Supply Chain & Merchandising

NEW ALBANY, Ohio — Abercrombie & Fitch shrunk its net loss during the first quarter of 2013 but still reported thin financial results. Net loss for the quarter was $7.2 million, compared to $21.3 million during the first quarter of 2012. The results missed analysts’ estimates.

Net sales dropped 9% from $921.2 million to $838.8 million. Same-store sales plummeted 17%. Direct-to-consumer sales fell 6%. U.S. same-store sales fell 14%; international comparable sales were down 16%.

Hoffman Estates, Ill. -- Sears Holding Corp. reported a bigger-than-expected net loss of $279 million for the first quarter of fiscal 2013, compared to net income of $189 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2012. The retailer also said that it is considering selling its protection-agreement business in an ongoing effort to raise cash as it struggles to improve its profits.

BATTLE CREEK — Kellogg is committing more than 640,000 servings of food to support disaster relief efforts following the devastating tornado in Moore, Okla.

The company has already dispatched four semi-trailers of Kellogg's cereals and Keebler snacks to Moore, with more planned. Feeding America is working with food banks in its network, and other relief agencies, to provide the food to families and individuals impacted by the tornado, as well as relief workers assisting the community.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Cold weather affected Hibbett Sports' first quarter results for the period ended May 4, but the sporting goods retailer still saw net sales of $240 million, a 3% increase from $233 million for the 13-week period ended April 28, 2012.

Comparable store sales increased 0.8% for the quarter.

For the quarter, Hibbett opened nine new stores, expanded five high performing stores and closed three underperforming stores, bringing the store base to 879 in 29 states.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Kroger's mid-south division president John Hackett is retiring, after 50 years of service with the company. Hackett began his career with Kroger in 1963 as a store clerk in London, Ohio, while working his way through college at The Ohio State University.

NEW YORK — Foot Locker has posted the best quarterly profit results in its history for the first quarter ended May 4. The company's net income for the quarter was $138 million, a 10% increased from $128 million for the same period last year.  

The New York-based specialty athletic retailer's first quarter comparable store sales increased 5.2%.

ALLEN, Texas — PFSweb, an international provider of end-to-end e-commerce solutions, has appointed Shin Nagakura to the company’s board of directors.

Nagakura is a director of Transcosmos, or TCI, a leading Japanese business process outsourcing company. His appointment fulfills a condition of the strategic relationship that TCI and PFSweb entered into on May 15, which states that a TCI representative must sit on PFSweb’s board.

WTI expects that retail June 2013 will be similar in temperature to last year for the U.S. as a whole. Warmer temperature trends on the East and West Coasts will offset cooler year-over-year trends in the nation’s mid-section. Warmer year-over-year trends will be prominent during the first half of the retail month, with colder year-over-year trends during the latter part of the month. The weather will be unsettled weather in the Plains with cooler days and increased risks for rain and severe weather compared to last year.