News

Profit rises 14% at Children's Place in Q4
The Children's Place posted strong same-store sales for the fourth quarter as the children’s clothes retailer also released an upbeat forecast for the year.

For the fourth quarter ended Jan. 30, net sales increased 4% to $498.5 million. Same store sales increased 6.7%. Net income was $17.5 million, or 87 cents per diluted share, in the fourth quarter of 2015, compared to net income of $17 million, or 79 cents per diluted share, the previous year.
Can retailers count on the Bieber effect this spring?
Retailers who sell Calvin Klein brand apparel are watching sales closely to see how the fashion brand is impacted by a new deal with pop star Justin Bieber that changes how brands engage with celebrities to drive sales.

Bieber has embarked on a world tour for the first time in four years to support his new best-selling album "Purpose" – and help sell Calvin Klein products. That’s good news for retailers because Bieber has lots of fans and the Calvin Klein brand will be deeply woven into live performances and integrated into social media efforts.

Report: Amazon wants to patent selfie payment

The struggle to dominate leading-edge mobile payment technology may be taking an even more competitive turn. According to Re/Code, Amazon.com has filed a patent application for a process that would allow consumers to authenticate mobile transactions with digital photos of themselves, rather than with passwords. MasterCard recently announced it will roll out a similar-sounding technology called “Selfie Pay.” [Re/Code]
Groupon makes a cross-platform deal

Online deal provider Groupon is offering it merchants new digital tools designed to ease the creation and management of marketing campaigns across Web, mobile and tablet devices.

The updates are being provided under the Groupon Merchant brand, a new tablet app that allows users to track and manage their Groupon campaign and more self-service deal options. The goal is to deliver the ability to customize the structure and appearance of Groupon promotions.

Specific new digital Groupon offerings include:
Newegg says ‘eh’ to same-day pickup

Soon Canadian technology enthusiasts will have a new, faster option for fulfilling online purchases.

Digital computer and electronics retailer Newegg is opening a physical pickup center at its warehouse in Vancouver. In September 2015, Newegg sought to decrease the time and cost associated with order fulfillment to customers in Western Canada with the opening of its Vancouver warehouse.

Adding the pickup center now gives customers in the Vancouver area the chance to fulfill their orders the same day, with no delivery fee.
SPECS Exclusive: Construction goes high tech

Although the construction industry lags other major verticals in IT spending, technology is still having a dramatic impact.

“We are at the intersection of technology and buildings,” said James M. Benham, CEO of construction technology firm JBKnowledge, during a session at Chain Store Age’s SPECS 2016 conference at Hilton Anatole in Dallas, March 13-15. The session, “Future Forecast: Drones, Sensors, Integrated Apps,” examined how leading-edge technology is changing the construction industry.
DSW is edging closer to 500-store mark

DSW Inc. says strong sales in the fourth quarter show that its growth strategy is working, and the retailer says it plans to open at least 34 new stores this year.

For the fourth quarter ended Jan. 30, the company reported a profit of $11.8 million, or 14 cents a share, down from $30.8 million, or 34 cents a share, a year earlier. Revenue rose 5% to $672 million. Same-store sales increased 0.7%.
Best Buy adds Silicon Valley heft to board

The board of directors at Best Buy Co. is losing a longtime board member and gaining a new voice with experience in forming relationships with top venture capitalists in Silicon Valley.

The retailer announced that former CEO Brad Anderson will retire from the board of directors and that the company has appointed corporate venture capital leader Claudia Fan Munce to the board.Anderson will serve the remainder of his term through the end of the annual shareholder meeting on June 14. Munce will stand for election at that time.
Stein Mart names a new CEO

Stein Mart has named a new CEO just a week after a tough fourth quarter in which the retailer posted a decline in profit.

The Florida-based company says it has appointed Dawn Robertson as CEO and a member of the board of directors. Robertson will also have the responsibilities of chief merchant for the foreseeable future, the company said. She succeeds Jay Stein, the company's founder and long standing CEO, who had advised the board of his desire to step back from that position but remain Stein Mart's chairman of the board.
Neiman Marcus comps decline for 2nd straight quarter

Neiman Marcus posted declines in revenue and same-store sales on the same day that the company losta 25-year veteran who had been responsible for in-store visual design.
Amazon confirms second location for Amazon Books

The giant of online retailing apparently is developing a taste for brick-and-mortar.

In news that is likely to set off a wave of speculation, Amazon confirmed it will open its second physical bookstore, this time at Westfield UTC mall in San Diego, California. Amazon Books is expected to open at the open-air shopping center sometime this summer.
Starbucks opens first-of-a-kind store in Queens, New York

Starbucks on Monday opened a store in the Jamaica section of Queens, New York, which has a strong job training component.

The location is the first in a nationwide initiative Starbucks announced last summer to open stores in at least 15 diverse urban communities across the United States by 2018, with the aim to create new jobs, engage local women and minority-owned vendors and suppliers, and collaborate with local nonprofits to support training opportunities for youth in the individual communities.