News

Spotlight on The Tile Shop
With home remodeling and housing starts on the rise, The Tile Shop is in a sweet spot. The specialty retailer of manufactured and nature stone tiles reported an 8.8% increase in net sales and a 4.9% increase in same-store sales for its first quarter. With 130 stores in 31 states, The Tile Shop displays its tiles in a showroomlike environment that includes full-room tiled displays and a design studio where customers can utilize 3-D renderings to visualize their design ideas.
TreeHouse Branches Out
Home improvement start-up is dedicated to healthy, sustainable homes
A start-up home improvement retailer with a green conscience has expanded out of its Austin, Texas, home with a first-of-its-kind store that’s generating lots of buzz.
TreeHouse has opened the nation’s first home improvement “energy positive” (meaning it will generate more energy than it uses) store, at The Hill, a shopping center in Dallas. It’s the start-up retailer’s second location — but not for long. An additional store, planned for the Plano, Texas, area, is due to open this fall.

Swire’s U.S. Statement

As striking as is the interior of Swire’s Brickell City Centre, where every turn of every corner is a possible photo for Architectural Digest, it’s the parking garage that impressed me most.
Aldi’s newest fulfillment center planned for Arizona

A German discount grocer is buying up land in the Grand Canyon State — but not to open stores. Aldi is planning to open a regional fulfillment center in Goodyear, Arizona. The facility will house an office and distribution center, and will create 132 jobs, according to the Phoenix Business Journal.
Four Steps to Prep for ‘Mobile 2.0’

Just when the industry is getting its arms around mobility, an evolution is underway. It’s being referred to as Mobile 2.0, and it’s all about moving away from static — even batched — information, and about retailers getting more interactive with mobile users. With shoppers wanting to be able to quickly browse merchandise availability, check their loyalty status and redeem rewards on their smartphones, mobile apps need to be as interactive as possible.
Camping World makes a new purchase

The largest U.S. chain dedicated to recreational vehicles is acquiring a new company. Camping World Holdings announced that it will purchase TheHouse.com, an online retailer specializing in bikes, sailboards, skateboards, wakeboards, snowboards and outdoor gear. Both companies will maintain distinct brands, with Camping World focusing on the outdoor camping and RV industry, and TheHouse.com continuing to provide its offering to shoppers with active outdoor lifestyles.
Teen retailer pulls the plug on U.K. business

Less than three years after opening stores across the pond, American Eagle Outfitters is closing up shop in the United Kingdom. The specialty retailer operates three stores in the U.K. It has already closed one location, and is winding down operations at its remaining two stores, as well as its British e-commerce site, according to the Telegraph.
See’s Candies to open new stores in The Golden State

A specialty retailer continues to expand its breadth. See’s Candies plans to open nearly a dozen new or relocated stores by the end of 2017. All new locations will set up shop in California. The new stores will be located in San Jose, Castro Valley, Manhattan Beach, Paso Robles, Laguna Hills, Glendale and Calabasas. The new locations come on the heels of new shops that have previously opened or moved this year into new or larger locations in Escondido, Windsor and Pleasant Hill, California.
Candy retailer acquired with eye to expansion

The nation's largest specialty candy retailer may soon get even bigger. BBX Capital Corp. has acquired It’Sugar for approximately $57 million. BBX said it plans to expand It'Sugar, which currently operates 95 locations in 26 states, by opening new retail stores in high-traffic leisure locations.
Online merchant’s mobile search and shopping gets visual

eBay is making it easier for mobile shoppers to browse its massive product catalog. The online merchant is adding two new solutions that rely on pictures instead of words to help customers search its online offering of 1.1 billion items. The tools, which are supported by artificial intelligence and machine learning, will help mobile shoppers pinpoint — and purchase — merchandise faster.