Data & Analytics

Connecting Northwest Arkansas earlier this month published the results of a survey of Walmart suppliers that revealed some interesting insights and this week spawned a few inaccurate headlines from various news organizations. The most notable was a headline on a Bloomberg story, which said Walmart suppliers lacked confidence in company CEO Mike Duke and that senior managers were explaining the company’s strategy. That’s a powerful statement and would be quite an indictment of the company’s chief executive and senior leadership team, if it were true.

Salisbury, N.C. -- Food Lion has unveiled a new mobile app that puts its stores right at customers' fingertips.

The new app, developed in partnership with Mercatus USA, gives customers the capability to create shopping lists, access weekly specials, download new recipes and locate stores. Also giving customers more bang for their buck is the opportunity to sign up for the Food Lion MVP loyalty program through the app.

The app can be accessed by visiting the iTunes library, and is compatible with iPhone, iPad and iPod devices.

Union, N.J. -- Bed Bath & Beyond said Wednesday that profit for the quarter ended Nov. 27 rose 28% to $188.6 million, compared with $151.3 million in the year-ago period.

Results topped analyst expectations.

Revenue rose 11% to $2.2 billion, edging Wall Street expectations of $2.11 billion in revenue. Same-store sales increased 7%.

By Scott Balestrier & David Des Roches, BDO.com 
 
Proactively managing taxes should always be top of mind for businesses at year-end. Recent Congressional actions and extension of the Bush-era tax cuts are serving as this year’s reminder. As many retailers seem to be returning to profitability, there are several tax and accounting opportunities that should be considered.

Walmart, Target and Best Buy attracted record levels of customers to their websites during November, according to data released this week by the online measurement firm comScore. Retailers have come to expect a surge in traffic to their sites as the holiday approach and during November that proved to be the case and then some.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla.  - HSN announced that it has launched a new app for the Apple iPad. With the launch, HSN said it will be the only retailer offering a video-centric iPad experience that allows consumers to watch both live streaming video and 15 channels of archived video, as well as the ability to program their own channels based on their preferences.

Berwyn, Pa. -- Planalytics has issued its weather outlook for the all-important days after Christmas when many consumers head to the stores to redeem gift cards and exchange presents. Here’s how the firm sees the forecast shaping up for the Northeast and South:

Maumelle, Ark. -- Dillard’s announced it will locate an Internet fulfillment center in Maumelle, Ark., to support the continuing growth of its online business. The company has signed an agreement to purchase the former Target distribution facility and will create over 300 new jobs in the Central Arkansas area.

Deerfield, Ill. -- Walgreens said Wednesday that its profit jumped 18.8% in the fiscal first quarter on a mix of better pricing and generic drug sales.

The chain said its profit rose to $580 million, exceeding estimates. Revenue rose 6% to $17.34 billion. The company's 2011 fiscal first quarter ended Nov. 30.

Overall same-store sale sales rose 0.8% during the quarter, with front-end same-store sales rising 0.4% and pharmacy same-store sales rising 0.9%.

New York City -- Aeropostale announced three executive appointments that realign responsibilities and strengthen its leadership team. Among the changes, Marc D. Miller, senior VP of strategic planning and new business development, has been appointed CFO.

In other appointments, Michael J. Cunningham, president, will expand his role and assume additional responsibilities over planning and allocation, construction, logistics and real estate. He will also remain responsible for the finance organization, investor relations and information technology.