Chain Store Age Executive Fax articles from November 2002

Chain Store Age Executive Fax archives from November 2002

Best Buy. (New Stores, New Markets).(announces new store openings )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Best Buy opens today in New Hartford, N.Y.; Hoover, Ala.; Germantown, Md.; Boynton Beach, Fla.; East Brunswick, N.J.; Cranberry Township, Pa.; Florence, S.C.; Yakima, Wash,; and El Paso and San Marcos. Texas.

Food4Leas. (New Stores, New Markets).(opens Hammond, Indiana store)
November 1, 2002... Food4Leas will open its first store in Indiana in Hammond on Wednesday.

Gart Sports. (New Stores, New Markets).(will open stores in Kansas, California, Texas, Colorado )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Gart Sports just added a store in Wichita, Kan., its second store in that city. Later this month, it will open a name brand store in Denver, two Oshman's locations in Houston and a Sportmart store in Fresno Calif.

Shop in Frisco. (New Stores, New Markets).(Ethan Allen is opening a new store)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Ethan Allen set up shop in Frisco, Texas, outside of Dallas.

Border's. (New Stores, New Markets).(Border's is opening its second Idaho store)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Border's will open its second store in Idaho in the city of Coeur d'Alene next April.

Books-A-Million. (New Stores, New Markets).(Books-A-Million is opening stores in Louisiana and Georgia)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Books-A-Million added a shop in Baton Rouge, La., at Siegan Lane Marketplace. It will open next weekend in The Avenue at Peachtree City, Ga., next to Williams-Sonoma.

Cato. (New Stores, New Markets).(women's apparel chain Cato is opening new stores)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Women's apparel chain Cato will open in West Helena, Ark.; Mount Vernon, Ohio; Garland, Texas; Wytheville, Va.; and Tarboro, N.C. on Nov. 6.

KB Toys. (New Stores, New Markets).(KB Toys opens stores in several markets)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... KB Toys has been busy, having recently opened stores at Jefferson Pointe in Fort Wayne, Ind.; The Mall at Millenia in Orlando, Fla.; Parkway Place in Huntsville, Ala,; Prime Outlets at Calhoun, Ga.; and also in Sevierville, Tenn.

Partnerships flourish in retail, Office Depot, KB Toys lead pack.(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... If it seems that more and more retailers are forming partnerships each month, there's a reason for it. It's true. The trend continued this week when Office Depot announced that it will open in-store boutiques within 15 Stop & Shop locations...

Grocers focusing on existing stores.(report indicates 10-year low in new store growth )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... New store growth reached a 10-year low as supermarket retailers focused more on enhancing the in-store service options at their existing stores in 2001. The news comes from a new Food Marketing Institute (FMI) study titled "Facts About Store...

Albertson's investing in Denver market.(Albertson's is adding new stores and remodeling)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Albertson's will invest more than $300 million in the state of Colorado through 2005 for new store and fuel center construction, as well as extensive store remodeling. Albertson's already operates roughly 40 stores in the greater Denver area....

Wal-Mart meets opposition in two areas.(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Wal-Mart met opposition in Inglewood, Calif., when the city council told the discount chain it would not be allowed to build a supercenter within the city limits. The United Food and Commercial Workers union was said to have pushed for the...

Amazon's apparel partners uncovered.(online retailer partners with Foot Locker, Lands' End, Nordstrom, Old Navy, Gap, Eddie Bauer )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Gap, Old Navy, Eddie Bauer, Foot Locker, Lands' End and Nordstrom. These are the retailers that have reportedly signed three-year deals with Amazon.com to promote their wares on the e-commerce pioneer's Web site. Amazon says it will have the...

JPMorgan Partners. (This Week's Retail News Nuggets).(purchases Figi's, Arizona Mail Order )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... JPMorgan Partners is acquiring the assets of catalog businesses Arizona Mail Order and Figi's, both former operations of Fingerhut.

Starbucks. (This Week's Retail News Nuggets).(coffee shop chain announces worldwide expansion plans )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Starbucks plans to open at least 1,200 stores worldwide in 2003, including roughly 450 overseas locations.

