News

MATTHEWS, N.C. — With Father’s Day just around the corner, Family Dollar is touting its small-store format, accessible staff and assorted product offerings to draw shoppers into its stores.

The value retailer is offering greeting cards, apparel and grills, while reminding shoppers that stores carry not only grills but also charcoal, coolers, hot dogs, hamburgers and even condiments.

Washington, D.C. -- A report released Thursday by the Commerce Dept. said that retail sales in the U.S. gained 0.6% in May, more than forecast and likely boosted by increased hiring during the month.

The increase was the largest in three months and followed a 0.1% advance in April. Bloomberg economists called for a 0.4% increase. The figures used to calculate economic growth, which exclude categories such as automobiles, climbed 0.3%.

Fremont, Calif. -- The Men's Wearhouse Inc. reported Wednesday that net income for the first quarter rose 23% to $33.1 million, from $26.9 million last year.  

Sales for the company that runs Men’s Wearhouse namesake stores, along with the Moores and K&G chains, increased 5.1% to $616.5 million, beating Wall Street’s expected $604.7 million in revenue. Same-store sales rose 7.1% at namesake stores, but slid 5.3% at K&G.

DALLAS — Huggies has tapped former Miss Universe Zuleyka Rivera as its latest brand ambassador. Rivera will be promoting Huggies' new diapers and wipes.

"This past year has been filled with some amazing moments, like the birth of my son, Sebastian," Rivera said. "Parenting has been full of surprises — the good, the bad and the messy. That's why I rely on Huggies diapers and wipes to help us pass any test and keep Sebastian clean and dry."

PURCHASE, N.Y. — PepsiCo has chosen three schools as the grand prize winners of the 2012-13 PepsiCo Dream Machine Recycle Rally, a national recycling program and contest designed to encourage students to recycle every day.  

Chicago -- Omnichannel specialty apparel retailer Threadless takes an active approach to Twitter marketing that has resulted in significant lifts in site traffic and customer engagement. At the recent Internet Retailer conference in Chicago, representatives from Threadless and Twitter discussed how retailers can get more from their Twitter campaigns.

“Every tweet was a call to action,” said Threadless Marketing Director Todd Lido. “We were seeing growth but it felt like the strategy was getting stale.”

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Ray Cook Golf, a leading golf manufacturer, has appointed John Holst as director of sales. In this role, Holst will oversee sales strategy and partner programs while building the Ray Cook brand.

He will also be charged with building the company's other brands, including Solus Golf, under parent company TGIB Marketing Inc.