Logistics

Brett Biggs, Walmart U.S. CFO, will share his views on the company’s performance during an upcoming Doing Business in Bentonville meeting.

Bigg’s is slated to speak at the event scheduled for 7 a.m., March 13 in Rogers, Ar., and could have some interesting things to say given the timing of the event. Walmart is due to report fourth quarter and full year results next week on February 21 and then on March 7 the company hosts a two day event in Orlando for store managers and suppliers where new initiatives tend to be unveiled.

ATLANTA -- UPS has formed a strategic collaboration with Jabil Circuit. UPS’s logistics and distribution business unit and Jabil Aftermarket Services will provide optimized reverse logistics solutions for return and repair programs to high-tech original equipment manufacturers, service providers and enterprises on a global scale.

Austin, Texas -- Whole Foods Market reported that its first-quarter net income rose 24% to $146 million, exceeding expectations, on stronger revenue. But the grocer narrowed its revenue forecast and said its earnings growth may slow through the remainder of the year amid higher store-opening costs and plans to increase its selection of lower-priced products.

Total sales increased nearly 14% to $3.86 billion for the 16-week period that ended Jan. 20. Same-store sales were up 7.2% for the quarter.

New York -- A&G Realty Partners said Tuesday it has been retained by Bakers Footwear Group Inc. to handle the liquidation of its remaining 56 mall stores.

According to A&G, an auction for the store leases is slated for Feb. 18, with a deadline to submit bids to A&G Realty by Feb. 21.

Woodcliff Lake, N.J. -- Wireless solution provider I.D. Systems said Tuesday it has received a series of purchase orders from Walgreens for the latest generation of its PowerFleet wireless Vehicle Management System, to be deployed on hundreds of material handling vehicles across multiple Walgreens distribution centers.

Walgreens originally implemented I.D. Systems' wireless technology in 2003 and is systematically upgrading more than a dozen of its facilities to the current generation of PowerFleet VMS.

HOUSTON — Stage Stores is consolidating its South Hill, Virginia regional operations into its Houston, Texas corporate headquarters, in an effort to increase efficiency, create synergies, reduce expenses and enhance growth.

Washington, D.C. -- A report released Friday by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates estimated that retail imports will increase 8.5% in February, after a contract deal between the East Coast and Gulf Coast dockworkers is finalized.

The monthly Global Port Tracker report said that, had a key West Coast agreement also been settled, import cargo volume at the nation’s major retail container ports would possibly have seen an additional rise.

Washington, D.C. -- The National Retail Federation expressed disappointment on Friday over the failure of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union's Local 63 Office Clerical Unit and the Harbor Employers Association to reach a contract agreement.

An eight-day strike in November and December 2012 shut down most terminals at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach before the parties agreed on a tentative new contract with the help of a federal mediator. But union members on Wednesday voted down the contract.