Calvin Klein Jeans Outlet. (This Week's Retail News Nuggets).(will begin going-out-of-business sales )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Going-out-of-business sales began at 26 Calvin Klein Jeans Outlet stores in 18 states.

Sears. (This Week's Retail News Nuggets).(will open freestanding store in Salt Lake City )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Sears is reportedly planning to open a freestanding prototype in Salt Lake City in fall 2003.

Tommy Hilfiger. (This Week's Retail News Nuggets).(will close 37 stores after holidays )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Tommy Hilfiger says it will shutter 37 of its 44 retail stores following the holiday season.

Netflix. (This Week's Retail News Nuggets).(will build regional distribution facilities )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Netflix will build a dozen regional distribution facilities over the next 12 months to keep its lead in the subscription-based DVD rental market.

Jack in the Box. (This Week's Retail News Nuggets).(Jack in the Box plans to open 100-150 e-stores)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Fast-food hamburger chain Jack In The Box plans to open between 100 and 150 e-stores over the next five years on property adjacent to its full-sized restaurants.

H&M founder dies.(Hennes and Mauritz founder Erling Persson)(Obituary)
November 1, 2002... Erling Persson, the founder of Hennes & Mauritz (H&M), died this week at the age of 85. Persson opened his first store, titled Hennes--meaning "hers" in Swedish--in 1947 after a trip to the United States. He was reportedly impressed with the...

ShopKo. (People in the News).(hires Sam Duncan as CEO, president )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... ShopKo named former Fred Meyer president Sam Duncan as its new CEO and president. He replaces Jeffrey Girard, ShopKo's vice chairman of finance and administration, who had been serving as interim CEO since Bill Podany stepped down in April.

Gap. (People in the News).(appoints Paul Pressler to board of directors)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Gap elected its CEO and president Paul Pressler to its board of directors.

Long's Drug Stores. (People in the News).(appoints Warren Bryant CEO, president )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Long's Drug Stores named former Kroger executive Warren Bryant as its new CEO and president.

A&P. (People in the News).(supermarket chain announces executive changes )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Elizabeth Culligan is stepping down as president and COO of A&P after the grocer created separate business units out of its U.S. and Canadian operations. A&P appointed Brian Piwek as president and CEO of the newly formed A&P U.S. business and...

Spartan stores. (People in the News).(will see president James Meyer retire )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... James Meyer will retire next year as chairman, CEO and president of Spartan Stores.

Modell's sporting goods. (People in the News).(appoints Robert Stevenish president, COO )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2002... Modell's Sporting Goods named Robert Stevenish president and COO, the first nonfamily member to be named president of the company.

New stores, new markets.(Family Dollar, Cost Plus World Market, Smith & Hawken)(Brief Article)
November 8, 2002... Family Dollar opened 27 locations during the four-week period ended Nov. 2. Among the discount chain's newest stores are four locations in Louisiana and three each in Michigan, Minnesota and Ohio. Cost Plus World Market opened this week in...

Cooler weather boosts sales, comps increase 3.1% in October.
November 8, 2002... Retail comparable-store sales bounced back in October, but analysts are being cautious about predicting a robust holiday season. Lifted in part by strong sales of apparel, retailers reported an industry wide gain of 3.1% in comps for October,...

Tiffany & Co. (People in the News).(Linda Hanson resigns)(Brief Article)
November 8, 2002... Linda Hanson will resign as senior VP of merchandising of Tiffany & Co. on Feb. 1, 2008. Michael Kowalski, CEO and president, will assume her duties following her departure.

Shaw's Supermarkets. (People in the News).(Paul Gannon CEO and president )(Brief Article)
November 8, 2002... Shaw's Supermarkets named Paul Gannon, its COO, as CEO and president, taking over the spot from Ross McLaren, who is retiring.

Shaw's buying 18 former Ames shops.(Shaw's Supermarkets)(Brief Article)
November 8, 2002... Shaw's Supermarkets is looking to acquire 18 former Ames stores in New England. It will reportedly spend $48.5 million for the stores, located in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine and Connecticut. The offer is subject to...

