OPERATIONS / SUPPLY CHAIN

Hoffman Estates, Ill. -- Sears Holdings announced that both Sears and Kmart stores will be open on Thanksgiving Day. The company said its made the decision based in part on feedback from members of its Shop Your Way loyalty program, who sought more flexible Black Friday in-store shopping times and eagerness to shop doorbuster deals.

City of Industry, Calif. -- On the heels of its Wednesday report that the company gained just 0.2% in October same-store sales, Hot Topic Inc. also announced plans to test a new store that will specialize in dark, edgy lingerie.

Called Blackheart, the concept will target the company’s core teen customer and will debut with five stores in southern California and Texas malls as well as online offerings beginning in mid-November.

Indianapolis -- Lids Sports Group announced Wednesday that its retail division will purchase 12 stores from Fanatics Inc., comprised of nine FansEdge locations in the Greater Chicago area as well as one in Oklahoma and two Football Fanatics in Jacksonville, Fla.



The locations will be rebranded under the Locker Room by LIDS retail banner, to include region-specific storefronts such as Chicago Locker Room and Oklahoma Locker Room.  

Chelmsford, Mass. -- The ratio of retail hires to applicants has gone up to the highest number since August 2008, rising to 4.8% in October, according to the Kronos Retail Labor Index. (The Index is defined as the ratio of hires to applications within a given month, expressed as a percentage. A level of 3% means that for every 100 applications received, three hires occurred.)

San Jose, Calif. -- Orchard Supply Hardware Stores Corp. said Wednesday it has named Samantha Osselaer as VP marketing, effective Nov. 5.

Osselaer was most recently senior director, creative and branding, for Overstock.com and has also served as a creative VP for both Smith & Hawken and Macy’s.

As one of her duties, Osselaer will lead the branding and marketing of the chain’s new neighborhood store format that is currently being rolled out.

New York -- While it may be days, even weeks, before the full extent of the damage caused by Hurricane Sandy is known, economists are forecasting that retail sales will be impacted in October and November but that the economy overall will experience an uptick.

Deerfield, Ill. -- Walgreens said Tuesday that it is beginning its recovery efforts in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. The retailer said that it is working to provide its stores with what they need to again serve customers in areas impacted by the storm.

By noon ET on Tuesday, the number of Walgreens stores closed dropped to 530 with more re-opening by the hour, from a peak of about 750 stores closed during the height of the storm.

Toronto -- Sears Canada said Tuesday it has debuted a permanent shoppable iPad application for its Wish Book catalog after a temporary launch for the 2011 holiday shopping season.

The app will contain various content throughout any given year, the first of which appears Tuesday in the form of the 60th anniversary Wish Book.