Supply Chain & Merchandising

Don’t be fooled by Costco’s tepid sales growth and first quarter profit decline. The company is accelerating expansion and pursuing some intriguing digital partnerships while members continue to renew at record rates.

While same-store sales at Dollar General and Dollar Tree have decelerated of late, that is not the case with Canada’s largest dollar store operator which recently opened its 1,000th location.

Four Silicon Valley veterans are looking to reinvent brick-and-mortar retailing with a first-of-its-kind experience built on an unusual business model.

In October, Walgreens announced plans to acquire Rite Aid in a deal that had been widely anticipated. The deal is most certainly going to reshape the retail market by creating a drug store giant with nearly 13,000 stores in the United States; as well, it foretells of the significant changes occurring in the healthcare market.

AutoZone says inventory efficiency improvements allowed the retailer to increase sales and profit in the first quarter.

For the period ended Nov. 21, net sales were $2.4 billion, an increase of 5.6% from the prior year quarter. Same-store sales increased 3.5% for the quarter. Net income for the quarter increased 8.3% over the same period last year to $258.1 million, while diluted earnings per share increased 14% to $8.29 per share from $7.27 per share in the year-ago quarter.

Designer Shoe Warehouse Inc. (DSW) is more closely connecting its digital and store channels, and using a little outside help to make it happen.

DSW has implemented eBay Enterprise in-store pickup and ship-to store in 467 stores. These new omnichannel fulfillment technologies augment the specialty footwear chain’s existing ship-from-store and dropship capabilities, also powered by eBay Enterprise.

Various technology analysts, retail industry pundits, and economists of all stripes, have long predicted the demise of paper and coin currency along with the dawn of a cashless society.

And it is true that over the last few years, we’ve seen a big acceleration in the drive towards large-scale consumer adoption of new digital payments technologies, especially in the mobile category.

Ace Hardware Corp. is making sure that stores contain products local shoppers want, and plenty of them.

Ace is implementing JDA space and category management solutions, including floor planning, category knowledge base, Web publisher, and assortment optimization. This mix of solutions, which will complement an existing JDA footprint that includes space planning, warehouse replenishment, and demand and fulfillment applications, will ensure that the potential of scarce inventory and space assets is maximized.