Sears selling stake in Advanced Auto.(Brief Article)
November 8, 2002... Sears is selling its holdings in Advance Auto Parts. The department store chain will sell its 8.42 million shares in the auto-parts store in a Public offering. Last month, Sears partnered with Avis in a deal that will make it the exclusive...

Closings at 23 CD Warehouse stores.(Brief Article)
November 8, 2002... Lipuidation sales are under way at 23 underperforming CD Warehouse locations in California, Florida, Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma. More than $9 million in inventory will be sold during the sale period.

Blockbuster color-coding its stores.(remodeling 4,000 stores)(Brief Article)
November 8, 2002... It's not exactly painting by numbers, hut Blockbuster has debuted a color-coded system for shopping its stores. The retailer's new system is as follows: Blue for rentals, red for retail, orange for games and purple for Hispanic. The company had...

IMRA survey predicts holiday spending.(Brief Article)
November 8, 2002... American consumers plan to spend an average of $863 on holiday gifts this year, the same amount as shoppers had planned to spend last year. If tradition holds, though, retailers can expect shoppers to spend anywhere from $998 to $1,122, as...

Safeway runs into trouble in Chicago.(labor dispute )(Brief Article)
November 8, 2002... Safeway reportedly threatened to sell its 113 Dominick's stores in Chicago this week if it is unable to restructure labor contracts with its nearly 9,000 unionized employees. The grocer's three-year contract with the United Food and Commercial...

Circuit City. (This Week's Retail News Nuggets).(loss in third quarter)(Brief Article)
November 8, 2002... Circuit City will record a loss in the third quarter due to slowing sales of wireless communications and digital satellite systems. However, it is still anticipating a same-store sales gain for the third quarter.

Saks Fifth Avenue. (This Week's Retail News Nuggets).(closing store)(Brief Article)
November 8, 2002... Saks Fifth Avenue will close its store in the Oakbrook (Ill.) Center.

Coldwater Creek. (This Week's Retail News Nuggets).(25 employees laid off)(Brief Article)
November 8, 2002... Coldwater Creek laid off 25 employees at its corporate headquarters as a result of job consolidations

Atlanta Business Chronicle Stated that Kmart. (This Week's Retail News Nuggets).(more possible store closings)(Brief Article)
November 8, 2002... A report in last week's Atlanta Business Chronicle Stated that Kmart has compiled a list of 567 stores that it may close after the holiday season. The discount chain has denied the news.

Border's opened a shop in Newark Airport's Terminal A today. (This Week's Retail News Nuggets).(Brief Article)
November 8, 2002... Border's opened a shop in Newark Airport's Terminal A today. It plans to open a 3,429-sq.-ft. shop in Newark's Terminal C-3 in January.

New stores, new markets.(Cato, Colorado Mills, Goldmark)(Brief Article)
November 15, 2002... Cato opened its 1,000th store this week in the Citadel Mall in Charleston, S.C., its sixth store in the Charleston metro area. Cato will also add stores in Winston-Salem, N.C., and Columbia, S.C., next week. Colorado Mills opened this week...

Surveys reveal holiday trends consumers expecting to buy less.(Brief Article)
November 15, 2002... Christmas may not be as merry this year as it has in the past. Two consumer surveys released this week are forecasting that U.S. shoppers will spend less on gifts this holiday season. The reasons for the decline in spending were similar:...

UFCW may have buyer for Dominick.(United Food and Commercial Workers Union)(Brief Article)
November 15, 2002... Should Safeway choose to sell its Chicago-based Dominick's grocery store chain, the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) says it has identified three parties with retail experience that have the means and interest to acquire it. The...

Taubman rejects Simon's written offer.(Simon Property Group acquisition bid for Taubman Centers)(Brief Article)
November 15, 2002... Simon Property Group has its eyes set on acquiring Taubman Centers, but apparently. Taubman isn't interested. Simon made a written offer this week to purchase Taubman for $17.50 per share in cash, a premium that is roughly 18% higher than...

