News

By Jonathan Lapat and Jason Baker, [email protected], [email protected]

Amsterdam -- Ahold reported Friday that sales for the fourth quarter rose 7.5% to $10.4 billion, boosted largely by its ability to keep U.S. stores open during Hurricane Sandy, said the company. Same-store sales advanced 2.8%.

Its U.S. business includes the Stop & Shop, Giant-Landover and Giant-Carlisle supermarket banners and the Peapod online grocery service. Ahold posted fourth quarter sales of $6.1 billion in the U.S., marking a 4.3% rise over the year-ago period.

For the full fiscal year, sales increased 8.5% to $43.6 billion.

New York -- From solutions having to do with enterprise business intelligence to mobility, there were a host of retail technology deployments announced at the National Retail Federation’s 102nd Annual Convention & Expo. Here is a quick recap of some key applications:

It’s going to be a long night for employees of the Rockfish digital solutions firm as they conduct a first of its kind event called a "Hackathon," designed to yield rapid innovation.

Wegman’s, Whole Foods, Nordstrom and Men’s Wearhouse were among the 14 retailers included on the 2013 edition of Fortune’s 100 Best Companies to Work for.

TTi Floor care, manufacturing of Hoover and Dirt Devil floor care products, is investing in American innovation.

The Glenwillow, Ohio-based company said it would hire more than 200 new electrical engineers, mechanical engineers, technicians and industrial designers nationwide over the next three years. The increased investment in engineering, innovation and design is part of the company’s strategy to stay at the forefront of its industry.

Family Dollar’s annual dividend now exceeds a dollar following a 24% increase on Friday.

The annual payout now totals $1.04 following a decision by the Family Dollar board to elevate the quarterly dividend to 26 cents a share from 21 cents a share. In addition, the board authorized the repurchase of an additional $300 million in stock under an existing program that had only $94 million in authorization remaining.

HOUSTON — Walgreens and Televisa Consumer Products on Friday announced an initiative to engage Hispanic customers and gain additional insight into the Hispanic community through the introduction of TCP's health and wellness products.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Luxury shoppers are more likely to use mobile channels when shopping but are slightly less satisfied with e-commerce overall, according to the Luxury E-Retail Satisfaction Index released by customer experience analytics firm ForeSee. Luxury brands have an aggregate score of 77 on the study's 100-point scale, falling just short of the average score of the top 100 online retailers overall (78).

ARLINGTON, Va. — The National Association of Chain Drug Stores has announced former Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates as the keynote speaker for the 2013 NACDS Annual Meeting, which will be held April 20 to 23 in Palm Beach, Fla.