Supply Chain & Merchandising

Bentonville, Ark. -- Walmart announced the deployment of five rooftop solar arrays for Walmart and Sam’s Club locations in Puerto Rico. The solar program is made possible through a solar energy service agreement where Sun Edison, a subsidiary of MEMC Electronic Materials, will design, deploy, operate and maintain over three megawatts of solar technologies across the five locations with no upfront costs to Walmart.

Pittsburgh -- Teen retailer rue21 said that its fourth quarter net income increased 41% to $10.9 million from $7.7 million in the year-ago period. Net sales for the quarter increased 22.3% to $190.1 million, from $155.4 million. Same-store sales rose 1.5%.

Charlotte, N.C. -- Cato Corp.'s fiscal fourth-quarter net income climbed 8% as revenue improved. The company earned $7.9 million, compared with $7.3 million a year earlier.

Sales for the quarter ended January 29, 2011 were $224.3 million, a 3% increase over sales of $217.7 in the year-ago period. Same-store sales increased 1%.

WASHINGTON -- Consumers can expect to find less packaging with their food and beverages in the coming years as manufacturers look to eliminate waste. The Grocery Manufacturers Association found that by 2020 2.5 billion pounds of waste is expected to be avoided by 2020.  This is on top of the 1.5 billion pounds of packaging avoided since 2005.

Toronto -- Opterus, a provider of web-based task management and store communications, announced that In the Pink Stores has chosen Opterus Store Ops-Center for improved communications and store execution management.

With most of their stores located at remote resort communities in New England, In the Pink’s unique business model incorporates a short-selling season with extremely high peak weeks, and some are only open part of the year. 

PLEASANTON, Calif. -- Ross Stores has emerged as one of those value retailers that has shined during the recent economic downturn. The company once again reported strong earnings and sales growth for the fourth quarter and fiscal year, showing that while the economy may be improving, value remains an important concern for consumers.

Glendale, Calif. -- Nordstrom and Caruso Affiliated jointly announced today an agreement to relocate the Nordstrom full-line store and build a new store at Caruso Affiliated's The Americana at Brand in downtown Glendale, Calif.

The new three-level, 135,000-sq.-ft. is expected to open in fall 2013 and will be part of the expansion of The Americana at Brand. Nordstrom will continue serving customers at its current Glendale Galleria store, located next to The Americana at Brand, until the new store opens.

Plymouth Meeting, Pa. -- Fameco Real Estate, L.P. announced that Yogurtland has signed two leases in New Jersey to kick off its store roll-out program.

The 120-unit yogurt chain will open a 1,300-sq.-ft. store at The Shoppes at Union Hill in Denville, N.J., and a 1,200-sq.-ft. store at Hamilton Marketplace in Hamilton, N.J.

The stores are expected to open in late spring/early summer.