News

As a prelude to the upcoming World Retail Congress in London (September 19- 21), five retail leaders who will be speaking at the event participated in the following Q&A:

What would you say is the biggest issue facing retailers today?
 

Hubert Joly is the new CEO at Best Buy.

Best Buy named former food service and hospitality executive Hubert Joly as president and CEO even as uncertainty lingers regarding a possible leveraged buyout engineered by former chairman and founder Richard Schulze.

Joly joins Best Buy after serving since 2008 as CEO of Minneapolis-based Carlson, a global hospitality and travel company known for such brands as Radisson hotels and TGI Friday’s restaurants. From 2003 to 2007, he led Carlson’s travel division.

The West Coast is getting its first taste of Uniqlo. The Japanese apparel powerhouse has opened a tech-inspired pop-up store, on Post Street in San Francisco. The temporary store will remain open until the end of September, prior to the opening of the company’s Union Square flagship.

MINNEAPOLIS — Supervalu on Monday announced Robert Bly will join the company as president of Shoppers, a 56-store division in the Baltimore/Washington, D.C., market.

Bly is expected to begin his new role on Aug. 22 and will report to Chuck Elias, SVP retail operations. Bly replaces Tim Lowe, who recently accepted a new leadership role in Supervalu's merchandising organization.

Philadelphia -- Urban Outfitters Inc.’s profit for the second quarter rose 8% to $61.3 million from $56.7 million in the year-ago period, helped by strong sales as its namesake stores.

Total company net sales for the quarter, ended July 31, rose by 11% over the same quarter last year to $676 million. Same-store net sales, which include the direct-to-consumer channel, increased 4% for the quarter, while comparable store net sales decreased 1%.

MINNEAPOLIS — Caribou Coffee Co. announced it will be expanding its retail and commercial footprint in the Chicagoland area by teaming up with supermarket operator Jewel-Osco, which is part of the Supervalu company.

Caribou Coffee opened its first retail location within Jewel-Osco's Barrington store last week, with plans to introduce two additional coffeehouses in the grocery's Hoffman Estates and Countryside locations in the near future, as well as five additional coffeehouses within Jewel-Osco in 2013.

NEW YORK — Stacy London, host of TLC's "What Not To Wear," will serve has host during New York & Company's Fashion's Night Out event on Sept. 6.

The retailer's participation in the event will include an in-store DJ at its 58th & Lexington Store, who will spin music while London and her team help style customers.

Mooresville, N.C.-based Lowe’s posted declines in net sales, comp-store sales and earnings in the second quarter ended Aug. 3.

“Our results fell short of our overall expectations,” said Robert Niblock, Lowe’s chairman, president and CEO. “However, I have confidence in our strategy and in our employees, and while we recognize the significant magnitude of change that we’ve asked the organization to absorb as we transform our business, we fully understand that we must improve our level of execution.”