North America – Page 22
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News
Meijer to test a smaller format grocers in Chicago suburb
Meijer is to test a smaller format grocery-focused shop in the Chicago suburb of Niles.The 102,000 sq ft shop is about half the size of most Meijer supercentres and will open in the first quarter of 2010. Alongside grocery, it will also have a pharmacy and some general merchandise. The ...
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News
Brian Dunn officially takes up Best Buy chief executive role
Brian Dunn has officially taken up the position of chief executive of Best Buy. Dunn, a 24-year veteran of the consumer electronics retailer, had been the president and chief operating officer. He succeeds Brad Anderson, who served as Best Buy’s vice-chairman and chief executive for seven years.Dunn joined Best Buy ...
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NewsTesco refutes global trade union claims
Tesco has refuted claims from an international trade union which criticised the grocer’s employment practices in some of its overseas markets.
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NewsTesco brings touch of Britain to Fresh & Easy
Tesco has introduced some classic British favourites such as Marmite and Heinz baked beans at selected Fresh & Easy stores in the US.
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Barnes & Noble scales back its expansion plans
Bookseller Barnes & Noble has scaled back its expansion plans in the recession. America’s largest book chain by sales had planned to open 35 superstores this year, but now has only 15 in the pipeline. Most of these are replacing existing branches that have closed or are being relocated.Barnes & ...
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Petsmart appoints its president to chief executive role
Pets products retailer Petsmart has appointed its president and chief operating officer Bob Moran to the role of chief executive.Moran replaces Phil Francis, who will remain chairman and relinquish day-to-day control of the retailer. Francis will take on the more advisory role of executive chairman.Petsmart, which operates around 1,100 stores ...
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Neiman Marcus considers selling lower-priced goods
US Luxury department store chain Neiman Marcus will consider selling some lower-priced goods after sales plunged 24 per cent year on year in its third quarter.Although Neiman Marcus will not abandon higher-priced products, it said it would merchandise goods with a greater range of price points.Chief executive Burt Tansky told ...
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US DIY spending ‘lowest in 60 years’
US DIY spending as a percentage of America’s GDP is at its lowest in 60 years, Home Depot boss Frank Blake said.However, the retailer expects a smaller fall in annual earnings than previously feared. Originally a decline of 7 per cent was forecast but it is now expected to be ...
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News
Court orders Amazon to pay Toys R Us £31m
Amazon has been ordered by an American court to pay $51m (£31.2m) to Toys R Us after the e-tail giant terminated an exclusive distribution deal in 2004.The partnership was due to last until 2010, with the toy retailer agreed as Amazon’s sole supplier of toys, games and baby goods.The fine ...
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Same-store sales in US decline
Same-store sales declined 4.6 per cent in the US in May, according to a report from Goldman Sachs and the International Council of Shopping Centers. The results were worse than a forecast 3 per cent drop.Among a slew of disappointing like-for-likes, department store group Nordstrom reported a fall of more ...
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Aggressive Ackman falls flat after failed Target coup
The latest boardroom battle that William Ackman, head of US hedge fund Pershing Square Capital Management, has waged has ended in tears – literally, according to US reports.
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Wal-Mart will not “accelerate” Marketside openings
Wal-Mart will not “accelerate” openings of Marketside, the store format developed in response to Tesco’s Fresh & Easy US chain.Wal-Mart Stores vice-chairman Eduardo Castro-Wright said: “The test we’ve had in Phoenix, we’re pleased with. Given the current economic conditions we are not accelerating the effort until we have better data ...
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AnalysisNew Wal-Mart chief Mike Duke: ‘This is our time’
Changing consumer habits create opportunities, new Wal-Mart chief Mike Duke believes – but the retailer can’t afford to be complacent. George MacDonald reports from the US
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News
Profits at Office Depot’s North American retail division decline
Operating profits at Office Depot’s North American retail division declined from $82m (£50m) to $81m ($49.4m) in the first quarter to March 28. Like-for-likes plummeted 17 per cent while total sales slumped 16 per cent to $1.4bn (£854.4m).The company, which includes a business solutions arm, reported a net loss of ...
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News
Toys R Us acquires the FAO Schwarz toy stores
The world’s largest toy specialist Toys R Us has acquired the FAO Schwarz toy stores for an undisclosed sum.FAO Schwarz, which first opened in 1862, describes itself as the oldest toy retailer in the US. Toys R Us will operate all three FAO Schwarz stores – two in New York ...
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Target shareholders reject alternative director list
Shareholders in general merchandise retail powerhouse Target last week rejected an alternative list of directors put up by activist shareholder William Ackman.In a heated battle, Ackman, the head of Pershing Square Capital Management, sought to have his own roster of directors, including himself, replace the existing board to better compete ...
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NewsScott Wheway to use Tesco and Boots experience after Best Buy move
US electricals retailer Best Buy will adopt the best practices of retail giants Tesco and Boots when it debuts in the UK next year.
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News
Sales declines hit Gap profits
Sales declines across all four of Gap’s divisions have led to a 14 per cent slump in first-quarter profits at the clothing giant.In the quarter to May 2 earnings were 15m (£135.5m), down from 49m (£156.9m) the year before. First-quarter net sales were $3.13bn (£1.97bn) compared with $3.38bn (£2.13bn) the ...
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Lawson shelves plan to acquire rival
The country’s second largest convenience store chain Lawson has shelved plans to acquire rival am/pm. Lawson said it could not reach an agreement with the US-based competitor.The proposed acquisition would have cost the 9,500-store retailer ¥14.5bn (£97m). As part of the deal, am/pm wanted the majority of its 1,100 stores ...
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Unexpected profit revealed by Sears
Department store group Sears posted an unexpected first-quarter profit after slashing advertising costs and payroll expenses.The retailer also extended a credit agreement to increase the amount available to $4.1bn (£2.6bn) until March 24, 2010, and $2.4bn (£1.5bn) from March 25, 2010, to June 2012.Net income in the three months to ...