News

Mixed results for value retailer in Q4
99 Cents Only Stores turned in a strong sales performance for its fourth quarter, even as its net loss grew amid rising expenses. The retailer reported a net loss of $20.9 million for the quarter, versus a net loss of $18.4 million in the year ago period. Net sales increased 6.7% to $552.5 million, while same-store sales rose 6.4%. Average ticket gained 4.4% and customer traffic increased 1.9%. Operating loss was $6.5 million versus $2.7 million in the period a year prior.
Sears Holdings gives update on restructuring, real estate and finances
Things aren’t getting any better at Sears Holdings, at least not sales wise. The struggling chain on Friday provided an update on its restructuring program, increased its cost-saving target, and also gave a first quarter update. Since the beginning of the fiscal year, same-store sales at Sears and Kmart declined 11.9% on a combined basis, 10.8% when excluding consumer electronics, compared to the year-ago period.

Macy’s celebrates Earth Day with solar deployments

The nation’s largest department store has increased its deployment of renewable energy. Macy's Inc. said it installed 21 solar energy systems during the past year at Macy's and Bloomingdale's locations in seven states, totaling 15 meg-awatts. The deployments were done in partnership with SunPower. Elec-tricity generated by the new solar power systems will ultimately be sold to others.
Camper, Westfield, World Trade Center, New York City

Camper, the contemporary footwear brand based in Spain, stays true to its tradition of creating unique store experiences for shoppers at each of its locations at its new outpost in Manhattan. The 650-sq.-ft. store has a minimalist look, and features hardwood oak plank flooring with a satin finish. Oversized photo images provide a bold backdrop for product displays. The lighting is ambient and subdued in order to focus shoppers’ attention on the displays.
Fashion retailer closing all stores

It’s curtain time for Bebe Stores — or at least its brick-and-mortar operations.
UPS uses beacons to quell shipping errors

UPS is taking steps to improve order accuracy. A new program called Preload Smart Scan notifies workers if they have placed an item in the wrong delivery vehicle. Historically, these snafus forced drivers to travel miles out of their way to correct the mistakes.
Study: Even millisecond delays impact customer engagement, revenue

The user experience is critical to e-commerce success, a factor that makes snafus in Web performance unacceptable. Performance is so critical that even a 100-millisecond delay in website load time can hurt conversion rates by 7%. Meanwhile, a two-second delay in Web page load time increase bounce rates by 103%, according to the “State of Online Retail Performance,” a report from Akamai Technologies.
Two menswear brands step up digital personalization

Men’s Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank are not just enhancing customer experiences across their websites — they are personalizing them.
Study: Customized, enterprise-wide plans fight cyberthreats

Senior executives must be ready to tackle the legal and business risks associated with cyberthreats — even before they happen. This means companies must establish enterprise-wide tactics to identify risks, appraise response metrics and apply company-specific risk mitigation strategies, according to the “2017 Data Security Incident Response Report,” from BakerHostetler. The study analyzed more than 450 cyber incidents that the firm handled last year.
VF Corp. CIO to retire

VF Corp. is getting a new technology leader. Martin Schneider, the company’s VP and CIO will retire at the end of 2017. Sandra Harris, VP, global business technology, will succeed Schneider as VP and CIO, effective Jan. 1, 2018. Harris also has been appointed to VF’s senior leadership team.