News

Barnes & Noble retail chief sells off shares
New York -- Mitchell Klipper, CEO of Barnes & Noble’s retail group., sold off two-thirds of his stock holdings in Barnes & Noble between Aug. 22 and Aug. 26 of this year. An SEC filing indicates that Klipper sold 400,000 of roughly 600,000 shares he held in the company, grossing more than $5.5 million.
Online retailer offers consumers in-store treatment
LAS VEGAS — Online retailer 6pm.com has promoted Jay Alexander to the newly created position of senior style adviser. This role was created to reinforce the brand's growth through on-trend, in-season merchandise and respond to customers' requests for access to a style expert.

In his new role, Alexander will leverage his designer relationships and knowledge of the latest runway and market trends to help customers score the best styles for their entire family — therein giving online consumers the in-store treatment.

Project Profiles

WOODBURY TOWN CENTER

Location: Irvine, Calif. (SR 133 —the Laguna Freeway and the I-5 Santa AnaFreeway)

Size: 462,000 sq. ft.

Developer: Irvine Co. Retail Properties

Grocery anchors: Ralphs Fresh Fare, Trader Joe's

Key tenants: Home Depot, LA Fitness, Walgreens, Staples

Status: Open and operating since 2007
Consumer confidence inches up in August

New York -- The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index which had declined in July, increased slightly in August. The Index now stands at 81.5, up from 81.0 in July.
Levi’s implements changes to leadership structure

SAN FRANCISCO — The Levi’s brand has made significant management changes to its leadership structure in an effort to drive innovative product and consumer engagement campaigns around the globe.
Many Happy Returns

MANY HAPPY RETURNS
It's no secret that the volume of returned items goes up dramatically during the holidays, and providing a streamlined returns mechanism that effectively guards against fraud is a big and often overlooked part of the in-store holiday experience. Here are two solutions that take a slightly different approach to helping retailers deliver a returns process that rewards good customers, while detecting those with less savory motives.
Pep Boys Courts Wider Audience

Small beginnings can lead to big things. That’s certainly true in the case of Pep Boys, which was founded in 1921 by four Navy buddies who pooled together $800 to open an auto parts store in Philadelphia. Today, with some 750 stores across the United States and Puerto Rico, the Philadelphia-based company is one of the nation’s leading auto supply and service providers.
Brown Shoe Co. swings from loss to profit

St. Louis – Brown Shoe Company swung from a net loss in the second quarter of fiscal 2012 to net earnings in the second quarter of fiscal 2013. The retailer also boosted net sales and same-store sales.
Social Media

Tools for engaging with holiday shoppers on the most popular social platforms
Social media platforms offer retailers a chance for direct engagement with consumers as well as access to highly personalized data, all in real or near-real time. During the holiday season, with its intensified levels of competition and customer distraction, having the type of direct promotional connection with customers that social media can offer is more crucial than ever.
Cool Technologies

In first U.S. application, H-E-B deploys energy-efficient, propane refrigeration system
H-E-B is thinking green — and out of the box — when it comes to refrigeration. The company is the first U.S. retailer to deploy a propane refrigeration system in its refrigerated display cases.
The Hussmann-designed system is in place in H-E-B’s new 83,000-sq.-ft. store in Austin, Texas, which is part of the redevelopment of an old airport site in the city’s Mueller neighborhood. The entire project is focused on sustainability and energy efficiency. So is H-E-B.