Sales & Marketing

Houston -- Stage Stores said Thursday it narrowed its fiscal third-quarter net loss to $6.9 million, from $7.3 million in the year-earlier quarter.

Sales rose 2.1% to $331.9 million, from $324.9 million. The retailer is projecting that fourth-quarter same-store sales will rise 1% to 3%.

Bentonville, Ark. -- Wal-Mart Stores said Thursday it will open its first four stores in Washington, D.C., as part of the retailer’s effort to increase its urban expansion stride.

Wal-Mart said it plans to open the smaller-format urban stores in Washington, D.C. in late 2012, and said it has met little resistance from the area. The retailer said its poll of 800 locals found nearly three-quarters of Washingtonians favored Wal-Mart coming to the city.

Canton, Mass. -- Casual Male Retail Group said Thursday it swung to a profit of $0.3 million in the third quarter, compared with a loss of $1.4 million a year earlier.

Total sales edged up 1.4% to $89.9 million, and same-store sales increased 3%.

By Charles Nicholls, [email protected]

So what can you do during the crazy holiday season to reduce shopping cart abandonment? We thought we’d put together a holiday season checklist to help you keep your customers in the shopping cart this Christmas.

Before thinking about solutions to your shopping cart abandonment problem, it’s useful to look at the reasons why customers abandon. Based on this Forrester study, you can group the top five reasons into:

Bellevue, Wash. -- Touchscreen solution-provider Intava said Thursday that Ethan Allen has selected Intava Vector to power the retailer’s new touchscreens in participating Ethan Allen Design Centers nationwide.

The touch screens showcase Ethan Allen’s designs using interactive technology that combines photos, videos and details on all available furnishings and accessories. The technology gives consumers the ability to discover, select and visualize home interiors through intuitive interactions with the screen.

Amsterdam -- Royal Ahold NV reported Thursday that its third-quarter profit fell 4.4% to $315 million. The Dutch owner of the Stop & Shop and Giant supermarkets in the United States cited higher taxes for the performance decline.

Sales rose 11% to $9.12 billion.

U.S. same-store sales rose 1%. In the Netherlands, where Ahold operates the dominant Albert Heijn chain, same-store sales rose 4.5%.