Supply Chain & Merchandising

Advance Auto Parks turned in a disappointing performance in its first quarter.   The chain reported earnings of $1.46 per share, down from $2.16 per share in the year-ago period. Adjusted EPS was $1.60, far short of the $2.16 per share FactSet consensus.   

Chico's FAS gave a downbeat outlook amid first quarter earnings and sales that missed Wall Street estimates.    The women's apparel retailer reported net income of $33.6 million, or $0.26 per diluted share, in the period ended April 30, compared to net income of $31.1 million, or $0.23 per diluted share, in the year-ago period. Analysts had estimated earnings per share of 29 cents for the quarter.  

A tough February couldn't keep Tilly's down, which reported better-than-expected results for its first quarter.    The teen apparel and footwear retailer narrowed its loss in the first quarter to $161,000, or 1 cent a share, compared with a net loss of $2.7 million, or 10 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Its results were better than expected.    Net sales inched up 0.6% to $120.9 million, better easily beating the Street. Same-store sales rose 0.6%.  

CBRE’s Melina Cordero, an expert in consumer behavior, has produced a series of videos to instruct brick-and-mortar retailers in how to get more results at the point-of-sale.   The first three of these can be viewed on CBRE’s new retail innovation website.   

Sears Holdings Corp. has bought itself a little more time with regard to the maturity of some debt. It also has offloaded some of pension liability.      The retailer announced on Tuesday it has reached an agreement to repay $100 million of its secured $500 million loan facility at its original maturity in July, and extend the remaining amount until January 2018. The agreement includes an option to extend the maturity for an additional six months, to July 2018.  

Footwear retailer DSW Inc. fell short on earnings in its first quarter, even as it topped sales estimates.   Net income fell to $23 million, or 28 cents per share, below analyst expectations, from $30.0 million, or 36 cents a share, in the year-ago period. The company incurred pre-tax charges of $4.1 million, related to its acquisition of Ebuys, restructuring costs and foreign exchange loss assumed in the process of pre-funding the upcoming Town Shoes acquisition.   

Shoe Palace is moving into the cloud to enhance its omnichannel operations.   A preferred Nike retailer, Shoe Palace is known for its high-end athletic footwear and apparel, and top-notch customer service. The family-run business opened its first store in San Jose, California in 1993. Today, the company operates 118 stores nationwide, and an e-commerce site.   

Walmart is expanding—and updating—its footprint in the Sunshine State.   The retailer will open nine new stores across Florida in its current fiscal year, creating more than 800 jobs, and also execute a multi-million-dollar capital investment plan by remodeling more than 40 locations across the state. Walmart currently operates 375 stores in Florida.