Sales & Marketing

Framingham, Mass. – Staples, Inc. is launching a new technology trade-in program. Staples already recycles electronic office products for free and now small businesses and consumers can trade-in a variety of used technology devices for Staples eCash Cards, which can be used in Staples stores or on Staples.com.

New York -- Eminence Capital, which owns 4.9% of the common stock of Jos. A. Bank Clothiers and has been pushing for a deal between the retailer and rival Men’s Wearhouse, has nominated two industry veterans for election as directors to the board at Jos. A. Bank's annual meeting. The nominees include: Bruce J. Klatsky, former chairman of Phillips-Van Heusen Corporation, a position he held from 1994 until June 2007, and Norman S. Matthews, former president of Federated Department Stores and active and former board member of other retail and consumer companies.

Perhaps no single brand had a holiday season quite as rocky as Sears. When the retailer announced a string of bad news on Jan. 9, shares of Sears Holding Corp. (which includes both Sears and Kmart) went through the floor. Holiday sales at Sears stores were down 9.2% in the nine weeks prior to Jan. 6, a brutal figure when you consider that overall retail sales were up slightly over the holidays (which I’ll discuss more in my next column).

Digital coupon use is at an all-time high with more than 2 million Meijer shoppers now subscribed to the free mPerks program, and Meijer has made significant investments to make digital savings easier for its customers.  

The Grand Rapids, Mich.-based retailer now has free Wi-Fi capability in all its stores, making it easier for customers to access their mPerks accounts and the Meijer mobile app, freeing up their smartphone data plans for other uses.

Cincinnati – The Kroger Co. has promoted two veteran company executives. Jay Cummins has been named president of the Smith's Food and Drug Stores division and Joe Fey has been named president of Kroger's Mid-Atlantic division.

Cummins, 62, has been serving as president of Kroger's Mid-Atlantic division. He succeeds Mark Tuffin, who was named senior VP of retail divisions in December 2013.

St. Petersburg, Fla. — Forge Real Estate Partners III, co-sponsored by the Sembler Company and Forge Capital, has formed a joint venture with East Coast Acquisitions and acquired Tarrymore Square in North Raleigh, N.C.

Tarrymore Square is a 256,805-sq.-ft. shopping center with a 65% occupancy rate. Existing tenants include Walgreens, Rugged Warehouse, Surplus Warehouse, Rainbow Fashions, Rent-A-Center and Miller-Motte Technical College.

Staples is launching a new technology trade-in program. Staples already recycles electronic office products for free and now small businesses and consumers can trade-in a variety of used technology devices for Staples eCash Cards, which can be used in Staples stores or on Staples.com.

Austin, Texas - Whole Foods Market and Pivot, Participant Media’s TV network targeting Millennials, are launching the television series "Dark Rye.” The first episode, hosted by Kirk Lombard, a Bay Area fisherman and forager, airs Jan. 22.

Dark Rye was created as an online magazine by Whole Foods Market in 2012 and explores the realms of food, health, sustainability, design, technology and social enterprise.