Sales & Marketing

Peoria, Ill. — AMC Theatres plans to open a new 40,000-sq.-ft. eight-screen theater complex at the Streets of St. Charles, a 400,000-sq.-ft. mixed-use project in the St. Louis metropolitan area.

Slated to open in the fall of 2014, AMC will join a mix of retail, restaurant and office tenants. Restaurants include Tucanos Brazilian Grill, Prasino and Five Guys Burgers & Fries. Bar Louie plans to open next spring.

Austin, Texas – Whole Foods Market disappointed Wall Street analysts with its fourth quarter results despite posting increases in net income, sales and same-store sales. During the fourth quarter of fiscal 2013, Whole Foods posted net income of $121 million, up 7% from $113 million in the same quarter a year earlier.

A pricing glitch on Walmart.com this week generated enormous publicity and did more to promote the retailer’s e-commerce business in advance of the holiday season than any of its other marketing efforts.

Washington, D.C. -- Retailers, advertisers and marketers called on Congress today to involve the Federal Trade Commission in efforts to eliminate frivolous patent lawsuits, saying vague letters sent out by “patent trolls” demanding licensing fees amount to unfair and deceptive practices. Patent trolls are companies formed to develop potential patent-infringement lawsuits without manufacturing their own products.

Walmart split with its Indian joint venture partner of seven years recently and the smart folks at the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School of Business put the situation in perspective and offered insight into future possibilities for a market that still boasts more than 1 billion potential consumers and promising long-term prospects.

Austin, Texas - Multichannel selling is a reality for a majority of small-to-medium sized retailers, but payment processing capabilities lag far behind. According to a new research study commissioned by SecureNet Payment Systems and conducted in partnership with First Annapolis Consulting, more than 60% of retailers surveyed already accept payments in more than one channel, but are not well served by the payments industry today.

Englewood, Colo. -- Blockbuster L.L.C., will end its retail and by mail DVD distribution operations by early January 2014. The company will close its approximately 300 remaining U.S.-based retail stores, as well as its distribution centers.

Whole Food’s said it gained market share during the third quarter, but the 5.9% same store sales increase the company reported fell short of expectations and the company tempered its outlook for 2014.