eCommerce

San Francisco -- Gap Inc. announced Monday that it will introduce the Gap brand to Paraguay and Hungary through new agreements with existing franchise partners: Neutral for Paraguay and Gottex Brands for Hungary. The first Gap store will open later this year in Paraguay, joining Neutral’s 2012 Gap launch in Uruguay. And, in Hungary, Gottex Brands will open two Gap stores in Budapest. A specific timeline wasn’t released.

Atlanta -- Results of research released Monday by comScore and UPS showed that the more options an online consumer has, the more loyal and dedicated she may be. In fact, integrating social and mobile media, as well as providing shipping options and flexible returns, can drive brand loyalty as consumers seek out more choices and convenience when shopping online.

Los Angeles -- Sport Chalet is using technology to reach out to high school teams and their fans. A new portal on the sporting goods and apparel retailer’s e-commerce site is specifically designed to allow the creation of team-focused online retail hubs. Schools can create their own logo design to brand each individual hub and also offer customized goods and shipping options, including direct shipment to customer homes as well as pick-up at a local Sport Chalet store or at the school. The portal is built on the KitOrder specialty team e-commerce platform.

Chicago -- Online shopping cart recovery provider SeeWhy announced that The Land of Nod – a Crate & Barrel multichannel banner that sells children’s furniture, bedding, and accessories – has deployed SeeWhy’s Conversion Manager Software as a Service (SaaS).  

The turnkey e-commerce solution automates remarketing, boosts conversion and maximizes ROI by triggering personal marketing campaigns in real time based on a shopper’s everyday website browsing behavior.

Indianpolis -- Simon Property Group and McArthurGlen Group announced an agreement to form a joint venture through which SPG will invest in McArthurGlen, the leader in upscale, European designer outlets. 

Under the agreement, SPG will acquire an ownership interest in six properties and will also become a partner in McArthurGlen's property management and development company.  Included assets are in Austria, Italy, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Canada.

Tokyo -- A Sunday report by Bloomberg said that 7-Eleven parent Seven & I Holdings Co. is planning more acquisitions here and may more than double the number of c-store stores it operates in North America.

The company “could increase our store number to 20,000 or even 30,000 [in North America],” chairman Toshifumi Suzuki told Bloomberg in an interview.  7-Eleven currently has more than 8,000 convenience stores in North America.

No time-frame for the planned expansion has been defined.

New York -- Tiffany & Co. has announced plans to open a two-level store in Moscow’s GUM luxury department store, located in Red Square. At about 4,520 sq. ft., the new store is Tiffany’s first wholly owned retail business in Russia, and is expected to open in the first quarter of 2014.

“Establishing a presence at this preeminent department store is a milestone in our growth strategy as a leading global luxury brand and underscores the importance of the Russian market,” said Frederic Cumenal, executive VP Tiffany & Co.

WESTBOROUGH, Mass. — Footwear and accessories manufacturer Steve Madden is looking to Micros Systems, a provider of IT solutions for the retail and hospitality industries, to help it reinvigorate its e-commerce presence and improve its order management, customer relationship management and cloud point-of-service solutions.

Steve Madden will leverage Micros’ omnichannel product suite to increase traffic and conversion in both its online and mobile channels. 

LOS ANGELES — Specialty sporting goods retailer Sport Chalet is positioning itself as a one-stop shop for school-based fan apparel, field gear and fundraising needs with new online order site and streamlined solution The Sport Chalet Team Site.

Chaminade College Prep, Esperanza High School, Tesoro High School, Triton Touch Down Club and Torrey Pines High School are among early Team Site adopters.

CHICAGO — Retail technology company ShopperTrak has acquired RapidBlue Solutions Oy, a leading European provider of retail data and analytics.