News

Arlington, Va. -- Retailers are up in arms over the proposed settlement filed in July of antitrust lawsuits filed by merchants against Visa, MasterCard and the nation's largest banks. A total of nine associations representing a broad swath of the retail industry expressed their reservations to members of Congress on Thursday, charging that their interests were not represented and asking Congress to reject that settlement.

Talk about an uphill battle. Walmart is trying to educate shoppers about eating healthy on a limited budget and the importance of understanding unit prices when evaluating purchase decisions.

BALTIMORE — Sprout Foods is adding new toddler puree snacks to its portfolio and also will introduce more convenient product packaging, the company announced at the Natural Products Expo East in Baltimore.

MINNEAPOLIS — Supervalu has named Kathy Persian as SVP and chief information officer. Persian joined the company in February 2010 in the role of group VP retail and merchandising systems, and later moved to group VP corporate planning, analysis and business process. Persian was named to the CIO post following the decision by Wayne Shurts to accept a position with another company. Shurts joined Supervalu in April 2010.

By Kevin Kulinowski, Robert Grosskopf and Rick Edwards, Gordon Brothers Group

The defining paradox of our industry is that closing stores has become a trademark of successful retail companies. Certainly healthy retailers are opening new stores; but shuttering locations has become the norm as well and, in most instances, is equally indicative of positive growth.

PITTSBURGH — Dick's Sporting Goods has launced a new mobile application for iPhone and Android smartphones.

With the new Dick's Sporting Goods Mobile App, users will have access to all the benefits of the ScoreCard Rewards Program, the ability to locate Dick's stores in the area or make purchases directly from the app as well as be rewarded for engaging with the Dick's Sporting Goods brand on social media.

New York -- A Thursday report by Wall Street Journal said that Restoration Hardware Holdings Inc. has filed plans for an initial public offering of up to $150 million in common stock.

The retailer, which this week unveiled its new RH branding, is looking to the IPO to pay down debt. It was acquired in 2008 by Catterton Partners in a $179 million buyout and last month revealed a plan for reorganization on the heels of co-CEO Gary Friedman’s resignation following an internal probe into a relationship with a female employee.

Widespread media reports have Walmart discontinuing the sale of Amazon’s popular Kindle devices, which begs the questions what took so long and will we ever see a Walmart tablet.

Walmart’s decision to begin selling the Kindle was one of the more wrong-headed moves the company has ever made. A Kindle is Amazon’s version of a Gillette razor, essentially a device that provides consumers a portal to purchase Amazon’s other inventory, or in Gillette’s case, more blades. Target wisely gave Kindle the boot earlier this year.