Data & Analytics

Washington, D.C. -- A report released Tuesday by the Commerce Department showed that total U.S. retail sales fell 0.2% in May, a less-than-forecast dip following April’s 0.3% gain. It was the first drop in 11 months. Excluding autos, retail sales rose 0.3% last month, the smallest gain since July 2010.

With Father’s Day approaching, General Growth Properties has rolled out a mall promotion that invites shoppers to “check in” to their local GGP mall using Foursquare for a chance to win a trip to the 82nd MLB All-Star Game at Chase Field in Phoenix.

When shoppers “check-in” through Foursquare, they receive a link to enter the sweepstakes, which includes four tickets to the MLB All-Star Game on July 12, $1,000 in Shop Etc. Mall Gift Cards and a hotel stay and golf outing at the AAA Four-Diamond, all-suite Arizona Grand Resort.

New York City -- China ranks as the most attractive emerging market for apparel retailers, according to global management consulting firm A.T. Kearney’s 2011 Global Retail Development Index for Apparel. The research analyzes retail markets worldwide, and ranks those countries that present the best opportunity for apparel retail expansion.

WAYNE, N.J. — Toys“R”Us reported that domestic comparable-store sales were down 2.1% for its fiscal first quarter. Total sales were up 1.1% tp $2.6 billion. 

According to the company, sales were strongest in the learning and core toy categories, while the entertainment and seasonal categories struggled. 

New York City -- Amazon.com said Friday that it would drop its online affiliates in Arkansas in response to a new state law that would have required the online retailer to start charging sales tax, the Associated Press reported.

Lawmakers passed a bill earlier this year to require out-of-state online retailers such as Amazon to collect sales tax from customers if their annual sales in the state exceed $10,000.

Cary, N.C. -- Convenience-store operator The Pantry is selling 114 locations located in nine states throughout the Southeast. The properties are a combination of owned and leased locations. All are operating convenience stores with gasoline, except for one standalone store.

NRC Realty Capital Advisors, Chicago, is assisting The Pantry in the sale. As of May 9, The Pantry operated 1,659 stores in 13 states under select banners, including Kangaroo Express, its primary operating banner.

All board members were re-elected by an overwhelmingly large margin, however some shareholders expressed a dislike for Anne Mulcahy as she drew the largest number of negative votes by a wide margin.

Mulcahy is probably best known as CEO of Xerox from 2001 to 2009, and she also served as chairman of the company’s board from 2002 to 2010. She currently chairs the board of trustees of the Save The Children Foundation and serves as a director of The Washington Post Company and Johnson & Johnson. She is a past director of Citigroup.

New York City -- Chain Store Age will hold a Webinar on Tuesday, June 14, at 2 p.m., ET (11 am PT) on how Best Buy has streamlined its business with the help of a master data management solution from IBM. Register today and take a chance to win a free iPad.

Learn from Best Buy how the company has realized several advantages, including ensuring that data is accurate and consistent across all selling channels and improved the customer experience across the same, by deploying the IBM InfoSphere Master Data Management (MDM) solution.