News

New York City -- The Retail Orphan Initiative (RetailROI) has launched an online charity locator to match up retailers looking to donate overstocked merchandise with local charities, thus receiving a potential tax deduction for items that were not going to be selling at a profit.

Seattle -- A Monday report by the Wall Street Journal said that Amazon.com on Friday filed a petition to add a measure on the California ballot asking voters to repeal the recently passed California law that requires online retailers to collect sales tax.

Amazon needs to submit 504,760 signatures by late September in order to get the measure on the Feb. 7, 2012 ballot for the next statewide election.

SUNBURY, Pa. — Weis Markets announced it has lowered the prices on 1,600 staple items and that it will freeze these new lower prices for ninety days through Oct. 8.  It is the company's seventh 90-day price freeze program over the past two and a half years.

NEW YORK — eBay is taking a stand against counterfeit goods by partnering with the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) to launch "You Can't Fake Fashion," a new campaign to celebrate original design. Part of the campaign includes the creation of totes, customized by 50 designers, which sport the tagline "You can't Fake Fashion."  This collection is now on sale exclusively at eBay Fashion Vault at fixed, "Buy It Now" prices.

NEW YORK — The Jones Group announced that it has entered into an exclusive, world-wide license agreement with Philip Simon Brands Group for the creation, production, marketing and global distribution of a fashion sneaker collection under the Nine West brand.  

PHILADELPHIA — Giant-Carlisle plans to open its first store in Philadelphia next week, the grocery chain said.

Giant-Carlisle, officially known as Giant Food Stores and owned by Dutch supermarket operator Royal Ahold, announced that it would open the 74,000-sq.-ft. store on July 20. The company already operated stores in the Philadelphia suburbs, but the new store is the first within the city itself.

NEW YORK — Target Corp. has won approval to put its signature red logo on one of Chicago's most famous buildings. The Permit Review Committee of the Commission on Chicago Landmarks on Thursday approved the chain’s request to allow its bull's eye to be placed on its new store planned for downtown Chicago.

Overall, the number of inserts and pages declined slightly across the retailer set in June 2011 versus June 2010.

Major retailers dialed back the number of ads inserts and the number of pages in June when compared to the prior year, according to Market Track. Click here to view promotional activity for the 16 of the nation’s leading retailers.

The Permit Review Committee of the Commission on Chicago Landmarks last week gave Target the green light to incorporate a number of branding elements to the retail space its first CityTarget store will occupy in the Sullivan Center in downtown Chicago.

Renderings of the building show red awnings on the building’s exterior and the company’s Bulls Eye logo visible though the windows of the signature rotunda entrance at the corner of State and Madison streets. There are also wide red banners evenly spaced and visible through exterior windows.