eCommerce

Ahold USA has opened 120 pickup points for online orders as of the end of 2013. The company hopes to triple its online food sales by 2016, and said the opening of pickup points in the United States and Europe would be an important part of reaching that goal.

Most of the pickup points in the United States are operated under the Stop & Shop, Giant Food of Landover, Md., and Giant Food Stores of Carlisle, Pa., banners. The 120 pickup points compare with only eight a year ago.

New York City -- On the heels of earlier reports that Macy’s and Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia were able to reach a settlement in their ongoing legal dispute over Martha Stewart sales at J.C. Penney, reports surfaced on Friday that Macy’s and Penney were unable to find their own agreement.

According to multiple sources, talks between Macy’s and Penney fizzled, making it likely that a judge will have to decide the dispute over home goods designed by Martha Stewart.

San Francisco -- Custom apparel and accessory provider vPersonalize.com has launched a new full-custom, online store for customers to design and buy their own personalized apparel and accessories.

vPersonalize.com features a Web-based configurator that allows consumers to design directly on a 3-D model of a T-shirt, backpack or bag and get it custom-made almost exactly as seen.

Oak Brook, Ill. — Inland Real Estate Income Trust has acquired the 159,258-sq.-ft. Wedgewood Commons Shopping Center in Olive Branch, Miss., a southeastern suburb of Memphis, Tenn. The purchase price was $33.9 million.

The property consists of four buildings and an existing structure suitable for the development of an additional 10,838 sq. ft. of leasable space, which would increase the center’s retail space to just over 170,000 sq. ft.

City of Commerce, Calif. — 99 Cents Only Stores opens its first store in Waco, Texas on Thursday, Jan. 9. The new store is approximately 13,000 square feet and will feature a perishable food department, including produce, dairy and frozen foods.

99 Cents Only Stores currently operates 339 extreme value retail stores consisting of 244 stores in California, 45 in Texas, 33 in Arizona, and 17 in Nevada.

When U.S. retailers launch global e-commerce efforts, they often start with countries that have a long-standing trade history with America. Shipments to Canada are soon followed by expansion into the United Kingdom, Australia or other English-speaking areas.

Some organizations stick with this strategy — where few barriers to entry, cultural similarities and overall market understanding provide for a “safe” selling environment.

The holiday saw the launch of major consoles, and multichannel videogame retailer GameStop is looking to capitalize by declaring 2014 to be the “Year of Gaming.”

The retailer is offering select items, including console bundles, games and consumer electronics, on sale hoping to lure gamers who didn’t get everything they wanted during the holiday or are looking to use holiday gift cards. The sale runs from now through Sunday, Jan. 5.

This holiday season was one of the first real opportunities for retailers to flex their omnichannel muscle. A shorter-than-usual holiday season, combined with ongoing economic uncertainty, led consumers to turn to a variety of shopping channels in their search for the most efficient and cost-effective way to round out their gifting lists. Likewise, many shoppers also demonstrated a desire to return products across these various channels. But were retailers ready?

Raj Jain, the former head of a joint venture between Walmart and Bharti Enterprises, has joined Bharti Retail as CEO.

Jain spent six years with the joint venture, Bharti Walmart, most recently serving as president of Walmart India. He left the joint venture in June 2013, four months before Walmart and Bharti announced they would independently pursue retail opportunities in India.

Joining Jain at Bharti Retail is his former joint venture colleague Panka Madan who will serve as CFO. Madan also served as CFO of Bharti Walmart but left the joint venture in 2012.

New York — Due to the holiday rush and related closings, sister publication Chain Store Age has extended the deadline for its 32nd annual Retail Store of the Year Design Competition until Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2014.