OPERATIONS / SUPPLY CHAIN

London -- Four-in-10 (40%) of customers age 18-34 have taken a mobile photo of an in-store product so they could purchase it online when they got home.

Other data from a new study conducted by digital advertising technology provider WeSee indicates that 45% of adult consumers younger than 35 would like the ability to take a photo of a product with a mobile device and then directly link from that photo to a site where they can purchase the product. WeSee research also indicates that:

Monrovia, Calif. – Trader Joe’s will reportedly stop offering health benefits to part-time employees next year.

According to Bloomberg, employees who work less than 30 hours per week will no longer be eligible for corporate health benefits as of Jan. 1, 2014. That date is when the U.S, Affordable Care Act mandates employers start offering all full-time workers affordable coverage.

New York -- Steven Roth, chairman and CEO of Vornado Realty Trust, resigned from the board of J.C. Penney as company plans to sell its stake in the chain.

In a filing on Friday, with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Vornado said it will exit Penney in the “not-too-distant future. The company owns about 6.1% of Penney’s shares.

Framingham, Mass. -- Staples plans to open a dedicated to e-commerce and engineering center in Seattle that will house teams responsible for driving major initiatives to enhance areas, including next generation digital platforms, personalization, and big-data. It will be the chain’s first office on the West Coast.

Philadelphia -- Destination Maternity Corp. plans to relocate its corporate headquarters and distribution center from Philadelphia, to southern New Jersey.

The company's corporate office operations (which are currently split between its headquarters at North 5th Street in Philadelphia and its offices in the Philadelphia Navy Yard) will move twelve miles from the current 5th Street headquarters facility to a completely renovated 74,000-sq. ft. building in Moorestown, New Jersey. The chain expects the move to occur in fall 2014.

Bentonville, Ark. -- Walmart on Thursday announced its annual holiday top toy list, but this year’s list has a new spin: It was put together with the help of kids. The chain brought together 1,000 kids ages 18 months to 10 years to test, play with, and help select the top toys for the season.

Walnut Creek, Calif. – The percentage of retailers who consider their marketing department to be an owner of customer data has more than doubled in the past year. According to a new RSR Research survey, “Retail Marketing 2013: Organizational Drift,” 61% of 122 retail respondents surveyed online between May and July of this year listed marketing as a customer data owner, compared to 33% in 2012.

Corpus Christie, Texas -- Susser Holdings Corp. announced that Sam L. Susser has been appointed chairman of the board of directors of SUSS, effective immediately. He will retain his position as CEO of the company, which he has held since 1992.

Bruce W. Krysiak, the current board chairman, will become lead independent director.