Business Analytics

Deerfield, Ill. — Market6, a provider of Web-based retail analytic applications, is introducing Market6 Vantage, a suite of retail analytic applications that automate and simplify joint business planning and retailer/supplier collaboration. Vantage is designed to enable retailers and their suppliers to streamline their collaboration efforts to build and execute more effective and profitable shopper-centric merchandising plans.

New York — Joel Anderson, president and chief executive officer of Walmart.com., has left  the online giant to assume the role of president at Five Below, which targets pre-teens and teens with trendy, extreme-value merchandise priced at $5 and below. Walmart has appointed Fernando Madeira, CEO of Walmart.com's Latin America unit, as the new head of Walmart.com. He will relocate from Sao Paulo, Brazil, to San Bruno, California, where Wal-Mart’s global e-commerce operation is based.
 

With an 8.7% same store sales increase, the addition of 21 new stores, a burgeoning digital business and surging first quarter profits, Ulta Beauty demonstrated why it is one of the retail industry’s most compelling growth stories.

Retailers and mall owners looking for innovative solutions to understand their performance in context have a new ally in ShopperTrak.

The leading global provider of consumer behavior insights and location-based analytics recently announced plans to launch a customizable benchmarking product called Market Intelligence as part of its Performance Analytics offering.

Oak Brook, Ill. — The Inland Real Estate Group of Cos. has appointed Chong P. Huan chief information officer. He will direct all information technology initiatives for Inland and its member companies. In addition, Huan will serve as CEO of Inland Computer Services, Inland’s in-house IT and computer services department.

The Men's Wearhouse expects to complete its merger with Jos. A. Bank in the next few weeks, and looks forward to reaping the benefits of that combination as it closes its fiscal first quarter ended May 3.

Total net sales for quarter increased 2.3% to $630.5 million from $616.5 million in the prior-year quarter. Retail segment sales for the quarter increased by 2.4% and corporate apparel sales increased by 0.8% as compared to the prior year quarter.

Sears Hometown and Outlet Stores CEO and president Bruce Johnson cited weather and promotions as factors affecting the retailer’s first quarter results.

Net sales in the quarter decreased 1.9% to $589.9 million from $601.1 million in the first quarter of 2013, driven primarily by a 6.2% decrease in same-store sales. Lower initial franchise revenues and lower liquidation revenues on end-of-season mark-out apparel merchandise received from Sears Holdings also negatively impacted net sales.

Camp Hill, Pa. -- Rite Aid’s same-store sales rose 3.5% in May, boosted by a healthy increase in Rx sales.

The chain’s front-end same store sales increased 0.5%. Pharmacy same-store sales increased 5.0%. Total drugstore sales for the five-week period increased 2.5% to $2.48 billion, compared with $2.42 billion for the same period last year.

Prescription sales accounted for 68.0% of drug store sales, and third party prescription sales represented 97.4% of pharmacy sales.

ECRM compared retail circular advertising in May 2013 versus May 2014 and noted trends occurring across top retail chains. Walmart experienced a 90.1% increase in ads per circular, largely due to a reduction in the number of circulars from 10 in May 2013 to six in May 2014. Despite this decrease, overall page count remained fairly stable. These fewer, lengthier circulars were the result of an increased willingness to promote a number of categories within one circular. Eight of last May’s 10 circulars consisted of four pages or fewer.

Persistent winter weather took a bite out of Stein Mart’s net income in the first quarter, but the retailer rallied once the weather improved. It closed the quarter with total and comparable-store sales increases, and the upward trend has continued through May.

The company reported total sales for the four-week period ended May 31 of $109.6 million, a 2.2% increase over total sales of $107.3 million for the four-week period ended June 1 last year. Comparable store sales for the month increased 0.4% from comparable store sales for the same month last year.