News

Rob Price, SVP marketing and advertising and chief marketing officer for CVS/pharmacy, has left the company to take a new role, the retailer said in a statement sent to sister publication Drug Store News.    

“Rob led the retail marketing team during a period of tremendous growth and strong financial performance and brought numerous positive changes to the business. We thank Rob for his important contributions and wish him the best of luck in the next phase of his career,” the company stated.

Barnes & Noble chairman Leonard Riggio has sold a portion of his holdings of company stock.

Riggio said he sold 3.7 million shares of common stock, after which his holdings are expected to represent approximately 20% of Barnes & Noble’s common stock outstanding.

“After this sale I remain the company’s largest shareholder, a position I feel very good about,” said Riggio. “I love this company and I believe in its future as I do in all of the wonderful people who work here.”

A $1 million donation from Walmart CEO Doug McMillion and his wife Shelley to the University of Arkansas will help kick start the creation of a new School of Global Retail Operations and Innovation.

Urban Outfitters has named Trish Donnelly as president of Urban Outfitters brand, North America reporting directly to Ted Marlow, CEO, Urban Outfitters Group, effective July 14.

Dole and Blue Diamond Almond Breeze are launching two simultaneous Peel the Love Banana Cabana Tours in 2014.

Dole said that the tour aims to reacquaint Americans with “the fun, whimsy and versatility of bananas and offer compelling new ways to add fresh produce to summer meals, snacking, parties and entertaining plans.” Since separate tours launching Memorial Day Weekend covering the Eastern and Western portions of the U.S., Dole will be able to visit banana fans in 26 cities by Labor Day.

William Blair & Company analyst Mark Miller has followed Walmart for a long time, but he didn’t have much good to say about the company when he issued a downgrade this week.

Miller lowered his rating on Walmart to underperform from market perform and cited some familiar and unfamiliar concerns. For example, one of his main concerns related to Walmart’s size and complexity which he contends reduces dynamism and growth.

Target is expanding its online subscription service with a nearly tenfold increase in available items — from 200 to more than 1,500 — and adding a 5% discount on all subscription orders.

The service, which launched September 2013 with a focus on babycare products, now accounts for more than 15% of online sales for eligible items, according to the company. The new expanded program will go beyond babycare to include cleaning supplies, health and beauty aids, pet treats and training pads.
 

Sherwin-Williams chairman and CEO Christopher M. Connor said strong performance in the paint stores group helped fuel consolidated net sales in the first quarter, with a slight offset on domestic sales thanks to severe weather.

The company reported a slight drop in net income during the first quarter of fiscal 2014, to $115.46 million from $116.18 million. Net sales fared better, rising 9% to $2.37 billion from $2.17 billion.

Sherwin-Williams expects consolidated net sales to rise 8%-14% in the second quarter.

New York -- Sycamore Partners announced that it has reorganized the remaining businesses of The Jones Group into four independent operating companies: the Nine West Group, a jeanswear company (which will be named later), Jones New York, and the Kasper Group. Each will operate as an independent company led by its own management team. In line with the new decentralized structure, Wesley R. Card will step down as CEO and John T. McClain will step down as CFO of The Jones Group

By Rodney Mason, CMO, parago

Today, consumers have more information sources to help them make purchasing decisions. Smartphones, tablets, social media and the Internet — combined with traditional shopping channels like magazines and direct mail — means that deal-finding and comparison-shopping methods are almost always at consumers’ fingertips. As a result, shoppers are making their purchases faster.