Data & Analytics

City of Commerce, Calif. -- Third-quarter sales growth was hard to come by at 99 Cents Only as the extreme value retailer’s heavy concentration of stores in Southern California were negatively affected by unseasonably strong rains that hit the region prior to Christmas.

Houston -- Stage Stores said Monday that Oded Shein has joined the company as executive VP and CFO.

Shein succeeds Edward Record, who was appointed COO in February 2010, but retained the CFO responsibilities while the search for his replacement was underway.

Shein will report to Record and will oversee the company’s accounting, internal and external financial reporting, tax, investor relations, financial planning and analysis, loss prevention, and treasury operations.

New York City -- At the National Retail Federation Convention in New York City on Monday, Fujitsu announced the unveiling of a new checkout technology that is designed to significantly reduce checkout times, improve customer experience and reduce operational costs.

The Kroger Co. is currently evaluating the new technology, called the Advantage Checkout System, in a limited number of its stores, according to Fujitsu. The team said they will demo the product live at the convention Jan. 10-13.

New York City -- The 100th annual “Big Show,” the National Retail Federation’s annual event in New York City, launched at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center on Sunday, Jan. 9 with a lineup of sessions and plenty of buzz.

One of the most talked-about topics? Facebook has a booth at NRF this year, representing the power that social media does, and will, play in the retail industry.

LAS VEGAS - Reporting from the Consumer Electronics Show, Best Buy said that revenue for the fiscal month of December ended Jan. 1, decreased 1.6% to $8.4 billion. The revenue decline for the five-week period, as compared with $8.5 billion in revenue for the five-week period ended Jan. 2, 2010, was due primarily to a comparable-store sales decline of 4% partially offset by the addition of new stores in the past 12 months and the favorable impact of fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates.

FORT WORTH, Texas - Pier 1 Imports' same-store sales rose 10.3% in December, helped in part by more customers and higher average receipts. The company lifted its fourth quarter guidance.

Pier I used fewer promotions and clearance prices during the month than it did last year, said president and CEO Alex Smith in a statement.

NEW YORK - Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia announced that Kelli Turner will step down as the company's CFO and will be leaving to join a private company in the near future. A search for MSLO's new CFO is currently underway, the company reported. In the interim, MSLO controller Allison Jacques will serve as the company's principal financial and accounting officer.

RICHMOND HILL, ON and LAS VEGAS - Lexmark Canada has launched the latest addition to its award-winning lineup of Web-connected, all-in-one (AIO) inkjet printers – Lexmark Genesis.

The Lexmark Genesis targets professionals, small business and home office customers who are looking for an AIO printer that has innovative technology, is highly productive and is also bold and stylish, the company stated in a press release.

Redwood Shores, Calif. -- Ascena, parent company of Dress Barn, Maurices and Justice, said Friday that it has selected Oracle E-Business Suite Financials to streamline financial operations across the company’s growing retail operations.

Minneapolis -- Best Buy Co.’s December same-store sales fell 4% as softness continued in its sales of televisions and entertainment software.

The retailer, which also reaffirmed its 2011 profit outlook, said on Friday that same-store sales in its domestic segment fell 5% and 0.1% internationally.

Overall sales in the month slipped 1.6% to $8.4 billion.