OPERATIONS / SUPPLY CHAIN

London – Omni-channel global fashion brand Burberry is taking a pioneering step into the realm of digital customer engagement with a new program called Burberry Kisses. Partnering with the Google Art, Copy & Code project that presents itself as a “series of experiments to re-imagine advertising,” Burberry is allowing consumers to send online letters which are sealed with digital replicas of their kisses, complete with their choice of Burberry lipstick shade.

San Francisco -- The Gymboree Corporation has appointed former Levi Strauss & Co. executive Joelle Maher as the company's new COO.  

At Levi Strauss & Co., Maher was most recently executive VP, president global retail, and prior to that senior VP of Americas multichannel retail, and VP, planning, allocation, stores, store operations and outlet.

She also held executive leadership positions at Lucky Brand Jeans, Old Navy and Macy's East.

Miami, Fla. – Burger King Worldwide Inc. is expanding its BK Delivers home/work delivery program to five restaurants in Boston. Customers inside delivery zones can customize Burger King products and order them either online or by phone. The service, currently available in New York, Miami, Houston, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco Bay Area, Vegas, Sacramento, greater Washington, D.C., Phoenix and Denver, has launched in one Boston restaurant, will launch in two more in the next two to three weeks, and in another two stores during the summer.

Springfield, Ill. -- OfficeMax Inc. is asking the state of Illinois for tax breaks to keep the company's headquarters in-state after the office supply chain's merger with Office Depot Inc. is complete.

OfficeMax CEO Ravi Saligram and state Sen. Tom Cullerton made their pitch Tuesday during a hearing on the state's pension crisis. Cullerton is a Villa Park Democrat sponsoring legislation to provide incentives if the company keeps at least 2,000 full-time jobs at its headquarters and other non-retail locations.

New York -- George Zimmer, the founder and pitchman of Men’s Wearhouse, wasted no time in firing back at the company that fired him as executive chairman on Wednesday morning.  In a statement released to CNBC, Zimmer suggested that disagreements with the company’s board led to his abrupt termination:

San Francisco -- The trend to shop on smartphones is growing, with 71% of smartphones owners saying they shop using their mobile device, according to a report by Scava, a provider of mobile, tablet and in-store technologies. However, mobile shopping experiences fail to meet consumer satisfaction, as 88% of those who shop on their smartphone have experienced negative issues.

When asked about their biggest pain points when shopping on mobile, mobile shoppers responded:

Fremont, Calif. -- Men’s Wearhouse announced Wednesday that it has fired its founder and executive chairman George Zimmer; no reason was given for the sudden move.

Atlanta -- Around the world, consumers want it all, and they want it in the palm of their hand. According to a global study released by First Data, consumers worldwide expect strikingly similar mobile and technology-powered experiences from large and small businesses as well as financial institutions – and their expectations are fueled by skyrocketing smartphone usage.