Data & Analytics

New York -- Barnes & Noble reported Tuesday that it lost $41 million in the first quarter, compared with a loss of $56.6 million in the same period last year.

Results were bolstered by sales of e-books and other digital content, said CEO William Lynch.

Overall revenue rose 2% to $1.45 billion, and same-store sales climbed 4.6%. Sales in the retail segment also rose 2% -- to $1.1 billion.
 

New York -- Cost Plus World Market has launched a new website as a part of the brand’s strategy to elevate its e-commerce business and provide expanded opportunities for customers to discover more at Worldmarket.com. This is the largest redesign of the site since its launch in November 2005.

DALLAS — Karen Katz, president and CEO of The Neiman Marcus Group, announced that Joseph Weber will be joining the company Sept. 4, as SVP, chief human resources officer.  Weber will be responsible for all areas of human resources and loss prevention including associate relations, learning and development, recruitment, compensation, internal communications and benefits.

MINNEAPOLIS — Best Buy reported dismal second quarter results Tuesday morning, missing analysts’ estimates by a wide margin one day after the company raised eyebrows by selecting a CEO with no retail experience to engineer a turnaround.

Dallas -- Tuesday Morning Corp. said Monday that it lost $2 million in the quarter ended June 30, widened from a loss of $1.4 million in the same period last year. The retailer cited costs associated with terminating its CEO for the weakened showing.

Sales were nearly flat at $196.4 million, and same-store sales inched up a slight 0.2%. For the full year, the company recorded net income of $3.9 million, compared with $9.6 million in the prior year. Sales slipped 1% to $812.8 million.

Columbus, Ohio -- DSW Inc. reported Tuesday that adjusted net income for the quarter ended July 28 dipped to $30.1 million, from $33.7 million last year. Revenue rose 7.5% to $512.2 million, beating the $510.9 million expected by Wall Street.

Same-store sales increased 4.2% in the quarter, compared with a 12.3% increase in the same period last year.

CEO Mike MacDonald told analysts that performance thus far is on track with annual earnings targets and that DSW is on track to open another 27 new stores over the next six months.

STERLING, Va. — Former Walmart executive David Hoodis has joined the corporate advisory board of Natural Insight, a private retail technology company engaged in workforce management.

“We feel privileged to have access to David’s respected experience in workforce innovation. His success with numerous leading retailers brings us an added perspective that enables us to stay even further ahead of market need,” stated Stefan Midford, president and CEO of Natural Insight in making the announcement.

NEW YORK — Barnes & Noble saw increased sales and a narrower loss for its first quarter thanks in large part to the steamy series, "Fifty Shades of Grey."
 
“During the first quarter, we continued to see improvement in both our rapidly growing Nook business, which saw digital content sales increase 46% during the quarter, and at our bookstores, which continue to benefit from market consolidation and strong sales of the 'Fifty Shades' series,” said William Lynch, CEO of Barnes & Noble.