eCommerce

City of Commerce, Calif. -- Discounter 99 Cents Only Stores reported Wednesday that profit for the second quarter rose 17% to $15.1 million, compared with $12.9 million a year earlier.

Revenue rose 8.8% to $363 million, beating analysts’ expected $357.3 million. Same-store sales increased 6.7%.

By Dan Pahomi and Peter Leith, [email protected]

Promotions are a key element in any retailer’s arsenal of tools to help drive customer traffic. They are especially important during the holiday season. And, in an economy still fraught with uncertainty, some customers are hardwired only to purchase products on sale. Promotions are crucial for retailers to communicate when new products are available and when they are offering discounts for the items their shoppers want to buy.

CINCINNATI — Macy's Inc. reported that earnings were 32 cents per diluted share for the third quarter of 2011, ended Oct. 29, compared with earnings of 2 cents per diluted share in last year's third quarter, or 8 cents per diluted share in last year's third quarter excluding expenses of 6 cents per share associated with the repurchase of debt.

SAN BRUNO, Calif. — Walmart is looking to offer shoppers ways to access Walmart both in-store and online with the launch of new mobile applications for iPhone and iPad devices.

Walmart said the free apps are the first of several mobile products to be rolled out from the recently formed @WalmartLabs group under Walmart's global e-commerce unit.

The updated iPhone app includes such new features as:

• Voice: Users can add items to shopping list by speaking, typing or scanning bar codes;

PALO ALTO, Calif. — Old Navy has become the latest retailer to partner with Shopkick, a shopping mobile app that rewards shoppers for walking into stores. Customers who have the shopkick app on their smartphones will be able to receive walk-in rewards at any of Old Navy's nearly 1,000 U.S. locations, Shopkick reported. To celebrate, Old Navy will offer $10 off of a $40 purchase plus 150 Shopkick reward points for the partnership's first weekend (Nov.

SEATTLE — Amazon.com announced that it supports the federal bill introduced this morning by United States Senators Enzi, Durbin, and Alexander, that would create a constitutional framework for collecting sales tax online.

LOS ANGELES — Retailers would be wise to focus more of their efforts on Cyber Monday this year, at least according to new research from IBISWorld, which found that Cyber Monday sales are expected to increase 12.4%. The firm expects Black Friday sales will only see marginal growth as consumers continue to move away from brick-and-mortar shopping. 

New York City -- A report released Wednesday by the Real Estate Board of New York found that New York City’s retail market is continuing to perform well in its traditionally strong retail corridors and primarily residential neighborhoods.

New York City -- The Conference Board reported Wednesday that U.S. households are expected to spend an average of $497 on gifts this holiday season. Just 7% of consumers said they plan to spend more on holiday gifts this year, while approximately 40% plan on spending less than last year.

Ontario, Calif. -- Last Call by Neiman Marcus will open a first-to-market store in May 2012 at Ontario Mills, a Simon-owned property that is the largest outlet and value retail shopping destination in California with more than 200 stores.