News

Ending its fiscal year with a strong fourth quarter has helped J.Jill hit year-over-year earnings growth for 20 consecutive quarters.   For the quarter ended January 28, 2017, the retailer’s total net sales increased by 14.8% to $166.9 million, up from $145.4 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2015. Gross profit increased to $105.5 million, up from $91.4 million in the same period last year. As a percentage of total net sales, gross profit was 63.2% compared to 62.9% in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2015.  

Shop!, the global non-profit trade association dedicated to enhancing retail environments and experiences, has announced the winners of its 46th year annual store design competition, and a specialty store took top honors.    

VF Corp.'s new strategy is focused on maintaining the company's longevity — even in a rapidly changing marketplace.

A stronger focus on product innovation and digital initiatives contributed to gains during Lululemon’s fourth quarter, but a slow start to the year impacted the company’s expectations for Q1 2017.  

On a recent trip to Seattle, my luggage was lost and I found myself without anything to wear except for the clothes on my back. I urgently needed a suit for a business meeting and decided Nordstrom was the best place to start given I was in the retailer’s hometown.   

In light of Target shares dropping 15% after their latest earnings announcement, Target CEO Brian Cornell said executives would be detailing moves for greater pricing aggressiveness and increased merchandise differentiation, both tactics that Target has been known for historically. Cornell’s pricing reference led to speculation about a price war with Walmart, which many experts surmise Target simply can’t win. Speculation aside, is a price war poised to erupt between these two mega-retailers?    

Retailers may soon have a voice when it comes to disclosing surcharges related to card payments.    The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday, March 29, that First Amendment free speech rights should be considered when determining how merchants disclose to their shoppers that credit card swipe fees can drive up the price of merchandise.   

Cumberland Farms, a convenience store fixture in New England and central Florida for half a century, once fielded more than 1,000 stores. Today it has pared down to 600 stores as it transforms itself from a strip-center and gas station dairy store to a chain of freestanding, modern C-stores providing food service and gasoline, along the lines of Quik Check and Wawa.  

Amazon is getting is shutting down one of its units after it failed to turn a profit.   The company pulling the plug on Quidsi, parent company of diapers.com, soap.com and several other shopping sites, which it purchased in 2010. The news was first reported by Bloomberg.   

A growing supermarket retailer in the Adriatic region has deployed a solution to better manage its disparate inventory levels.   Konzum, part of the 2,000-store Agrokor group with 2,000 stores in the Adriatic region, has been expanding its footprint through accelerated acquisitions have accelerated Konzum’s growth.  But the strategy has created a diversified store network, each with different store layouts and inventories. These issues also force the grocery chain to manage disparate inventory files, and deal with order exceptions.