News

Washington -- Lawyers representing the National Retail Federation and many of the nation’s most prominent retail companies are set to appear in court today to ask a federal judge to reject a proposed class-action settlement of an antitrust lawsuit over the $30 billion a year in credit card swipe fees charged by Visa and MasterCard.



New York -- PTC announced that Brooks Brothers Group Inc. has chosen PTC Windchill FlexPLM software, PTC's Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solution for retail, to improve product design and development effectiveness, reduce costs and better capture market opportunities.

Dallas -- J.C. Penney Co. Inc. on Friday reported a 26.1% decline in third-quarter same-store sales, more than the 17.9% that Wall Street analysts were expecting.

Overall sales fell 26.6% to $2.93 billion. Internet sales fell 37.3% to $214 million.

The company said that its net loss narrowed to $123 million in the third quarter ended Oct. 27, from $143 million a year earlier. The loss was wider than analysts had expected.

MENOMONEE FALLS, Wis. — Kohl’s third quarter sales increased 2.6% to $4.5 billion, and comparable-store sales were up 1.1%, in line with the company's expectations.

The retailer's net income for the third quarter rose 14% to 91 cents per diluted share. Net income was $215 million compared with $211 million, or 80 cents per diluted share, a year ago.

SAN FRANCISCO — Williams-Sonoma has launched a new, direct-to-consumer brand, Mark and Graham, which specializes in personalized gifts and accessories.

The Mark and Graham line will feature home decor, small leather goods and seasonal items that can be personalized with a choice of more than 50 custom monograms and creative type treatments. The brand will offer its products through an exclusive direct mail catalog and an e-commerce website Markandgraham.com.

PURCHASE, N.Y. — The Stop & Shop Supermarket Company LLC and its parent company Ahold USA have donated $2.5 million to the American Red Cross to support Hurricane Sandy cleanup and recovery efforts. The money, which came from the companies and their charitable foundation, Our Family Foundation, will mainly go to the hardest hit areas in New Jersey, New York and Connecticut. Stop & Shop has also designated stores in New York and New Jersey as drop-off points for canned and packaged food.

NEW YORK — Luxury shoe retailer Stuart Weitzman has promoted Susan Duffy to chief marketing officer. Duffy, who joined the company in April 2011 as SVP global marketing and communications, will continue to lead marketing, advertising, public relations and social media to ensure the branding message is consistent across all worldwide communications platforms as the company expands into new markets.

DALLAS — Zale Corp. has partnered with Shaquille O'Neal for a new, exclusive collection of men’s jewelry.

The Shaquille O’Neal Collection will offer a variety of men’s pendants, rings and bracelets. The collection will be offered exclusively in select Zale stores throughout the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico and online at Zales.com/shaq, just in time for holiday gift giving.

SUNNYVALE, Calif. — Fujitsu has teamed up with its longstanding partner SAP AG to build a new packaged integration component, which will integrate Fujitsu's next-generation retail Point of Service application with the SAP(R) for retail portfolio solutions. The resulting extended capabilities will deliver significant multichannel benefits in terms of customer service, front-office business process improvements and point-of-sale improvements to retailers.

WAYNE, N.J. — Toys"R"Us has partnered with Canada’s leading maternity fashion brand Thyme Maternity to provide its Babies"R"Us customers across the United States with a new collection of maternity apparel and accessories. The collection is available at www.Babiesrus.com and is scheduled to be featured in approximately 150 Babies"R"Us stores nationwide in the coming weeks.