News

MINNEAPOLIS — Supervalu announced that Matt Rubel will stay on as a member of its board of directors, despite his retirement from Collective Brands.

Rubel retired as chairman, president and CEO of Collective Brands earlier this month. Per Supervalu's governance principles, he submitted his offer of resignation as a member of the board of directors. On June 28, the company’s Board of Directors unanimously rejected his offer of resignation.

Teen apparel retailer rue21 is celebrating the opening of its 700th store, in New Braunfels, Texas. The chain is on track to open 110 locations this year. Commented president and CEO Bob Fisch: “We remain one of the fastest growing retailers in the nation. I would like to thank our real estate, construction and field teams and recognize their hard work, which allows us to celebrate another significant milestone for rue21."
 

SAN FRANCISCO — Gap Inc. announced that it plans to open its first Gap store in Egypt this July and its first Gap and Banana Republic stores in Morocco this October. These store openings will mark the company’s first entry into Africa.

As part of an existing franchise agreement with The Fawaz Al Hokair Group, Gap will open its first Egyptian store in the Mall of Arabia in the capital city of Cairo. Two additional Gap stores will open at Cairo’s City Stars Mall and Sun City Mall this October.

Washington, D.C. -- The National Retail Federation said Thursday that it is disappointed in the final debit card swipe-fee regulations set by the Federal Reserve.

Under the new rule, the current debit card swipe-fee rate of 1%-2% of each transaction will be replaced with a flat fee of not more than 21 cents per transaction for the nation’s largest banks -- substantially higher than the flat fee of up to 12 cents the Fed originally proposed in December 2010.

WESTBOROUGH, Mass. — After months of speculation, BJ's Wholesale Club has entered a definitive agreement to be acquired by Leonard Green & Partners and CVC Capital Partners for an all-cash transaction valued at about $2.8 billion.

BJ’s board of directors unanimously approved the merger agreement — which is subject to approval of BJ’s shareholders, customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals — and recommends that all BJ’s shareholders vote in favor of the transaction.

Matthews, N.C. -- Family Dollar Stores' third-quarter net income increased 6.5% as broader markdowns drew more store traffic. Its results, however, fell short of analysts' expectations.

For the quarter ended May 28, Family Dollar had net income of $111.1 million, compared with $104.4 million a year earlier.

Revenue was up 8% to $2.15 billion. Same-store sales rose 4.7%.

Family Dollar said sales were strongest in consumables and home products.

Columbus, Ohio-based Steiner + Associates announced that the city of Hampton, Va. has been awarded the 2011 Donald E. Hunter Excellence in Economic Development Planning Award by the American Planning Association for the Peninsula Town Center. Located in Hampton, Va., the Peninsula Town Center represents the successful redevelopment of an enclosed mall into a vibrant town center, providing approximately 2,400 new jobs and significantly increasing the taxable sales base in the city. The site has been effectively transformed from the Coliseum Mall into a regional destination.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens on Wednesday unveiled plans to establish deeper roots on its home turf with its “Chicago Hometown Investment Initiative,” a plan that will create an estimated 600 new jobs in the city over the next two years and quadruple the number of Walgreens’ food oasis stores.