eCommerce

Toys “R” Us has appointed Campbell Lennox as managing director of the company’s Australia unit, effective May 26. Lennox will report to Monika Merz, president, Toys “R” Us, Asia Pacific.
 
Lennox joins the company with more than 20 years of retail and management experience, including a series of roles of increasing responsibility in operations and merchandising. He most recently served as GM, merchandise operations for Harvey Norman, an omnichannel retailer, incorporating an integrated retail, franchise, property and digital platform.

Stein Mart has named Sara Meza as director of e-commerce. Although Meza came on board in April — after a 12-year tenure at Belk where she led the original launch of the retailer’s website business — the company made the announcement in conjunction with solid first-quarter results.

Net income for the quarter decreased to $14.1 million, or $0.31 per diluted share, from a net income of $14.7 million, or $0.33 per diluted share in 2013.

Wayne, N.J. -- Toys “R” Us announced the appointment of Campbell Lennox as managing director, Toys “R” Us, Australia, effective May 26.

Lennox will oversee all operations and business activities for the company’s 34 store locations and e-commerce site, as well as provide leadership for the more than 1,700 employees throughout the country. His responsibilities will include marketing, merchandising, store operations and customer service excellence.

York, Pa. – Adverse weather that lasted longer into the first quarter of fiscal 2014 than anticipated bit into income and sales at The Bon-Ton Stores Inc. Net loss grew to $31.5 million from $26.6 million a year earlier, and net sales dropped 6% to $607.46 million from $647.9 million.

Same-store sales declined 5.8%. In addition to weather, the extinguishment of mortgage and senior note redemption debt also contributed to net loss growth.

On the heels of a mostly disappointing 2013 earnings season, many U.S. brick-and-mortar retailers will focus on building out their online presence for growth, according to Moody’s Investor Service’s new report, “Brick-and-Mortar Continues to March Online,” by Charlie O’Shea, VP – senior analyst, Moody’s.

Here are five highlights from the study:

Sears plans to close at least 80 stores this year after widening its loss in the first quarter of fiscal 2014.

Although same-store sales increased 0.2% for the quarter, the company’s net loss climbed to $402 million from $279 million in the prior-year quarter. Revenues declined 7% to $7.9 billion, from $8.5 billion in the prior-year quarter.

Hoffman Estates, Ill. – Sears Holdings Corp. on Thursday said it plans to close at least 80 stores this year as the retailer continues to deal with mounting losses. The retailer reported that its fiscal first quarter net loss grew to $402 million, from $279 million in the prior year first quarter.

Amazon.com took second place overall and was the highest-ranked retailer in the 2014 Temkin Customer Service Ratings, which rates 233 companies across 19 industries with 10,000 U.S. consumers. Other retailers in the top 12 include Chick-fil-A, Publix, H-E-B, Starbucks, Costco, QVC, and Trader Joe's.

Retailers with the most improvement over last year's ratings are Apple Store, KFC, and Food Lion. Ace Hardware and Staples saw their Temkin Customer Service Ratings fall by 15 points or more between 2013 and 2014: No retailers placed at the bottom of the rankings.