Sales & Marketing

Washington, D.C. -- U.S. retail e-commerce sales for second quarter 2013, adjusted for seasonal variation, but not for price changes, totaled $64.8 billion, an increase of 4.9% from first quarter 2013. According to estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau, this figure represented an 18.4% jump from U.S. commerce sales in second quarter 2012.

E-commerce sales in the second quarter of 2013 accounted for 5.8% of total U.S. retail sales of close to $1.13 trillion. Total retail sales grew 0.9% quarter-over-quarter and 4.7% year-over-year.

LAS VEGAS — SMTP, Inc., a global provider of email delivery services, has appointed Jon Strimling as CEO of the company.

"Jon is a proven executive and entrepreneur, with a track record of driving revenue and earnings growth," stated Semyon Dukach, chairman of SMTP. "His deep experience in operations, marketing and e-commerce will prove invaluable as he leads SMTP through its next phase of growth."

Washington, D.C. -- The National Retail Federation and the Retail Association of Nevada hosted Rep. Mark Amodei, R-Nev., at a retail roundtable discussion. More than a dozen community retailers and small business owners gathered to address the industry’s challenges and public policy priorities.

Walmart lowered its full year profit forecast early Thursday after reporting weaker that expected second quarter same store sales at its U.S. division and suggested global economic conditions remain challenging.

Total company net sales increased 2.8% to $116.7 billion on a constant currency basis and profits increased 1.3% to $4.1 billion while earnings per share grew 5.1% to $1.24. That was a penny below the consensus forecast of analysts, although earnings per share included a charge related to international operations that reduced earnings by a penny.

New York -- Sporting goods retailer Sportsman’s Wearhouse is deploying a new tool from Honeywell’s Honeywell Scanning and Mobility group in time for the holiday shopping season. The chain will equip workers in its 46 stores with Honeywell’s new Captuvo SL22 for iPod Touch mobile digital devices.

SEATTLE — Despite reporting a net income of $184 million for the second quarter, ended Aug. 3, up from $156 million in the year-ago period, Nordstrom cut its yearly forecast, citing softer-than-anticipated sales trends.

Nordstrom said revenue rose 6.4% % to $3.1 billion, short of the $3.29 billion Wall Street expected. Total company same-store sales increased 4.4%.

While the dust continues to settle from Walmart’s disappointing showing in the second quarter, it is worth noting positive developments and intriguing initiatives in key areas that got lost in the shuffle.