Sales & Marketing

Burlington, N.J. -- Burlington Stores announced that Thomas A. Kingsbury, the company’s CEO and president, has been unanimously elected as chairman of the board.

“We are excited to elect Tom to chair the board of directors of Burlington Stores,” the board said in a statement. “He has done an outstanding job as CEO since he joined the company in 2008. The growth of the business has been impressive under Tom’s leadership and we look forward to this continuing under Tom’s expanded role as chairman and CEO.”

Finance executive Sven Wehrwein is the newest member of the Quantum Retail Technology board of directors.

The Minneapolis-based retail technology company said Wehrwein’s addition to the board brings growth expertise and knowledge of corporate finance.

Energizer Household Products’ Lou Martire, VP trade development, was honored Saturday evening with the 2014 GMDC Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his contributions to the industry.

“This award was developed to really honor and acknowledge people who make a real difference in our industry,” said Bill Anderson, GMDC chairman and group VP at H-E-B. “They’re just very, very special people.”

By Bill Schild

New York -- Thirty-One Gifts, one of the nation’s largest direct-selling companies, announced the successful go-live of TXT Maple Lake’s integrated retail planning solution. The software is helping Thirty-One Gifts manage the whole spectrum of in-season planning processes, including inventory management and open-to-buy.

Thirty-One Gifts offers an array of lifestyle products, most of which can be personalized.

Same-store sales declined again last year at Fairway Market and the company reported a record loss, but a new same-day delivery initiative with Google Express in Manhattan offers potential for omnichannel growth.
 

Charlottesville, Va. — Firehouse Subs has signed a 2,264-sq.-ft. lease for its first location in Charlottesville, Virginia — at 100 Shoppers World Court.

Divaris Real Estate’s Richmond, Virginia, office represented Firehouse Subs in the transaction. Divaris (www.divaris.com) has represented Firehouse in the site selection and lease negotiations for the majority of its Hampton Roads sites and for several locations in the greater Richmond area.

Exiting Canada may have taken a bite out of Big Lots’ profits in the first quarter, but the company still saw net and comparable-store sales increase.

Net sales for the quarter increased 1.1% to $1.28 billion, compared to net sales from continuing U.S. operations of $1.26 billion for the same period last year. Comparable-store sales for stores open at least 15 months increased 0.9% for the quarter.