News

Macy’s closes Bluemercury acquisition
Cincinnati -- Macy announced the completion of its previously announced acquisition of beauty products and spa services retailer Bluemercury, for $210 million in cash.
It's official: PetSmart to go private
PetSmart’s investors have officially approved a buyout of the company by a private equity firm, setting up a payout to stockholders of $83 per share.

In December, PetSmart announced it accepted a bid on the company for $8.7 billion. The company expects the transaction to close on March 11. The buyout means PetSmart will become a private company.

Ron Johnson leads $16 million funding in Nasty Gal; second store in works

Los Angeles -- Ron Johnson is sweet on teen fave Nasty Gal. The online edgy- fashion retailer recently closed $16 million in funding to support its growth. The round was led by former Apple retail chief and Penney CEO Ron Johnson, who also joined the company’s board.
NPD Group and Nielsen get cooking at Housewares Show

The biggest news at the International Home and Housewares Show didn’t involve a new product introduction, but rather an information sharing arrangement between The NPD Group and Nielsen that will help retailers and supplier make sense of the market.
Tech Guest Viewpoint: 5 Ways the IoT Will Revolutionize Retail

By Brendan O’Brien, Aria Systems

You’ve undoubtedly heard about the Internet of Things (IoT) and you might think that it’s all about wearables and energy savings. You might conclude that it doesn’t have much to do with your retail business.

Well think again.

The business impact on the retail sector from the IoT – the monitoring, measuring and reporting of all kinds of interconnected devices – is going to be huge. Bigger than anything we’ve seen before in technology.
Ross rolling toward 2,000

Ross Stores is less than two months into its new fiscal year and already the company is halfway home on its 2015 new store growth plan and asserting its long term potential.

Ross confirmed that since the beginning of its fiscal year on Feb. 1, it opened 32 Ross Dress for Less stores and five dd’s Discounts stores in 15 states.

The company’s full year plan disclosed when fourth quarter results were released on Feb. 26, calls for 70 Ross stores and 20 dd’s Discounts stores.
7-Eleven launches mobile loyalty program

Dallas – 7-Eleven is the latest in a growing lineup of retailers that has entered the mobile loyalty space. Just launched on the 7-Eleven mobile app is 7Rewards, an expanded customer loyalty platform that rewards customers with a free beverage for every six cups purchased.
Retailers’ ethics don’t make Ethisphere grade

The Ethisphere Institute is out with its “World’s Most Ethical Companies” list and the names of retailers are few and far between.
Retailers Embrace In-Store Pickup Amid Rising Shipping Costs

By Gregg Aamoth, CEO, POPcodes

The onset of 2015 marked a huge change in shipping costs, and as a result retailers are struggling to find ways to maintain their bottom lines. As of Jan. 1, packages are now being evaluated by their “dimensional weight,” or volume, instead of determining price by weight alone. Experts say that the when combined with other annual rate hikes and surcharges, the resulting average rate increases will be as high as 30% or more.
From Zales, a promotion fit for a princess

Fans of Cinderella will have a chance to write their own happily-ever-after with a new digital marketing campaign from Zales Jewelers.

As part of Zales’ promotion of Disney’s new “Cinderella” movie (out this month), Zales is inviting Cinderella fans to upload a photo with their prince charming to its website (www.zales.com/Cinderella) or on Instagram using the hashtag #ZalesCinderellaPromo. Through a sweepstakes drawing, a grand prize winner will be selected to receive a $10,000 Zales gift card. A first runner up will receive a $1,000 Zales gift card.