Supply Chain & Merchandising

Ann Arbor, Mich. - RPM Pizza LLC, the largest U.S. Domino's franchise, is getting a little bigger. RPM has acquired 45 Domino's stores throughout Indiana. RPM Pizza, headquartered in Gulfport, Mississippi, will purchase 45 stores in Indiana in the biggest franchise-to-franchise purchase in Domino's history.

The acquisition includes nearly 40 stores in the Indianapolis metro area, and stores serving South Bend and Lafayette. Once completed, the acquisition will give RPM Pizza operations in seven states, employing more than 3,800 workers.

Charlottesville, Va. -- Construction has begun on a new 73-acre, super-regional shopping center, 5th Street Station, in the heart of southern Charlottesville. 5th Street Station brings the first Wegmans store to Central Virginia, along with 335,000 sq. ft. of additional anchor, junior anchor and small-shop opportunities.  

Pittsburgh – Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc. has named CFO Andre J. Hawaux as executive VP, COO/CFO. In addition to his existing responsibilities for finance, legal and IT, Hawaux has expanded his responsibilities to include store operations, real estate and HR.

Hawaux joined Dick’s in 2013 as executive VP, finance, administration and CFO. Prior to joining Dick’s, he was most recently president, consumer foods at ConAgra Foods Inc. Previously, he served as ConAgra Foods' executive VP, CFO from 2006 to 2009.
 

Seattle – Amazon.com is reportedly piloting co-branded e-commerce sites with three universities. According to the Wall Street Journal, Amazon is partnering with Purdue University, the University of Massachusetts Amherst and the University of California Davis to operate the sites, which sell textbooks and T-shirts as well as other items available on Amazon.com.

St. Petersburg, Fla. -- In 2014, The Sembler Co. said it saw increased activity across business segments, from more than 700,000 sq. ft. of new and renewed leases, to expanding the company’s geographical reach.

Dick’s Sporting Goods is expanding the responsibilities of its CFO.

The company says that in addition to serving as EVP/CFO, Andre J. Hawaux has been appointed as executive vice president, chief operating officer. In addition to his existing responsibilities for finance, legal and information technology, Hawaux will also oversee store operations, real estate and human resources.

Carle Place, N.Y. – The September 2014 closing of its acquisition of the Harry & David brand helped produce extremely strong performance during the second quarter of fiscal 2015 at 1-800-Flowers.com Inc. The retailer reported net income of $45.54 million, more than double the $17.99 million reported in the same quarter a year earlier.

Los Angeles -  Fast-fashion giant Forever 21 is on the fast-track, with plans to open 600 stores over the next three years. To help support its rapid growth, the retailer is using Oracle Retail solutions.