Retail

Bloomberg JC Penney Co showed some signs of progress in its recovery effort over the holiday season, though a sixth straight quarter of declining sales show it still has a way to go. The company’s same-store sales results that weren’t as bad as analysts had expected, fell 7% in the fourth quarter. That’s compared with a drop of 7.5%, the ...

Bloomberg Walmart Inc named Jamie Iannone as its chief operating officer (COO) for US e-commerce, the latest reshuffle in its senior management ranks. Iannone, who joined Walmart in 2014, was previously running the web, membership and marketing operations of the retailer’s wholesale subsidiary Sam’s Club, according to a memo obtained by Bloomberg News. At Sam’s Club, he spearheaded several initiatives ...

Bloomberg Shoprite Holdings Ltd’s decision to sell some properties and lease them back is to free up cash to invest in technology, growing online sales and upgrading supermarkets to offer more fresh food. These are the kinds of investments that “give us very good returns,” Chief Executive Officer Pieter Engelbrecht said in an interview after Africa’s biggest grocer reported first-half ...

Bloomberg Papa John’s International Inc fell after the pizza chain reported earnings that suggest little growth for its North American locations this year, along with concerns about the coronavirus that’s quickly becoming a threat to the global economy. While North American same-store sales rose 3.5% last quarter and exceeded analysts’ predictions, the chain isn’t planning on increasing its net store ...

Bloomberg Nestle SA, the world’s largest food and beverage company, told employees to avoid travelling for business reasons until the middle of March to keep from contracting or spreading the coronavirus. The Swiss maker of KitKat and Nespresso capsules “shares global concerns over the spread and impact on public health of coronavirus,” it said. Nestle, which employs 291,000 people worldwide, ...

Bloomberg The new owners of Forever 21 Inc have hired an executive from another fast-fashion chain to steer the troubled retailer outside of bankruptcy. Daniel Kulle, who worked at Hennes & Mauritz AB for more than two decades, will take over as Forever 21’s chief executive officer, Authentic Brands Group Inc said in a statement. Authentic Brands is part of ...

Bloomberg Chuck Gregorich, who sells China-made patio furniture on Amazon.com Inc expects to lose as much as $2 million in sales this year due to factory closings and other coronavirus-related slowdowns. So he’s cutting his ad spending on Amazon and thinking about raising prices to avoid running out of inventory. The sudden shift in sales tactics by merchants like Gregorich ...

Bloomberg Amazon.com Inc is taking aim at the urban grocery market with a larger version of its cashierless Go convenience store. The company on Tuesday was set to open the first Go Grocery, located in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighbourhood, not far from the online retailer’s headquarters. The store is about five times the size of a typical Amazon Go — ...

Bloomberg Boingo Wireless, the WiFi service used by travellers, is exploring a potential sale after receiving takeover interest, according to people familiar with the matter. The Los Angeles-based mobile internet services provider is working with an adviser to explore its options and field potential offers, said the people, who asked to not be identified because the matter isn’t public. Boingo ...

Bloomberg Shake Shack Inc tumbled in late trading after the burger-and-fries chain gave a revenue projection for 2020 that fell short of analysts’ projections. Comparable-store sales — a key measure of restaurant and retail performance — and revenue also fell more than anticipated in the fourth quarter, as delivery growth slowed amid a shift to a partnership with Grubhub Inc. ...