Retail

Sears Canada is losing another top executive who has been on the job for less than a year.   The retailer announced that Carrie Kirkman is leaving her role as president and chief merchant to transition to an “advisory role.” In a statement, the company said Kirkman had been “brought aboard to focus on strategic brand partner development,” and that new brands will debut this fall. Kirkman will reportedly leave her post after July 30.  

Consumers know what they want: seamless shopping between online and offline. But they are worried about sharing the data that allows retailers to fully implement it.   

Dollar General has purchased 41 former Walmart Express locations across 11 states in a move designed to allow the discounter to expand its fresh meat and produce offerings.   Dollar General said it expects to relocate 40 existing Dollar General stores into the purchased sites by October 2016. It will also enter one new market.   Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.  

Stroll by the new Combatant Gentlemen store in Santa Monica, California, and you might think it’s an outfitter of Bondian self-defense gear for bespoke men in turbulent times. In fact, it’s a ready-to-wear suit store for young corporate commandos hoping to pass muster in boardrooms on meager salaries. (Suits range from $165 to around $320.) It’s also the first permanent brick-and-mortar outpost of the vertically-integrated, fast-growing online menswear brand, which was founded in 2012.   

The recent growth of the Internet of Things (IoT) has brought the elusive concept of “frictionless retail” closer than ever before. By digitizing business processes through connecting smart devices and sensors at the network’s edge and applying advanced analytics, retailers can reduce or eliminate points of friction that negatively impact customer experience, sales or operational efficiency.   

Supervalu Inc. on Wednesday lower-than-expected profit for the first quarter amid ongoing efforts to spin off its Save-A-Lot division.   The supermarket operator reported a profit a profit of $46 million for the quarter, down from $61 million, in the year-ago period. Adjusted for charges related to the potential separation of Save-A-Lot and other factors, earnings declined to $53 million from $65 million last year.   Supervalu’s net revenue fell 3.9% to $5.20 billion.  

Online marketing is sparking radical changes — and growth — in shopper marketing.   That’s according to a new report from the ANA (Association of National Advertisers), conducted in partnership with market research firm GfK, which finds that  shopper marketing, long considered an in-store discipline, is evolving into an omnichannel approach designed to reach shoppers at all touchpoints.