Supply Chain & Merchandising

Christopher & Banks has promoted Peter G. Michielutti to EVP, COO and CFO, just a day after the company named former National Stores executive Lynn C. Derry as SVP and general merchandise manager.

The move is part of the company’s growth strategy.

Michielutti will be responsible for the company’s finance, accounting, internal audit, investor relations, real estate, tax, risk management, information technology and supply chain and logistics functions. He joined the company in April 2012 as SVP and CFO.

Mississauga, Canada – Target opens three new stores in Canada Aug. 1 and plans three more new Canadian stores later in the fall. The stores are located at Erin Mills Town Centre in Mississauga, Ontario; Park Place in Barrie, Ontario and Carrefour Candiac in Candiac, Quebec.

Irvine, Calif. -- Whole Foods Market and the Irvine Company announced that the companies have signed a lease to bring the first Whole Foods Market to Irvine, California.

The organic and natural grocer will occupy approximately 40,000 sq. ft. at Los Olivos Marketplace, a specialty shopping center just off the 405 freeway at Irvine Center Drive in Irvine Spectrum.

Redwood Shores, Calif. – Specialty supplements retailer PureFormulas recently migrated to Oracle Commerce to personalize the customer experience and open up new market segments without sacrificing ease of use.

Retailers and suppliers who already operate in China or are looking to expand there may want to contact Kurt Salmon following several key hires by the consulting company.

The management consulting firm’s Retail and Consumer Products Group in China said it hired Hao Li and Ke Chen as partners.

Foothill Ranch, Calif. - Christine Lee has been appointed executive VP and chief merchandising officer, starting on Sept. 3. Lee served as senior VP/general merchandise manager, women’s apparel, accessories and design at Pacific Sunwear of California Inc since 2010.

Prior to Pacific Sunwear, Lee spent 18 years with Urban Outfitters Inc. Brieane Breuer, who joined PacSun in 2007 and is the company's current VP of women's design, will replace Lee on an interim basis.

Dedham, Mass. – Reflexis has selected SoftLayer, an IBM company, to provide the infrastructure for its platform-as-a-service (PaaS) that will support retailers’ mobile and Web applications. Using Reflexis' PaaS, customers can implement mobile and web applications, which help retailers provide a seamless online-to-store shopping experience and provide a higher quality of customer engagement.

Nordstrom has entered into an agreement to acquire Trunk Club, a personalized clothing service for men.

Trunk Club delivers a stylist service that combines the convenience of online with a high-touch, personalized shopping experience. Nordstrom plans to leverage the acquisition to offer superior customer service and a seamless shopping experience.