Supply Chain & Merchandising

ATLANTA — Innotrac Corp., a best-of-breed commerce provider integrating digital technology, fulfillment, and contact center solutions to support global brands, has announced the appointment of Steve Keaveney as its new CFO.

Keaveney brings to Innotrac more than 25 years of experience in finance, accounting and operations for both publicly and privately held companies.  He has extensive experience in financial leadership, revenue growth, analysis and budgeting.

Charlotte, N.C. — Harris Teeter Together in Education (TIE) on Monday donated more than $385,000 to participating TIE schools during the second of three payouts of the 2012/2013 school year, raising the program total to $18.7 million since 1998.

Retail innovation cycles last approximately 20 years. As we take a look at retail history, this cycle becomes self-evident. From the general store to department stores to discount stores and so forth, each variety has their day in the sun as the leading channel for most purchases. Today, we’re lucky enough to be living within two powerful cycles simultaneously. But the fun will soon come to an end.

New York -- Aeropostale Inc. reported an unexpected loss for its fourth quarter, hurt by declining same-store sales and store asset impairment charges. The teen apparel chain also forecast a loss for the current quarter, citing markdowns and a weak economy.

"We anticipate a challenging first quarter as a result of expected margin pressures from holiday carryover inventory, and the impact of a weak macroeconomic environment,” said Aeropostale CEO Thomas Johnson.

Lynwood, Wash. -- Zumiez Inc. said Thursday its fiscal fourth quarter net income rose 22.1% to $22.9 million on improved sales.

Revenue for the quarter, ended Feb.2, (14 weeks) increased to $224.4 million from $183.9 million in the year-ago period (13 weeks). Same-store sales fell 1%.

Zumiez said it plans to open about 60 new stores in the current fiscal year, including up to 10 stores in Canada and six stores in Europe.

Safeway president of merchandising, Kelly Griffith, was named to a new operational position, filling a void created by the retirement of EVP of retail operations Bruce Everette.

Edwin Watts Golf replaces aging legacy systems with ERP option

Edwin Watts Golf has grown significantly during the past several years, expanding its store portfolio and direct mail and Internet businesses as well. With growth came an increased complexity that taxed the capabilities of its aging legacy systems, which did not provide visibility across channels and among stores. The retailer decided it was time to invest in a new solution due to the age and fragmentation of its existing systems.

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — Shopatron, a provider of cloud-based, e-commerce order management solutions, has launched its allied commerce initiative – the next wave of its broad market expansion on the heels of a $4 million venture debt financing it completed in December 2012.