Sales & Marketing

San Francisco -- Gap Inc. announced it has signed agreements to open Old Navy stores in six Middle Eastern countries with franchisees Fawaz A. Alhokair & Co. and Azadea beginning spring 2015. The first markets include U.A.E., Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.   This is the second franchise market expansion for Old Navy. In March of this year, the brand opened its first franchise-operated stores in the Philippines.   

Watsonville, Calif. –- A tax valuation allowance related to its Canadian operations helped reduce net income at West Marine Inc. to $4.9 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2014, down 24% from $6.5 million in the same period the prior fiscal year. Net revenues were $196.5 million, a 2% jump from $193.4 million, and same-store sales rose 0.6%.  

Sidney, Neb. –- Cabela’s Inc. missed Wall Street estimates for earnings and revenue in the third quarter of fiscal 2014. Net income rose 8% to $53.8 million from $49.9 million, dampened by provisions for income taxes.   The retailer said it plans to open 13-15 stores per year for the next several years.  

Dallas -- Cypress Equities companies announced that its affiliated Cypress Acquisition Partners Retail Fund has closed on the acquisition of The Corner Shopping Center in Dallas. The project is a community shopping center, located on the northeast corner of Walnut Hill and the US-75 Central Expressway.   

West Chester, Penn. –- QVC Inc. has promoted Mary Campbell to the position of executive VP, US commerce platforms. Sheis responsible for guiding the strategic direction of the company's TV, web, mobile, tablet and social while translating the QVC brand across all platforms to drive customer engagement and e-commerce sales.   Since joining QVC in 1991, Campbell has held leadership roles across the business, including merchandising, planning and commerce platforms.

By Mike Johnson    Bentonville, Ark. -- Wal-Mart Stores continues to expand its health care offerings with the announcement that its Sam's Club division will launch a private health insurance exchange for its small business members. Sam’s Club is partnering with insurance giant Aetna on the initiative.   

South Gate, Calif. -- Construction on the Nadel-designed Azalea Regional Shopping Center is now complete, bringing a new 32-acre retail hub to the city of South Gate, Calif. Located at 4635 Firestone Blvd., and owned by Primestor Development, Inc., the project includes more than 370,000 sq. ft. of retail space and 37 stores.