Sales & Marketing

Dedham, Mass. – Reflexis has selected SoftLayer, an IBM company, to provide the infrastructure for its platform-as-a-service (PaaS) that will support retailers’ mobile and Web applications. Using Reflexis' PaaS, customers can implement mobile and web applications, which help retailers provide a seamless online-to-store shopping experience and provide a higher quality of customer engagement.

This year, the National Retail Federation has chosen Chicago’s Art Potash, owner of Potash Markets, as its first Retail Champion of the Year. Potash was recognized at NRF’s annual Retail Advocates summit on Capitol Hill.

San Jose, Calif. – EBay Inc. has released its 2014 diversity report. The online auction retailer, whose global workforce is 58% male and global workforce is 61% white, says it has made improvements in workforce diversity but still has progress to make.

EBay’s global leadership is 72%, while its global technology wotkforce is 76% male. The non-tech workforce is much more gender-diverse, with a slight 51% male majority.

Tewksbury, Mass. – The Attorney General’s offices of Massachusetts and New Hampshire have warned the Market Basket supermarket chain that it must follow the letter of the law in terminating any employees involved in walkouts and demonstrations that have been occurring since July 18. According to the Boston Globe, a joint letter to Market Basket co-CEOs Felicia Thornton and James Gooch from the two offices states that they are aware Market Basket may start replacing workers on Aug. 4.

As part of its efforts to generate traffic this back-to-school season, Office Depot is offering teachers in Florida a 20% discount off qualifying purchases during its Office Depot Rewards and MaxPerks Teacher Appreciation Events.

The events will be held at Office Depot and OfficeMax stores across Florida during select weeks this summer. In Florida, they’ll be taking place from August 2 through August 5.

Denton, Texas – Sally Beauty Holdings Inc. reported its net earnings declined 7% to $67.76 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2014, from $72.47 million in the same period the prior year. Net sales grew 4.1% to $949.27 million, from $912.1 million.

Expenses associated with an executive management transition and a previously disclosed data security breach in March 2014 contributed to Sally Beauty’s fall in net earnings.

Staples has teamed up with Fundable, a business crowdfunding platform, to launch a new contest called Crowd2Shelf, which invites entrepreneurs and small businesses to leverage crowdfunding for a chance to sell their products in Staples stores as well as online.

Kansas City, Kansas -- Bath & Body Works will open a 3,010-sq.-ft. store at designer outlet Legends Outlets Kansas City on Aug. 4.

Bath & Body Works will occupy the space next to Ann Taylor Factory Store by the Civic Courtyard Fountain.  

Other recent additions at Legends Outlets Kansas City include the only area Pizza Studio, Woody’s Automotive concept, Nail Envy spa and the Coach Factory pop-up location.