OPERATIONS / SUPPLY CHAIN

3 things retailers should know to ensure a smooth EMV migration
During the next several months, many U.S. retailers will begin transitioning their point-of-sale systems to accept EMV (Europay, MasterCard and Visa) technology. EMV-ready cards are most frequently recognized by the presence of a small security chip embedded in the card itself. This technology is not new – it has been in use in Europe, Canada and much of the world for years.
RILA urges Congress to approve trade promotion authority
Arlington, Va. — The Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) is publicly urging members of the U.S. House of Representatives to approve H.R. 1314, a bill to renew Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) and extend Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) legislation. The bill is scheduled for vote June 12.

Gordon Brothers Europe names veteran executive as president

London, U.K. — Gordon Brothers Europe (GBE), a firm specializing in restructurings for the retail, commercial and industrial sectors, has named Heinz Weber as president, overseeing the European subsidiary of Gordon Brothers Group. Weber has more 10 years of leadership experience with GBE, including managing director, head of D-A-CH (Germany, Austria, Switzerland), in a 20-plus-year career.
Aldi to enter California market in 2016 with 25 stores

Batavia, Ill. — Discount grocery powerhouse Aldi announced plans enter the nation’s most populous state, opening approximately 25 stores in Southern California by July 2016. The chain’s expansion to California is an integral part of a five-year strategic plan to open 650 new stores across the nation. By the end of 2018, Aldi expects to operate nearly 2,000 stores.
Kohl's reveals succession planning as it names top merchant and starts COO hunt

Menomonee Falls, Wis. — Kohl’s on Thursday announced a series of organizational changes, including the promotion of Michelle Gass to the newly created principal officer position of chief merchandising and customer officer. Gass joined Kohl’s in 2013 as chief customer officer from Starbucks, where she is credited with playing a key role in the coffee giant’s turnaround several years back.
Report: New POS malware feared

Washington, D.C. – At least two new strains of POS malware are reportedly threatening retailers. According to Bank Info Security, the FBI has released a warning about a new form of memory-scraping POS malware called Punkey. Punkey can infect any Windows-based POS network and encrypts the data it steals, making detection difficult. Punkey may have been used in a recent breach at an unidentified U.S. restaurant chain.
American Apparel names CIO

Los Angeles -- American Apparel announced it has appointed Brian McHale as senior VP and CIO, with responsibility for overseeing information technology and computer systems. In addition to providing critical support to American Apparel’s onsite hardware and software applications, McHale will also lead the development and expansion of the company’s retail digital capabilities alongside Thoryn Stephens, recently appointed chief digital officer.
Former Dollar General executive returns as store operations VP

Goodlettsville, Tenn. - Jeff Owen will rejoin Dollar General Corp. as executive VP of store operations effective June 15. Owen previously spent more than 20 years with Dollar General, where his most recent role was senior VP of store operations.

Dollar General also announced that Greg Sparks, executive VP of store operations, has departed effective June 9, 2015.
Incoming Penney CEO reveals the three key areas company will focus on

New York -- J.C. Penney CEO-designee Marvin Ellison, who officially takes over on Aug. 1, outlined three key areas the company will focus on in the coming months in a presentation on Wednesday at the Piper Jaffray conference, The Street reported.

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Trustwave: Retail most compromised industry in 2014, with e-commerce assets most targeted

Chicago -- Retail was the most compromised industry in 2014, making up 43% of breach investigations, according to a study by Trustwave that gathered data from 574 breach investigations the company conducted in 2014 across 15 countries. Retail made up 43% of the investigations, followed by food and beverage, which made up 13% of the investigations.

The “2015 Trustwave Global Security Report” found that 64% of the breaches in the retail industry were of e-commerce assets and 27% were of POS assets.