Distribution

Hamilton, N.J. -- Voxware, a voice application company, announced that Whole Foods Market saw productivity gains of 25-35% after implementing the latest version of Voxware’s voice solution in the grocer’s largest distribution center. Whole Foods has expanded its deployment of Voxware Voice Management Suite to its other nine DCs with scheduled completion in Oct. 2014.  

A much anticipated acceleration of small format Walmart stores failed to materialize on Wednesday when the retailer announced plans to curtail domestic new store growth in 2016.

Walmart’s newest omnichannel initiative is on display at a supercenter in Northwest Arkanas where the retailer has installed lockers for online order pickup.

San Francisco -- Gap Inc. plans to hire more than 63,000 seasonal associates—more than Walmart—at its stores, call centers and distribution centers nationwide for the 2014 holiday season. (Walmart previously announced it was hiring 60,000 seasonal associates.)  

Issaquah, Wash. -- Costco Wholesale Corp. will enter China for the first time through the opening of an online flagship store on Alibaba Group’s Tmall Global platform. Tmall Global allows overseas brands and retailers to establish presence on the Alibaba third-party e-commerce platform Tmall.com without the need for physical operations in China.  

Manchester, U.K. -- Office Depot has selected the Atlas Products network-based supplier collaboration platform for its European trading operations. The Atlas supplier enablement network, a subsidiary of HighJump Software, provides Office Depot with an electronic platform for collaboration and commerce with more than 4,000 suppliers of goods-for-resale products spanning eight countries and seven languages.   

Foothill Ranch, Calif. -- The Wet Seal announced a workforce reduction resulting in the elimination of a combination of 78 filled and open positions, including  66 positions at the company’s corporate office, or a 24% reduction in headcount, and 12 positions at the field management level, representing a 20% decrease. The cuts are the first steps in the retailer’s initiative to reduce its overall cost structure.   

Coppell, Texas -- Alco Stores Inc. on Sunday filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, with plans to liquidate or sell the business.    The 113-year-old retailer and its subsidiary, Alco Holdings Ltd Liability Co., filed voluntary petitions for relief in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division.  It listed assets of $221.7 million and debt of $161.6 million.