Supply Chain & Merchandising

HH Gregg president and CEO Dennis May expected the company’s first quarter to be challenging, but he did not envision a 10.2% same store sales decline or a $10.3 million loss.

New York -- A report by Bloomberg said that investor BlueCrest Capital Management is urging RadioShack to repay the lenders that are blocking plans to shutter stores.

The electronics retailer announced last March that it would close 1,100 stores; it later reduced the number of closures to 200 per year for three years after negotiations with lenders failed.

BlueCrest said it supported the company's decision to shut stores to stem losses and was willing to provide financing, Bloomberg said.
 

The Bon-Ton Stores has elected Daniel T. Motulsky to its board of directors.

Motulsky was a managing director and global head of consumer & retail of Lazard from 2000 to June 2014, having joined the firm in 1998. Lazard is a global financial advisory and asset management firm that engages in investment banking, asset management and other financial services primarily with institutional clients.

Ottawa, Canada – Leading the pack of the most price-dynamic retailers are Amazon and Sears, according to analysis from price intelligence technology vendor 360pi. Both retailers change prices on 15%-20% of their 360pi-sampled assortment on a daily basis.

Austin, Texas – Whole Foods plans to expand its loyalty, marketing and home delivery programs. In a conference call with investors, co-CEO Walter Robb said Whole Foods will launch its first national marketing campaign in fall 2014, with a focus on how the retailer is better and different than its competitors.

Walmart kicked off its back-to-school promotional effort the way it does every seasonal selling initiative – with a big emphasis on low prices – but added a stronger digital component this year.

The retailer sought to bring a bit of Black Friday and Cyber Monday magic to its back-to-school efforts with a series of price cuts and limited duration offerings designed to generate sales and drive traffic to its stores and Web site.

Jacksonville, Fla. -- Body Central Corp. has appointed three new directors effective July 31.

Bryan Eshelman is COO of Aldo Group in Montreal; prior to Aldo, he was the executive VP and chief supply chain officer at Charming Shoppes.

Folline Cullen is a turnaround specialist with Educate Online who has overseen the Sylvan Learning spinoff; she was previously the CFO of  Wall Street International, a global brand in English instruction.

Pacific Sunwear’s SVP of women’s merchandising and design Christine Lee has resigned. Filling the role on an interim basis will be Brieane Breuer, who joined PacSun in 2007 and is the company's current VP of women's design.

Breuer received her master's degree in fashion design and styling from Istituto Marangoni and during the past 13 years has held various merchandising and design roles at high-end fashion brands such as Valentino, as well as at Abercrombie & Fitch.