eCommerce

Seattle — Amazon.com increased net sales an impressive 22% during the second quarter of fiscal 2013. But the Internet retailing giant reported a net loss of $7 million due to operating expenses and investments in warehouses, digital content and other areas, compared with net income of $7 million in the year-ago period.

St. Louis — Build-A-Bear Workshop narrowed its second-quarter loss to $6.2 million from $7.5 million in the year-ago period, boosted by improved sales and store productivity.

Total revenues were $81.9 million , up 1.9% from the $80.4 million reported in the second quarter of 2012.  Same-store sales rose 7.3%, including an 8.6% increase in North America and 1.7% increase in Europe. E-commerce sales rose 5.2%.

While the mobile phone serves as a lens to a personalized store experience, moving forward, wearable technologies like Google Glass will take in-store personalization to the next level, Steve Arthur, head of retail industry for Google, told attendees at  the Retailer Roundtable event, sponsored by digital gifting platform provider CashStar. Arthur cautioned that retailers must realize they must deliver consumers the experience they need, rather than what they want, and be prepared for a post-PC world. 

Pittsburgh -- GNC Holdings Inc.'s second-quarter net income rose nearly 8% amid strong sales. 

During the three months that ended June 30, GNC's income rose to $71.7 million, from $66.7 in the year-ago period. Its results beat expectations. 

Revenue increased 9.2% to $676.3 million from $619.1 million a year ago. Same-store sales rose 6.8% at company-owned stores and 5.2% at franchise locations.

The top U.S. retailers’ web sites are barely keeping up with customers, according to a report by Radware, a provider of application delivery and application security solutions for virtual and cloud data centers. Now in its fifth edition, the “State of the Union: Ecommerce Page Speed & Web Performance, Summer 2013” study reveals that websites for the top 500 U.S. retailers continue to slow down, a 13.7% drop since spring 2012.

Sidney, Neb. -- Cabela’s Inc. on Thursday announced it will open four new markets in 2014:  Acworth, Ga., Augusta, Ga.; Missoula, Mont.; and Barrie, Ontario (Canada).  The outdoor goods retailer also reported that its second-quarter net income surged 31% on a 10.5% rise in same-store sales. 

Chesterfield, Mo. — Taubman Prestige Outlets Chesterfield, a new fashion outlet center opening on Aug. 2, has announced its lineup of stores, many new to the St. Louis market.

Store names include Polo ralph Laurent Factory Store, Restoration Hardware, Abercrombie & Fitch Outlet, Abercrombie kids, 2b bebe Outlet, Lucky Brand Outlet, Brooks Brothers Factory Store and many other well-known names.

New York -- The Dump Furniture Store plans to open a 134,000-sq.-ft. outlet in Lombard, Ill. and a 215,000-sq.-ft. warehouse in Addison, Ill. over the summer.

With 11 locations, the big-box retailer offers discounted famous-name furniture in stores open only on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

By Jake Weatherly, [email protected]

BOCA RATON, Fla. — Vitacost.com, a leading online retailer of health and wellness products, has appointed Chris Cavalline to the newly created position of CMO. 

Cavalline is a 25-year retail industry veteran, and was most recently SVP of merchandising and e-commerce at Kohl's Department Stores. Previously, Cavalline held senior leadership positions at Macy's, Inc. and May department stores. He earned a B.S. in physics and civil engineering from Washington and Lee University.