News

Parsippany, N.J. - Facebook and RB, a provider of health and hygiene products, have entered into a multi-year, nine-figure global partnership. The two companies have committed to integrating members of their global sales, marketing and creative teams to connect RB brands like Lysol, Mucinex, MegaRed and Air Wick with consumers on Facebook.

Lakeland, Fla. – Net earnings at Publix Super Markets slightly increased to $404.1 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2014 from $400.1 million in the year-ago period.

Net sales rose about 7% to $7.5 billion from $7 billion, aided by the shift of the Easter holiday to the second quarter of the current fiscal year from the first quarter of the previous fiscal year. Same-store sales rose 6.3%.

Asheville, N.C. – Ingles Markets Inc. swung to a profit of $13.83 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2014 from a net loss of $14.42 million in the third quarter of the prior fiscal year. The elimination of debt refinancing costs from the previous fiscal year helped push Ingles Markets into the black.

Net sales rose 5% to $978.26 million from $934.01 million. Same-store sales increased 2.1%, benefiting from an Easter shift to the third quarter of fiscal 2014 from the second quarter of the previous fiscal year.

San Francisco – Out-of-stocks and placement continue to be key issues for back-to-school retail efforts. According to a field study of 465 retailers across the U.S. from mobile contractor Gigwalk, 47% of the retailers visited had an issue with their back-to-school displays.

Forty-five percent were due to the product being out of stock, followed by missing price and having the product in the wrong display. Other findings include:

• 49% plan to spend more this back-to-school season.

Wayne, N.J. – Toys “R” Us is launching an omnichannel promotion called “C’mon Let’s Play” in partnership with advertising agency The Escape Pod and 'Action Movie Kid' YouTube channel creator Daniel Hashimoto. The campaign includes TV ads and in-cinema advertising.

San Diego – ProFlowers is offering the “Love is a Journey” campaign, on Twitter and Instagram in August. Qualified entrants can post photos of what romance means to them via Twitter and Instagram using #LoveIsAJourney and #ProFlowersSweeps for a chance to win a Princess Cruises vacation.

Entrants can see their photos at Loveisajourney.proflowers.com. ProFlowers will also run a Paris-themed pop-up shop in the Times Square pedestrian plaza on Broadway between 42nd and 43rd Streets on Aug. 5.

Paducah, Ky. – Ice cream retailer Dippin' Dots has launched a fully interactive mobile site that integrates augmented reality with a fan loyalty program known as the Dot Crazy Rewards Club. The program, named Bubandu, provides a universal augmented reality viewer from Rocktops Digital Media that enables companies to market their brands on a mobile device without having to build an app.

Dallas – The global Electronic Shelf Labels (ESL) market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 18.03% during the period 2013-2018. According to a new report from Sandler Research, one of the key factors contributing to this market growth is the reduction in labor costs.

The global Electronic Shelf Labels market has also been witnessing the increasing demand for ESL by retail stores. However, Sandler Research advises the increasing competition among vendors could pose a challenge to the growth of this market.

Schaumburg, Ill. - Motorola Solutions Inc. has introduced the new Symbol CS4070 wireless handheld Bluetooth scanner that can pair with any Bluetooth-enabled tablet, smartphone or laptop to provide enterprise-class 1D and 2D bar-code scanning. The CS4070 works with all Android, iOS and Windows tablets, laptops and smartphones.

Lafayette, La. - ARC Group Inc., owner, operator and franchisor of the Dick's Wings & Grill concept, has named Chris Perrella has joined the company as its director of marketing.