Factory 2-U Stores. (People in the News).(William Fields CEO and chairman)(Brief Article)
November 15, 2002... William Fields was appointed chairman and CEO of Factory 2-U Stores, replacing Mike Searles. Fields served as CEO and president of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. from 1998 through 1996. He also served as CEO of both Blockbuster and Hudson's Bay. More...

Tower Records. (People in the News).(Jim Bain CFO)(Brief Article)
November 15, 2002... De Vaughn Searson resigned as CFO of Tower Records. Replacing Searson will be Jim Bain, who was named senior VP of finance. CFO. Also, Becky Rodell was named VP of finance.

Dollar General. (People in the News).(Donald Shaffer CEO)(Brief Article)
November 15, 2002... Dollar General gave Donald Shaffer, its president and COO, the added post of acting CEO. Prior to joining Dollar General in. 2001, Shaffer had been a 30-year veteran of Sears and a former CEO of Sears Canada. He is taking over the role of CEO...

Quality Food Stores. (People in the News).(Kroger hires Darrel Webb as president of Fred Meyer division)(Brief Article)
November 15, 2002... Kroger named Darrell Webb president of its Fred Meyer division. He most recently served as president of Quality Food Stores, another Kroger division.

Latest sales tally rises once again.(week ending Nov. 9)(Brief Article)
November 15, 2002... Retail comparable-store sales rose for the second straight week, a feat that had not been accomplished since Sept. 7. According to the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi and UBS Warburg, comps rose 0.5% for the week ending Nov. 9, compared with the...

Shopping centers will be more hybrid.(Brief Article)
November 15, 2002... A new wave of hybrid shopping centers will continue to sprout up across America as part of an attempt to appeal to a broad cross-section of customers, according to worldwide design, planning and architecture firm RTKL. As consumers continue to...

FMI says: supermarket profits increase.(Food Marketing Institute)(Brief Article)
November 15, 2002... The retail food industry increased profits to 1.36% of sales and operating income to 3.22% of sales this year versus last year, according to the Food Marketing Institute's (FMI) 2001-2002 annual financial review. In 2001, profits were 1.25% of...

Retailers warn on earnings shortfall.(Lands' End)(Pathmark)(Footatar)(Brief Article)
November 15, 2002... A rise in selling and distribution-center expenses, and record-keeping changes in its inventory-management system spurred Nordstrom to say that its third-quarter earnings will fall short of prior estimates. The chain expects to report earnings...

Lands' End. (This Weeks's Retail News Nuggets).(Website adds fitted shirts and pants)(Brief Article)
November 15, 2002... Lands' End is now selling custom-fitted dress shirts and twill pants through its Web site. landsend.com

CVS. (This Weeks's Retail News Nuggets).(settles lawsuit with pharmacists)(Brief Article)
November 15, 2002... CVS is paying an undisclosed sum to settle a lawsuit by current and former pharmacists who claimed that the drug store chain violated the Fair Labor Standards Act by not paying them for overtime hours.

Build-A-Bear. (This Weeks's Retail News Nuggets).(Build-A-Bear partners with Limited Too)(Brief Article)
November 15, 2002... Build-A-Bear partnered with tween apparel retailer Too to produce a line of bear-size fashions in 2003 that match the clothing sold in Limited Too stores.

New stores, new markets.
November 22, 2002... 99 Cents Only Stores opened in Glendale, Ariz., yesterday, its first location to feature a gourmet food section.... Boat Buy cut the ribbon on seven stores in five states this week, including locations in Boston and Saugus, Mass.; Brooklyn and...

From seeing red to seeing black, retailers post strong 3Q results.(Brief Article)
November 22, 2002... Five retailers from various sectors within the industry reported strong earnings in the recent third quarter reversing the losses they had recorded in the prior-year period. Gap, Inc. reported earnings of $185.3 million for the 13 weeks ended...

Toys 'R' Us partners with Albertson's.(Brief Article)
November 22, 2002... It appears Toys "R" Us has found a winner with its Toy Box concept its branded store-within-a-store concept located within supermarkets. The specialty chain partnered with Albertson's Jewel-Osco division to open Toy box locations within five...

