News

SAN DIEGO — Walmart, Sam’s Club and Operation Homefront kicked off their nationwide series Saluting Heroes Together with a community-wide military appreciation event in San Diego on Armed Forces Day, Saturday, May 18. 

The event was the first in a series of tributes the organizations are hosting across the country to honor men and women who have or are currently serving, as well as their families.

OAKLAND, Calif. — Columbia Sportswear is headed to the Gartner Supply Chain Executive Conference, being held May 21-23, in Phoenix, Ariz., to share insights and best practices for deploying cloud technology alongside GT Nexus. 

Fred Pond, VP, CIO of Columbia Sportswear, and Kurt Cavano, chief strategy officer at GT Nexus, will share lessons learned from Columbia's technology approach to executing global procure-to-pay processes in which buyers, suppliers, financial institutions and other key third parties operate on the same cloud platform.

SAN LEANDRO, Calif. — The North Face, the outdoor product company specializing in outerwear, footwear and backpacks, is partnering with state parks around the country to encourage participation in outside activities. 

Seattle -- Starbucks Coffee Co. has appointed Deverl Maserang as executive VP leading the company’s global supply chain organization, effective June 3. He will be accountable for end-to-end supply chain operations globally spanning manufacturing, engineering, procurement, distribution, planning, transportation, inventory management and worldwide sourcing.

Maserang joins Starbucks from Chiquita Brands International, where he led the Global Value Chain for Chiquita and Fresh Express.

Seattle -- Nordstrom Inc. reported its first quarter net income fell a greater-than-expected 3%, hurt by weak demand for spring merchandise and softer performance in the Northeast and Midwest. The company also lowered its full-year sales forecast.

The results were a rare miss for the upscale department store chain whose shoppers have proved resilient throughout the uncertain economy.

Houston -- Stage Stores reported a loss of $6.9 million for the first quarter, compared with a loss of $418,000 for the year-ago period, as the retailer dealt with cool weather that put a damper on sales of spring apparel.
 
"The unseasonably cool weather in March and April, particularly when compared to last year's warm spring, strongly impacted our sales performance," president and CEO Michael Glazer said.

Revenue rose 4% to $378.6 million from $365.7 million. Same-store sales inched up 0.7%.
 

A huge redevelopment in Longmont, Colo., now has big new tenant names to promote. NewMark Merrill Mountain States has just named three new anchors for the redeveloped Twin Peaks Mall: Longmont’s first Whole Foods Market; a new, state-of-the-art Regal Cinemas; and Sam’s Club. The project, which is slated to open in 2014, also unveiled its new name – Village at the Peaks.
 

Plano, Texas -- J.C. Penney Co. reported a deeper-than-expected loss of $348 million for its first quarter, compared to $163 million in the year-ago period, amid a 16.4% decline in revenue. The results came as the company seeks to undo the damage caused by former CEO Ron Johnson’s costly and largely failed makeover.

PLANO, Texas — J.C. Penney reported a deeper-than-expected loss of $348 million for its first quarter, compared to $163 million in the year-ago period, amid a 16.4% decline in revenue. The results came as the company seeks to undo the damage caused by former CEO Ron Johnson’s costly and largely failed makeover.

CHICAGO — Indianapolis-based appliance and electronics retailer HH Gregg is looking to Leo Burnett USA and Spark SMG, a full-service media agency of Starcom MediaVest Group, to help it expand brand awareness for its products.

"From the beginning, Leo Burnett and Spark demonstrated a deep understanding of our business and our vision for the future," said Jeff Pearson, SVP of marketing. "After a diligent process we chose Leo Burnett and Spark as the best agencies to help us build a winning national brand."