Sales & Marketing

Chain Store Age announced the selection of the Advisory Board for SPECS/2018, the annual retail event produced by CSA and attended by retail and food-service executives who plan, design, build, and maintain stores and restaurants nationwide.     Now in its 54th year, SPECS will host its 2018 conference in Dallas, at the Gaylord Texan, March 18-20. The event will focus on what’s next, and what is shaping the future of physical retail.  

PGA Tour Superstore is betting on Las Vegas.   The retailer has signed a lease to open its first store in the Las Vegas market, a 30,000-sq.-ft. space in downtown Summerlin.   The location, expected to open later this year, is the company's 31st store. It will be staffed with PGA teaching professionals, have five state-of-the-art swing simulators, multiple practice hitting bays, an expansive putting green and a junior putting green along with an in-house club-making and repair facility.

The address of Under Armour’s new brand house in Detroit — 1201 Woodward Avenue — is an historic one in retail. There, in 1917, S.S. Kresge, the forerunner of Kmart, opened its first Detroit “five-and-dime.” The Kresge Building figures in recent retail history, too, as one of the bloc of buildings purchased by Quicken Loans founder Dan Gilbert in his quest to revitalize Detroit’s blighted downtown.  

Costco Wholesale Corp. turned in a winning performance in July, fueled by strong traffic trends.   The company reported that its net sales in July rose 8.8% to $9.41 billion, compared to $8.65 billion during the similar period last year. Total company same-store sales rose 6.2%, with a 6.0% increase in the U.S. Excluding the impacts from changes in gasoline prices and foreign exchange, total same-store sales rose 5.3%, and 5.5% in the U.S.   

The ax has fallen at Bed, Bath & Beyond as part of the realignment of its .store management structure.    The retailer said it has initiated in approximately half of its U.S. Bed Bath & Beyond stores and about a dozen of its buybuy Baby stores a limited realignment of its store management organization that will result in the elimination of about 880 department and assistant store manager positions.   

Party City topped earnings estimates for its second quarter and said it is on track to deliver its full year total revenue and earnings guidance.    The party supplies retailer and wholesaler reported net income of $25.0 million in the quarter, compared to $22.5 million in the year-ago period. Earnings, adjusted for non-recurring costs, came to 28 cents per share, topping Wall Street expectations  

Uniqlo will be popping up at airports and malls across the nation — but not through retail storefronts.   Putting a new spin on the term “fast fashion,” the Japanese retailer is launching 6-ft.-high vending machines that will enable customers to purchase T-shirts and lightweight down jackets, the Wall Street Journal reported. Merchandise is packaged in boxes and cans.  

Before we completely move on from last month’s Amazon Prime Day, it’s important to understand why retail brands once again braced themselves to lose customers and online sales when they had a whole year to do things differently.