News

10 Corso Como, the eternally cool Milanese retailer, is coming to the Big Apple.   The Howard Hughes Corp, announced that the Milan-based retailer will open its first U.S. store in the Seaport District of lower Manhattan as part of the development’s ongoing transformation.    

Based on ongoing discussions with the Federal Trade Commission, Walgreens Boots Alliance gave an update on the amount of stores it will need to divest to win approval for its acquisition of Rite Aid.     Walgreens Boots Alliance said it now expects that the most likely outcome will be that the companies will be required to divest more than 500 stores, but fewer than 1,000 stores. The company previously said that it expected it would have to divest 500 or fewer stores.    

Pier I Imports is on the hunt for a new chief executive.   The home décor retailer said that its board of directors had  “mutually agreed” with Alex W. Smith that he will step down as president, CEO and a board member, effective Dec. 31, 2016. Pier I’s board is working with Korn Ferry to find a new CEO.  

Chain Store Age is pleased to announce that its sister brand, Retailing Today, has become part of a larger, more robust Chain Store Age, one with greater industry coverage and retail audience reach.   “With the merging of Retailing Today into Chain Store Age, readers and advertisers can expect a comprehensive brand representing the full range of omnichannel retail operations,” said Gary Esposito, group publisher, Chain Store Age.  

On the heels of announcing plans to open smaller, “local” stores, lululemon athletica hopes to further extend the breadth of its brand by expanding its ship-from-store service — just in time for the upcoming holiday shopping season.    The program, which currently encompasses 11 stores, will grow to 65 locations, a move that will streamline fulfillment of online orders, Laurent Potdevin, lululemon’s CEO, said during the company’s fiscal second quarter 2016 earnings call last week.  

Pacific Sunwear of California Inc. has won court approval to exit Chapter 11 bankruptcy.   The chain’s reorganization plan was approved by the court on Tuesday. Under the plan, the chain will give all its stock to affiliates of private equity firm Golden Gate Capital, its senior lender.   

Tory Burch is expanding its fledgling new retail format.   The company will open a 2,060-sq.-ft.  Tory Sport store at Mall of America, Bloomington, Minnesota, in late October.    Tory Sport, which launched in 2015, currently has a store in Manhattan’s Flatiron District and another in East Hampton, New York. In addition to the upcoming Mall of America store, it will open a location in Dallas, also this fall.  

The ability to scale solutions as a means of meeting customer expectations is the name of the game in omnichannel success.    By adding a new cloud-based retail suite, DSW is modernizing its back-office applications, and adding a new level of flexibility, security and innovation required in an always-evolving omnichannel landscape.   

Wayfair is making it even easier for shoppers to purchase home furnishings and décor from their mobile devices.  

Retail success is based on a blend of art and science. Office Depot is such an advocate that it is expanding its use of customer insights and dedication to customer science.