Sales & Marketing

Baltimore -- Under Armour has opened its largest store to date, on Michigan Avenue in Chicago. With nearly 30,000 sq. ft. of retail space, the store is designed to provide an immersive and interactive brand experience.  It features the latest in video and digital technology, and also includes a section dedicated to wearable fitness devices.  And for a local feel, a large wall is covered in ivy, inspired by the Wrigley Field ivy.
 

Retailers could soon be having to find space on the shelf for a new Lay’s chip as the brand continues its third year of crowd-sourced product development.

PepsiCo's Frito-Lay division has announced a last call for submissions in its search for the next great potato chip flavor as part of the Lay's "Do Us A Flavor" contest. Fans have until March 30 to submit flavor ideas for the chance to win a $1 million grand prize.

Philadelphia – Net income fell at Urban Outfitters Inc. during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014, but still beat Wall Street expectations.

Urban Outfitters reported net income of $80.3 million, down 9% from $88.68 million the same quarter a year earlier.  Lower initial merchandise markups, increased markdowns and higher selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses all contributed to the decline.

Old Navy is turning to Yahoo and Tumblr with a new digital campaign directed at Millennials.

The campaign will highlight Old Navy’s newest apparel this spring, and feature tips from the brand’s style ambassadors, Emily Current and Meritt Elliott.

Norwalk, Conn. – Specialty retailer Dooney & Bourke has migrated its digital commerce operations from an on-premise solution to Demandware Commerce. The new site provides consumers with an enhanced online shopping experience, serving more than 40 countries in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific.

Staples is expanding its omnichannel capabilities with a new service that hopes to take advantage of small business growth in 2015.

According to a new Staples survey conducted by Research Now, the majority of small business leaders (87%) are optimistic about the year ahead. To help small business customers drive growth in 2015, Staples has launched Print-to-Store.

Grapevine, Texas – GameStop Corp. is launching a nationwide rollout of Apple Pay to its more than 4,200 U.S. video game stores this month. In GameStop stores, Apple Pay will work with the iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus and the upcoming Apple Watch.

New York -- New concepts remain the lifeblood of retail. Here are four currently in the works:

1. Ice hockey equipment manufacturer Bauer Hockey is throwing its puck in the retail arena. The company will open its first-ever store this summer, in the Boston suburb of Burlington, Massachusetts, followed by a second location in the fall, in the Minneapolis area.