News

Lowe’s will begin carrying a line of outdoor sheds made of structural insulated panels (SIPS) at its 1,700 retail locations, as well as through its website. But unlike traditional SIPS – rigid foam insulation between two panels of oriented strand board (OSB) – the new product will be made with sheets of magnesium oxide, often referred to as MgO.

And the winner is… Oracle selects technology executive at Chile’s top department store chain for ultimate honor.

The average American has never heard of the Falabella chain of department stores, but the company dominates its home market of Chile and is regarded as a leader in the use of technology. So much so that when Oracle held its annual Retail Excellence Awards recently, it named Falabella’s VP technology and development, Julius Odian, as its Retailer Executive of the Year.

Oak Brook, Ill. -- McDonald's Corp. reported Monday that net income for the quarter ended June 30 dipped 4% to $1.3 billion, from $1.4 billion in the same period last year.

Revenue was essentially flat at $6.915 billion, compared with $6.905 billion in 2011.
   
Global same-store sales increased 3.7%, led by Europe at 3.8% growth and the United States with 3.6% growth.
 

Washington, D.C. -- The National Retail Federation reiterated its call on Congress to address a loophole that allows most online sellers to avoid sales tax collection to the detriment of local retailers and communities.

LOS ANGELES — Back-to-school shoppers plan on stretching their dollar and taking advantage of retailer incentives to save, PriceGrabber said.

FOOTHILL RANCH, Calif. — Wet Seal has terminated the employment of its CEO, Susan McGalla, and has begun a search for a new executive to head the struggling young women's apparel retailer.

Until such a person is found, Wet Seal president and COO and Steve Benrubi, CFO, will serve as co-principal execuitve officers and members of the office of the chairman, led by Hal Kahn, until a new CEO is elected by the board of directors.

For the month-to-date, Wet Seal's comps have declined between 13% and 14%.

Roseville, Calif. -- End-to-end merchandise optimization solution-provider Revionics said that beverage retailer BevMo! has selected Revionics as the provider of its price and promotions optimization system.
 
In a three-year agreement, Revionics will be providing BevMo! Revionics Price Optimization for base price management and optimization and Revionics Promotion Optimization for promotion planning and optimization.

Teen retailer Five Below is looking to become a household name following a wildly successful public stock offering this week that could see the company expand its store base from the current 200 units to 2,000.