Retail Industry Archive

Toy companies pay $1.8 million to settle suit — Nine toy companies, including Mattel Inc., are paying a total of $1.8 million to settle a lawsuit over Chinese-made toys containing lead. The companies admitted no wrongdoing as part of the settlement reached. The lawsuit, which was filed a year ago by the California attorney general and the L.A. city attorney, alleged that the toy companies...

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The warehouse club sector has done pretty well in the recession, but there is one thing to worry about, eventually: Its dependence on membership fees. On the surface, all looks well. Setting aside gasoline sales, Costco’s comparable-store sales in the past quarter rose three percent. Gas is just a way of getting customers to drop in more often and at times other than weekends when...

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For several major retailers, weak sales are leading to higher inventory levels, which is a position most merchants don’t want to be in. According to data compiled from Capital IQ (which isn’t available online), multi-line and specialty retailers are sitting on $5.5 billion more inventory in the trailing 12-month period than in the same period last year. The data was derived from...

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Sears Holding could be facing an end game, but that might not be the worst thing in the world for the man who controls the company, Edward Lampert. When Lampert and his ESL hedge fund took control of Sears several years ago, observers in the commercial real estate community called it a straight estate play and figured he’d sell stores to home and condo developers in pricey neighborhoods...

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Tesco’s sales grew 12 percent in the third quarter, but deeper in the company’s results are signs that it may face problems with its Fresh & Easy operation in the United States. Tesco’s two percent growth in comparable-store sales core U.K. market was better than the disaster many analysts had expected, but that growth came at a cost. Pressure from German discounters Aldi...

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Topline numbers from the National Retail Federation’s Black Friday study may have gotten all the attention earlier this week, but its data on shopping patterns may be more valuable simply because it shows which stores can still draw the shopping hordes — and which can’t. For instance, supermarkets received 12 percent of store visits during the latest Black Friday period, Nov....

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eBay, Costco, others expected to wage “price war” as they call for new laws — Some of the nation’s largest discounters, including Costco Wholesale Corp. and eBay Inc., are expected to call for new laws blocking manufacturers from setting minimum prices on merchandise. Firms such as MAPtrackers Inc., Cyveillance Inc., Brand Protection Agency, and NetEnforcers Inc....

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Tweeter abruptly closes, leaving employees in the cold — Electronics chain Tweeter, which first filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in July 2007, converted its case into a Chapter 7 liquidation Dec. 2, swiftly shutting its doors and axing more than 600 employees at 70 stores across the country days before the company was slated to close for good. The chain’s owner, New...

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Borders not for sale — After roughly half a year on the selling block, Borders Group is no longer for sale, executives announced. “We are no longer contemplating a transaction,” CEO George Jones said in reference to the bookstore chain’s May decision to review strategic options, including the sale of the company. Borders still has the right to sell its Paperchase chain...

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Macy’s CEO says debt can be paid down — Macy’s Inc. doesn’t plan to close many locations, CEO Terry Lundgren said in a Nov. 28 interview with Bloomberg Television, adding that the second-biggest U.S. department-store chain can pay down debt with cash. “We plan no giant wholesale closings,” he said. The retailer is conserving funds by delaying remodeling, but...

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