Data & Analytics

Walmart.com is already a large, fast growing and dynamic organization, but global e-commerce president and CEO Neil Ashe is intent on executing an integrated vision of commerce that no one else has — or can.
 

WTI expects that retail August 2013 will be the coolest in four years for the nation as a whole. Temperatures will trend cooler than last year in parts of the Northeast and in the western half of the nation, while temperatures will trend warmer in the Southeast and Ohio Valley. The Plains states and Rocky Mountains will see increased precipitation this year, while the Southwest and Southeast will trend drier than last year. August is expected to be another active month for tropical systems, especially during the latter part of the month.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — O’Reilly Automotive achieved a record quarterly gross margin of 50.8% for the second quarter ended June 30, primarily driven by improvements in acquisition costs, product mix and pricing management, according to president and CEO Greg Henslee.

The automotive aftermarket industry retailer saw sales for the quarter rise to $1.71 billion, a 10% increase from $1.56 billion for the same period one year ago. Gross profit for the second quarter was $872 million, a 12% increase from $780 million for the same period one year ago. 

San Francisco -- PB Teen, a division of Williams-Sonoma, on July 27 will open its first store in Orange County, Calif., at South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa.

The store will be anchored around a complimentary PBteen Design Lab, where teens and their parents can engage with the brand and its products by digitally creating a personalized room on a computer monitor. Using drag and drop technology, teens can experiment with different room configurations and color combinations and quickly see their designs come to life on a television screen overhead. 

LOS ANGELES — With the back-to-school season well underway, a new spending forecast from e-commerce platform provider PriceGrabber conflicts with other recent studies and highlights the danger of placing much credence in what shoppers say about their spending intentions.

Warren, Mich. -- Art Van Furniture plans to convert 31 Mattress World locations in Michigan and Indianapolis to its signature Art Van PureSleep brand, which is known its diagnostic system that determines the exact mattress and pillow best suited for each individual's comfort. 

The conversion, which will begin August 1st, will be completed by the end of 2013, and will result in a total of 76 Art Van PureSleep stores.

Increased fulfillment costs and other expense pressures caused Amazon.com to report a second quarter loss of $7 million even though sales increased 22% to $15.7 billion.

The company said its sales would have increased 25% were it not for a $392 million headwind related to unfavorable foreign exchange rates. The net loss of $7 million, or two cents a share, was a reversal from the same period the prior year when a profit of $7 million, or one cent a share, was reported.

NEW YORK — Colgate-Palmolive saw a boost in second-quarter net sales as its global market share in toothpaste and manual toothbrushes hit record highs year-to-date.

Net sales for the quarter totaled $4.35 billion, up 2% compared with the year-ago period. 

Net income, which included charges related to its restructuring program, totaled $561 million, or 60 cents per diluted share, for the quarter. This compares with net income of $627 million, or 65 cents per diluted share, in the year-ago period.