OPERATIONS / SUPPLY CHAIN

Dayton, Ohio -- Retail design and brand strategy firm Interbrand Design Forum has added nine new associates as business continues to grow with key retail and manufacturing  clients.
 
Allen McCormick has been named executive director, overseeing relationships with key client partners. Becky Lau was hired as senior consultant, strategy and analytics. Aaron Stancik is also new to the Strategy & Analytics group where he will serve as a senior consultant working on projects for Michael Hill and FedEx.

Fremont, Calif. – The Men’s Wearhouse has appointed B. Michael Becker to its board of directors. Becker has served as a director at Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. since January 2008 and is chairman of its audit committee.

Becker spent his career as an audit partner for Ernst & Young LLP from 1979 until his retirement in 2006. He was a senior consultant on airline risks to Pay Pal, Inc. from August 2008 to November 2009.

Framingham, Mass. -- Staples announced a new price match policy that the company said ensures customers pay the lowest price – both in stores and online. Staples said it will price match items sold and shipped by Amazon.com or any retailer who sells products in both retail stores and online under the same brand.

Washington, D.C. – The National Retail Federation told a congressional committee holding an Oct. 9 hearing on the terrorist attack at a Kenyan shopping mall that the safety of employees and customers is retailers’ top concern.

Atlanta - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has recognized The Home Depot with a 2013 WaterSense Retail Partner of the Year award. The Home Depot was honored during the WaterSmart Innovations Conference for its commitment to water efficiency and outstanding efforts to support the WaterSense program during 2012.

Phoenix -- Rite Aid has renewed its sourcing partnership with Intesource, an e-sourcing provider in the retail, drugstore, grocery and restaurant industries.

Rite Aid has leveraged Intesource's e-sourcing technology since 2009. The partnership helped the chain secure significant savings  on both direct and indirect categories -- including snow plowing services -- and drove efficiencies across the entire supply chain.

Plano, Texas -- J.C. Penney Co. announced that departing Saks Inc. CEO and chairman Stephen Sadove has been elected to its board of directors.

Sadove's  election is effective upon his leaving Saks, which will occur once the acquisition of the upscale department store by Hudson's Bay Company is completed, which is expected by the end of the year.

Sadove is a highly regarded industry veteran. He is the current chairman of the National Retail Federation.