Distribution

Harrisburg, Pa. -- Pennsylvania governor Tom Corbett said Thursday that PetSmart will open a new distribution center in Bethel Township, Berks County, Pa.
 
PetSmart will construct an 870,000-sq.-ft. distribution center in Berks Park 78, a new industrial park located in Bethel Township. The company will start construction on the $50 million distribution center in the fall of 2012, with completion expected in first quarter 2014.

The project is expected to create at least 500 new jobs by 2016. 

Minneapolis -- Grocery giant SuperValu Inc. reported Wednesday that profit for the quarter ended June 16 plummeted 45% to $41 million, compared with $74 million in the year-ago period. The struggling parent to Albertsons, Jewel-Osco and Save-A-Lot grocery banners, among others, had begun to show improvement in its fourth quarter, but tumbling revenues have halted the forward momentum.

Sales dropped to $10.59 billion, from $11.11 billion in the same period last year, and missed Wall Street’s forecasted $10.61 billion in revenue.

New York -- The Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) urged the International Longshoremen’s Association and the United States Maritime Alliance to reach a contract agreement well in advance of the Sept. 30 deadline in order to prevent a disruption to the flow of goods.

The ongoing labor negotiations affect 14 East and Gulf Coast ports, which together account for 95% of all containerized shipments to the Eastern seaboard.

Philadelphia -- Visionworks, the largest wholly owned U.S.-based optical retailer, has opened its first store in the Philadelphia area. Located in Deptford Township, N.J., it is the first of more than 25 stores expected to open in the market through 2013.

The San Antonio-based retailer plans to open 17 stores before the end of 2012 and additional locations by April 2013.

Seattle -- Tommy Bahama has partnered with FiftyOne Global Ecommerce, a provider of global e-commerce services to U.S. retailers, to immediately expand the Tommy Bahama’s international reach by delivering goods to 100 countries around the globe.

Washington, D.C. -- Import cargo volume at the nation’s major retail container ports is expected to increase 1.6% in July compared with the same month last year, and modest year-over-year increases are expected through the holiday season shipping cycle, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released Tuesday by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.

New York – To help manage its rapidly growing e-commerce business, Walmart’s Asda division in the United Kingdom has selected multiple components of Manhattan Associates supply chain solutions portfolio known as Scope.

Asda Direct, the retailer’s general merchandise ecommerce operation, will deploy the supply chain solutions within several distribution centers across the United Kingdom and leverage the Manhattan Associates Supply Chain Process Platform.

ROCKFORD, Mich. — Wolverine Worldwide reported slight revenue growth as it looks to build its portfolio with the acquisition of the Performance and Lifestyle Group from Collective Brands.

Wolverine Worldwide reported quarterly revenue of $312.7 million, an increase of 0.8% compared with the prior year's second quarter when revenue grew over 20%. 

Reported diluted earnings per share in the quarter were 42 cents, compared with prior year's earnings per share of 48 cents.