Supply Chain & Merchandising

Despite reporting ho-hum sales for July, Costco said Thursday that its comps for the fourth quarter and fiscal year were up an impressive 6%.

A rapidly expanding retailer led by a former top Walmart executive is supposed to produce strong same store sales growth, leverage expenses and increase profits. So why isn’t Five Below?

Joel Anderson’s tenure as CEO of value priced retailer Five Below (where everything cost less than $5) is off to an uneven start. The company is achieving its profitability targets, but doing so with productivity improvement in its selling space that is surprisingly weak given the newness of its store base.

As Target moves to reimagine the shopping experience for customers who visit its stores, the retailer has applied for two liquor licenses for a future store in Chicago.

USA Today reports that the company has applied for packaged goods and consumption on premises licenses.

The retailer may be trying to follow the lead of Kroger, Duane Reade and other retailers looking to expand their alcoholic offerings, which could pose operational challenges at these stores.

Bridgeport, Conn. -- Bridgeport Landing Development, a subsidiary of The RCI Group, announced that the $50 million first phase of Steelpointe Harbor, located in Bridgeport, Connecticut, is scheduled to open later this year. Steelpointe Harbor is a two million sq. ft. super-regional waterfront project spanning 82 acres.

Toronto – Real estate transactions helped Sears Canada swing to a profit in the second quarter even as revenue and same-store sales decreased.

The retailer on Wednesday reported net earnings of $13.5 million, compared to a net loss of $21.3 million the same quarter a year earlier. The company, which has been working to turn around its business, also announced additional cost-cutting plans and real-estate sales.

Louisville, Ky. -- A new off-price outlet concept that opened its first store in November 2014 is expanding.

Retail4LESS announced the opening of two new locations in Kentucky — one in Madisonville, and the second in Franklin — with both due to open in the late fall.

The opening of the two new stores will mark the first new stores for the off-price retailer since the launch of its inaugural location last year, in its home base of Louisville.

New market entries, a newly developed small format and ambitious omnichannel efforts have family footwear retailer Shoe Carnival on a trajectory to surpass $1 billion in annual sales.

Newcastle, Wash. -- Retail Properties of America announced that it has closed on the off-market acquisition of Coal Creek Marketplace, a 56,000 sq. ft. grocery-anchored center located in Newcastle, Washington for approximately $17.6 million. The center is currently 95% occupied and anchored by Quality Food Centers, a subsidiary of Kroger.