelves, not in the warehouse,” Jason Allen, VP of multichannel operations for Grapevine, Texas-based GameStop told Chain Store Age in an interview. “Unless the customer came in a particular store that had that product on the shelf, there was no discovery.”

American Eagle Outfitters didn’t exactly soar in the fourth quarter, but its low single-digit same-store sales increase was better than most and benefitted from recent store closures.

Total company sales increased 3% to $1.11 billion and same store sales grew 4% after a flat performance in the fourth quarter the prior year. Earnings per share increased 17% to 42 cents from the 36 cents earned from continuing operations the prior year. The company expects its first quarter same store sales to increase in the mid-single digits.

The Sports Authority on Wednesday filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and said it plans to close or sell as many as 140 of its 463 stores nationwide. The beleaguered company has struggled in recent years under increased competition not only from online players, but also from the likes of Dick’s Sporting Goods and specialty retailers such as Lululemon that have capitalized on the “athleisure” boom in fitness apparel.

Abercrombie & Fitch's efforts to attract more shoppers with a better store experience and updated merchandise mix are paying off as the retailer reported an unexpected increase in same-store sales and a 30% increase in profit for the fourth quarter.

Abercrombie said overall same-store sales rose 1% in the quarter ended Jan. 30, the first gain in the metric since the third quarter 2012. Analysts on average were expecting a decline of 0.10%. The gain in same-store sales was driven by a 4% increase in the Hollister division.

Cold winter weather in the Western states helped Big 5 Sporting Goods post an increase in same-store sales and profit in the fourth quarter.

For the fourth quarter ended Jan. 3, the retailer said net sales increased to $275 million from net sales of $250.3 million for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014. Same-store sales increased 0.1% for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2015 and 1.4% for the full year.