Retail

New York -- Saks Inc. on Monday reported a worse than expected second-quarter loss amid disappointing sales of shoes and handbags. 

Saks, which last month reached a deal to be acquired by Canada's Hudson's Bay Co., had a net loss of $19.6 million for the quarter ended Aug. 3, compared with a net loss of $12.3 million a year earlier.

Overall sales rose 0.5% to $707.8 million for the quarter. Same-store sales rose 1.5%, below the 4.5% increase analysts had expected.

NEW YORK — Canadian shoppers aren’t wowed by Target Corp., according to a customer-satisfaction rating survey by Forum Research. As reported in The Globe and Mail, the survey ranked Target at the bottom of a list of major retailers operating in Canada. (Satisfaction as measured by the survey relates to service, prices and/or merchandise offering.)

Over all, Target scored a mean 2.7 out of 4, compared with Costco’s 3.5, Wal-Mart’s 3.1 and a 3.2 average.

PHILADELPHIA — A favorable customer response to product offerings at Urban Outfitters contributed to the retailer’s net income of $76 million for the three months ended July 31.

Total company net sales for the second quarter increased 12% to a record $759 million. Same-store sales, including the company’s direct-to-consumer channel, increased 9%.

Comparable retail segment net sales increased 38% at Free People, 9% at Anthropologie and 5% at Urban Outfitters. Wholesale segment net sales rose 17%.

New York -- Facebook hired its first-ever chief marketing officer, Gary Briggs, former marketing chief at Google's Motorola Mobility. He replaces Eric Antonow, VP-product marketing, who has been directing the social network’s marketing efforts since 2010.

While second quarter sales were less than expected, one area where Walmart exceeded plan was expenses incurred related to Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and compliance matters.

The company said it spent $82 million on efforts in those areas compared to the $65 million to $70 million it though it would spend at the start of the year. Expenses during the first half of the year totaled $155 million.

Washington, D.C. -- The National Retail Federation and the Retail Association of Nevada hosted Rep. Mark Amodei, R-Nev., at a retail roundtable discussion. More than a dozen community retailers and small business owners gathered to address the industry’s challenges and public policy priorities.

New York -- Wall Street is reacting to Jos. A. Bank’s news that it is cutting its second-quarter profit and sales outlook, sending shares spiraling downward.

Company CEO R. Neal Black said, “While our total sales declined in Q2, we achieved stability in our gross profit margin rate. Customers did not respond as well to some of our highly promotional, high sales volume marketing campaigns as they did in the prior year.”

Total sales declined 11% in the second quarter.

Evanston, Ill. — Three new tenants are coming to the 212,373-sq.-ft. Evanston Plaza on Chicago’s North Shore, according to Mid-America Asset Management Inc. www.midamericagrp.com, the exclusive representative of the center.

DaVita, a division of DaVita HealthCare Partners Inc., signed a lease for 10,000 sq. ft. and plans to open a kidney dialysis center in the fall of 2013. The U.S. Army & Marines lease 2,424 sq. ft. for a recruitment center. Papa Romeo’s Pizza has taken 1,464 sq. ft.