Retail

Toronto -- Joe Fresh, the Canadian value-priced apparel brand, has opened its first permanent U.S. store, in Bridgewater Mall, Bridgewater, N.J., and another in Roosevelt Field Mall, Garden City, N.Y. The company will make its New York City debut, in Manhattan’s Flat Iron District, on Nov.3. A second store will open in spring, on Fifth Ave.

In addition, the retailer is opening two Joe Fresh Holiday Fashion pop-up stores in Manhattan. (This past summer, the brand operated a summer pop-up in East Hampton, N.Y.)

PLANO, Texas — JCPenney and Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, the nation's first and largest non-profit, nonpartisan organization for veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, announced that they are joining forces to provide America's newest generation of military veterans with more than $1 million in apparel and footwear to start new civilian wardrobes. 

New York City -- Wal-Mart Stores is cutting back healthcare coverage for new part-time workers and significantly raising premiums for many new full-time associates, the New York Times reported. It is a major turnaround for the retailer which, a few years back, under heavy criticism that many of its 1.4 million workers could not afford or did not qualify for coverage, expanded coverage for employees and their families. The move generated of flurry of positive publicity.

Boca Raton, Fla. -- Office Depot’s global headquarters in Boca Raton, Fla., has earned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Energy Star certification. The certification signifies that the building performs in the top 25% of similar facilities nationwide for energy efficiency and meets strict energy efficiency performance levels set by the EPA.

NEW YORK — Barnes & Noble has announced that Joseph Lombardi, CFO, has resigned from his current position, but will remain a non-officer employee until mid-2012 to assist in the transition as the company undertakes an executive search for a new CFO. The company also announced the appointment of Allen Lindstrom, VP corporate controller, to interim CFO until a replacement is named. 

New York City -- British fashion retailer L.K.Bennett, opened its third U.S. boutique, at The Shops at Riverside in Hackensack, N. J.

“We have over 100 stores in the UK. now — and in the long term weʼd like to have the same number of stores in the U.S.,” said Robert Bensoussan, CEO London.

BOCA RATON, Fla. — Office Depot announced that the company’s global headquarters, located in Boca Raton, Fla., has earned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Energy Star certification. The certification signifies that the building performs in the top 25% of similar facilities nationwide for energy efficiency and meets strict energy efficiency performance levels set by the EPA, Office Depot reported.

Under most circumstances, Walmart and Target are like oil and water, but when the issue is fighting retail crime even fierce competitors see the wisdom of coming together to battle a common enemy.

Such is the case with retail theft, and earlier this week the Retail Industry Leaders Association welcomed a select group of senior level asset protection executives, product manufacturers and academic researchers to the 2011 Asset Protection Leaders Council (APLC) meeting in Minneapolis to launch the APLC’s process driven shrink initiative.