News

The nature of competition in the retail industry is not what it used to be. Decades of consolidation concentrated sales among a top tier of mega-retailers fueled deal-making among product manufacturers and others who serve the retail industry.

The top 10 U.S. retailers now account for more than $1,200,000,000,000 (zeroes added for effect) and that figure swells to $1.5 trillion if the next 10 largest are include. The big have gotten bigger and will continue to do so in the near term, however there is also a dramatic “re-fragmentation” of the retail industry underway.

The 50th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards show is April 19 and video and e-commerce retailer QVC has aligned itself with the event through a range of merchandising and live broadcast initiatives.

Chain Store Age editors conducted video interviews with key industry suppliers at SPECS 2015 in Las Vegas. Get updated on the latest trends and happenings in store design/planning, construction and facilities solutions and materials by clicking here.

It’s important to balance not only the flooring product selection but also color consistency across materials, employee and customer comfort, risk management, slip-and-fall issues, branding, sustainability and more. Meet Mark Bischoff with Tarkett, as he discusses what it means to marry design and safety in a space as well as how Tarkett manages national and international rollouts.

Some of the biggest names in retail soon will be honored in the nation’s capital when the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy host an annual event to recognize Energy Star Partners of the Year.

Among this year’s award recipients are Home Depot, Sears, Best Buy, Kroger, Kohl’s, Food Lion, Staples and JCPenney. The eight retailers are among 128 total companies being honored as Energy Star Partners of the Year from the roughly 16,000 companies who partner with EPA on the broad-based energy efficiency program.

Commerce, Calif. - Smart & Final Stores Inc. is pricing an underwritten public offering of 10 million shares of its common stock at $18.50 per share. The shares are owned by certain stockholders of the company, including affiliates of Ares Management L.P.

Walmart’s share price will be under pressure in the coming years as a holding company created decades ago by the Walton family to control their ownership of the company prepares to unload as much as 6% of Walmart’s outstanding shares.

Evine Live, the digital commerce company formerly known as ShopHQ, named Penny Burnett senior vice president and chief merchandising officer.

In her new role, Burnett will report to Mark Bozek, CEO of Evine live, a digital commerce company that offers customers multiple ways to shop and interact via television, online and on mobile devices in merchandise categories such as home, beauty, health and fitness, fashion and accessories, jewelry and watches and consumer electronics.