Wal-Mart slows store openings as focus turns to e-commerce

“I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say we are going through a transformative period,” Wal-Mart CEO Doug McMillon told investors and analysts Thursday.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 7, 2016

Bed Bath & Beyond pilots premium membership program to replace coupons

For $29 a year, customers receive 20% discounts on all purchases and free shipping on online transactions.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 6, 2016

Wal-Mart doubling e-commerce warehouses, stake in JD.com

The brick-and-mortar behemoth is doubling its web-focused warehouses to 10 by the end of this year and installing automated product sorting and item tracking technologies.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 6, 2016

VF CEO stepping down, COO named successor

Steven Rendle will replace longtime CEO Eric C. Wiseman, who oversaw years of growth at the company, which runs apparel brands such as Timberland.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 6, 2016

Reis: Upscale mall vacancies fall in Q3, offsetting strip mall struggles

Regional malls catering to wealthier shoppers continue to perform better than smaller strip malls, but signs of employment growth and rising incomes should help both categories.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 6, 2016

Heading into holidays, Amazon and Google showdown plays out in ads

Google’s announcement of an AI-integrated home assistant yesterday followed Amazon’s launch of an enormous Alexa campaign.

By Peter Adams • Oct. 5, 2016

Sears shares soar on reports of Craftsman sale talks

Final bids, which could value the tools unit's brand at some $2 billion, are due at the end of the month.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 5, 2016

Toys 'R' Us sells iconic toy unit FAO Schwarz

Buyer ThreeSixty Group designs, sources and distributes consumer products under a portfolio of owned and licensed brands including Sharper Image, Discovery Kids, Smithsonian and Animal Planet.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 5, 2016

Criteo acquires e-commerce ad exhange HookLogic for $250M

HookLogic partners with retailers including Wal-Mart, Target, Costco and Best Buy to sell sponsored ads that appear in product search results on their web pages.

By Dan O'Shea • Oct. 4, 2016

Best Buy to pay $3.8M penalty over sales of recalled products

The electronics retailer knowingly sold some 600 recalled items from 2010 to 2015, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 4, 2016

Sears CEO insists Kmart is not closing

Edward Lampert published a letter Monday denying that Kmart is liquidating, the second time in 10 weeks the company has had to quash rumors of its demise.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 4, 2016

Trump vs. Clinton: How the next US president could shape retail's future

The election's heated rhetoric is already distracting from holiday shopping. But the candidates' stances on three policy issues critical to retail — trade, tax reform and labor — could have a much bigger impact.

By Corinne Ruff • Oct. 3, 2016

Rent the Runway ends employee bonuses, raises salaries

Jenn Hyman, cofounder and CEO, said the decision comes after repeated feedback from employees that bonuses were "a distraction from learning."

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 3, 2016

Embattled Rue21 replaces CEO Fisch

Longtime CFO Keith McDonough will take over as interim CEO while the teen apparel retailer's board of directors searches for a permanent replacement.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 3, 2016

UPDATE: Bass Pro Shops acquires Cabela's for $5.5B

The deal will likely invite antitrust scrutiny from the Federal Trade Commission, considering the dominance of both retailers in the outdoor and sporting goods space. 

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 3, 2016

H&M warns disappointing sales could extend into Q4

The fast-fashion retailer blamed quarterly profit declines on the strong dollar and increased discounts forced by hotter-than-expected weather.

By Daphne Howland • Sept. 30, 2016

American Eagle Outfitters taps retail veteran as permanent CFO

Bob Madore will leave his post as CFO of Ralph Lauren to continue the retailer's turnaround plan, seen as one of the biggest teen apparel success stories.

By Daphne Howland • Sept. 30, 2016

Supreme Court to hear credit card swipe fees fight

At issue are the fees that credit and debit card issuers impose on payments, which retailers argue are ultimately passed on to customers in the form of higher prices.

By Daphne Howland • Sept. 30, 2016

Report: Bids for Cabela's expected by week's end

Rival Bass Pro Shops is a part of one group hoping to acquire the outdoor retailer's lucrative credit card business. 

By Daphne Howland • Sept. 30, 2016

Costco beats expectations, boosted by switch to Visa

The warehouse retailer beat back challenges like falling food and fuel prices to post profits of $779 million, up from $767 million in the year-ago period.

By Daphne Howland • Sept. 30, 2016

Target launches new website for tech startup pitches

The new web portal promises to help emerging companies more effectively communicate their concepts to the retail giant.

By Dan O'Shea • Sept. 29, 2016

Pier 1 swings to Q2 loss, hedge fund blasts poison pill measure

Alden Global Capital, which recently revealed a 9.5% stake in the struggling retailer, called its new shareholder rights plan “a nonsensical scare tactic.”

By Daphne Howland • Sept. 29, 2016

Report: American Apparel actively seeking buyer

Investment bank Houlihan Lokey has been hired to explore a sale and investor Ron Burkle’s Yucaipa Cos. has probed the embattled retailer's finances, according to reports.

By Daphne Howland • Sept. 29, 2016

Target taps AddStructure to pilot Amazon Alexa voice search rival

Natural language processing startup AddStructure was one of 10 startups chosen in June to participate in the retailer's Target + TechStars accelerator program.

By Dan O'Shea • Sept. 28, 2016

Report: Amazon Echo to use streaming music as loss leader

In a potential bid to move more Echo devices for the holidays, the company is undercutting the market with a subscription of $5 a month.

By David Kirkpatrick • Sept. 28, 2016