Supply Chain & Merchandising

Dallas — Davaco has acquired Ecoxera, an Austin, Texas-based retail sustainability consulting firm. Justin Doak, who is the founder of Ecoxera, will continue to serve as president.

CAMP HILL, Pa. -- Rite Aid Corp. reported Thursday that it lost $54.5 million in the fiscal quarter, narrowed from a loss of $81.5 million a year earlier. The chain has trimmed its projected loss for fiscal 2012 based on the results.

Revenue rose almost 2% to $6.31 billion, compared with $6.2 billion in the year-ago period and surpassing Wall Street’s expected $6.29 billion in revenue. Same-store sales increased 2%. 

Rite Aid is upping its store improvement spending and has focused efforts on building its Wellness Plus rewards program.

WAYNE, N.J. — Toys"R"Us Has announced that its stores nationwide will remain open for 112 uninterrupted hours beginning at 6am on Tuesday, Dec. 20 and continuing through 10 p.m. on Christmas Eve.

In conjunction with continuous shopping during the last few days leading up to Christmas, Toys"R"Us will hold a two-day sale from Tuesday, Dec. 20 to Wednesday, Dec. 21.

WESTBORO, Mass. — Micros-Retail, a division of Micros Systems, announced that luxury watch retailer Tourneau has completed a successful launch of the Tourneau.com website utilizing Micros-Retail Open Commerce Platform.

Seattle -- REI (Recreational Equipment Inc.) announced that it will open its first location in Ohio next fall at Rockwood Commons in Cincinnati. The one-story location will occupy 22,000 sq. ft. and will serve more than 5,000 active REI members as well as other outdoor enthusiasts in the community.

The company also announced that it will open a store in Medford, Ore. The 23,500-sq.-ft., one-story location will open next fall in Alba Village and help outfit approximately 7,300 local active members and other adventurers.

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. — Fourth quarter and fiscal year 2011 both proved positive for Stater Bros., the regional supermarket chain announced Tuesday.

For the fourth quarter ended Sept. 25, the retailer saw a 5% increase in sales to $941.9 million, compared with the year-ago period. For the 52-week fiscal year, sales rose 2.4% to $3.7 billion, the company said. Same-store sales for the fourth quarter and fiscal year experienced a 5% and 2.5% jump in same-store sales, respectively.

Jacksonville, Fla. -- Stein Mart Inc. said Wednesday that it has been put on notice by the Nasdaq exchange because it did not file its third-quarter results by the deadline.

The retailer said it has been given 60 days to submit a plan to regain compliance, or it could be delisted from the Nasdaq exchange.

By Kenneth Gruskin, [email protected]

Today, fickle and demanding consumers can access virtually anything they want as a result of technology such as smartphones, tablets, and computers. This anytime, anywhere access coupled with what can be referred to as the four ‘C’s’ — convergence, convenience, connection, and cost — are having a dramatic impact on retailers.