Retail

Seattle – Starbucks Corp. is expanding its mobile order and payment service to about 3,400 stores in 21 new states in the southern and central United States. The company launched mobile order and payment feature as a pilot in Portland, Ore. in Dec. 2014.

The mobile payment feature allows Starbucks mobile app users to place their order in advance and pick it up at a selected Starbucks location. It is integrated into the Starbucks app and loyalty program.

On the heels of opening its 12,000th store, Dollar General has named five executives to key leadership positions within its merchandising and supply chain organizations.

The company announced internal promotions in both its merchandising and global supply chain functions as the company enhances its management team. The following promotions are effective immediately:

Philadelphia — Except for a momentary spike during the 2014 holiday season, conversion and add-to-cart rates have been dropping steadily year-over-year. However, according to the global Ecommerce Quarterly report from Monetate, personalized, relevant product recommendations help brands avoid this issue.

Shopko is continuing on its growth path with the opening of 15 new Shopko Hometown stores across eight states this July.

The new locations join 20 stores Shopko already opened earlier this year and more than 15 additional stores the company plans to open in October.

Green Bay, Wisc. — Shopko continues to expand, with the opening of 15 Shopko Hometown stores across eight states this July.  The  new locations join 20 stores Shopko opened earlier this year and more than 15 additional stores the company plans to open in October.  

Wayne, N.J. — Toys ‘R Us Inc. has opened a new distribution center in Saint-Fargeau-Ponthierry, France to support the company's expanding e-commerce business throughout France and in select sections of Europe. The 550,000-sq.-ft. facility will service retail distribution to the country's 48 store locations and e-commerce operations throughout France.

Phoenix — Vestar announced the signing of Forever 21’s newest concept store, F21 red, at Tempe Marketplace, in Tempe, Ariz. The 1,000-sq.-ft. store, the first F21 in Arizona, will open this fall.

The F21 red brand will offer a larger merchandise selection and lower prices of the trendy fashion forward styles for young men and women than the typical Forever 21 store.

New York — Gap stores have failed to keep up with the fashion tastes of millennial shoppers, who have a much different fashion sense than the generation before them, according to the Washington Post. Read the full story here.