Omnichannel

More than 450 Macy’s stores will feature branded Finish Line footwear departments as the department store retailer and athletic footwear chain have entered into an exclusive agreement.

The deal addresses a major merchandising deficiency for Macy’s as department store retailers are not generally viewed as a destination for athletic footwear. The deal also accelerates growth for Finish Line which currently operates 638 predominantly mall-based U.S. stores compared to Macy’s approximately 840 locations.

Cincinnati -- Macy's Inc. announced on Friday that Finish Line Inc. would be the department store retailer’s exclusive athletic footwear partner, opening in-store shops in more than 450 Macy’s stores nationwide. The merchandise will also be available online at macys.com.

Under the agreement, Finish Line will be Macy’s exclusive partner for men’s, women’s and kids athletic footwear and Macy’s will be the exclusive host for Finish Line-branded in-store shops.

The holiday season is competitive on many fronts, including which retailer plans to hire the most seasonal workers.

Redwood Shores, Calif. -- Convenient access to the information that drives purchase decisions is the main reason shoppers go online, according to a new survey conducted by the e-tailing group and sponsored by Oracle. Eighty-one percent of the respondents said that ease of research and comparison shopping were the top reasons they shop online. And increasingly, they are doing it across product categories, including staples. Seventy-five percent research tech purchases online before deciding to buy, and 50% said they do the same for commodity products.

JERSEY CITY, N.J. — The company behind Soap.com has debuted an online shopping destination for natural, organic and sustainable products.

Sidney, Neb. -- Cabela’s Inc. said Thursday it will open a Cabela’s Outpost Store in Kalispell, Mont., joining the outdoor retailer’s single full-line Billings store in the state.

Construction on the 42,000-sq.-ft. location is scheduled to begin in spring 2013 and Cabela’s said it expects to open the store in fall 2013.

New York -- British fashion retailer Katherine Hooker said she will debut her latest collection of coats and jackets this October with the opening of a U.S. pop-up shop in New York City beginning Oct. 5.

The Soho shop is located at 436 West Broadway and will run through Oct. 14. The shop is Hooker's only brick-and-mortar retail presence outside of her flagship in London's Chelsea neighborhood.

St. Louis -- Build-A-Bear Workshop has unveiled its new store design, at West County Center in St. Louis. The store is one of six locations that the company will open this year in select U.S. markets. The interactive design merges the retailer’s signature hands-on bear-making experience with innovative technology. It allows customers to personalize the bear-making process and offers them a different experience each time they visit a Build-A-Bear Workshop store.