Kmart: sales of Martha wares rising.(Martha Stewart)(Brief Article)
November 22, 2002... Despite the legal problems surrounding Martha Stewart, sales of the domestic diva's merchandise are on the rise at Kmart. Chief executive James Adamson said this week that Stewart's products are selling better than last year on a per-store...

Sears. (People in the News).(Mark Coaby named president)(Brief Article)
November 22, 2002... Sears appointed Mark Coaby president of its full-line stores, effective Dec. 1. He earnes from fast-food restaurant chain KFC, where he served as COO since 2000.

Neiman Marcus Group. (People in the News).(Gerald Sampson resigns)(Brief Article)
November 22, 2002... Gerald Sampson will step down as president and COO of Noiman Marcus Group on Dec. 31.

Hot Topic. (People in the News).(Tom Rail resigns )(Brief Article)
November 22, 2002... Tom Rail resigned as senior VP, general manager of Torrid, a division of Hot Topic. Betsy McLaughlin. CEO of Hot Topic, will assume his duties until a successor is found.

Belle's Southern division. (People in the News).(James Madden named general manager of Jos. A. Bank's Florida division )(Brief Article)
November 22, 2002... Jos. A. Bank named James Madden as general manager of its Florida division to lead expansion there. He is the former president of Belle's Southern division.

May Department Stores. (People in the News).(Carol Williams named president )(Brief Article)
November 22, 2002... Carol Williams was named president of 'May Department Stores' international division, a new position. She is the former CEO of Jacobson's.

Claire. (People in the News).(Rowland Schaefer suffers mild stroke )(Brief Article)
November 22, 2002... Rowland Schaefer the chairman, CEO and president of Claire's, took a leave of absence after suffering a milk stroke. He is expected to resume his duties in six months. Maria Schaefar and Bornie Schaefer, co-vice-chairmen of the board, will...

Wilsons to close its travel stores.(closing 135 stores)(Brief Article)
November 22, 2002... Wilsons Leather is getting back to basics. That means exiting the suitcase and travel goods business so that it can focus on its leather apparel and related accessories businesses. Over the next several months Wilsons will close its 135 travel...

Safeway, Dominick's workers strike deal.(Brief Article)
November 22, 2002... After roughly two weeks of he said/she said, Safeway reportedly reached an agreement with the unionized employees of the Chicago-based Dominick's division this eek. Under terms of the deal, Safeway has agreed to reinstate the terms of the labor...

Gift buying related to social issues.(Brief Article)
November 22, 2002... Retailers that support social causes will reap the benefits this holiday season. Fifty-eight percent of American shoppers said that this holiday season they plan to make purchases at retail stores in which a percentage of the price is donated...

Barnes & Noble.com sued over phrase.(Half Price Books sues for trademark infringement)(Brief Article)
November 22, 2002... Barnes & Noble.com may be allowed to sell its books for half price, but someone else thinks it shouldn't be able to advertise them as such. Half Price Books sued Barnes & Noble.com for alleged trademark infringement and is asking the courts to...

Blockbuster. (This Week's Retail News Nuggets).(free movie rental with purchase)(Brief Article)
November 22, 2002... For a limited time, Blockbuster will grant consumers one free movie rental when they purchase a movie from the specialty chain. Consumers must redeem the movie rental within seven days of the purchase.

Meijer. (This Week's Retail News Nuggets).(six stores in Dayton, OH. renovated)(Brief Article)
November 22, 2002... Six stores in the Dayton, Ohio, area debuted Meijer's new look this week. The stores, which have been undergoing, a $30 million renovation since this past. May, feature a completely redesigned interior, with an added emphasis on the fashion...

Men's Wearhouse. (This Week's Retail News Nuggets).(Wilke-Rodriguez trademark acquired)(Brief Article)
November 22, 2002... Men's Wearhouse acquired the Wilke-Rodrigueztrademark to became the exclusive distributor of the brand.

Video City. (This Week's Retail News Nuggets).(sells 19 stores to Movie Gallery)(Brief Article)
November 22, 2002... Video City sold its 19 retails stores outside of California to Movie Gallery. The former chain will focus on developing its business within the Golden State, where it operates 21 stores.