http://blog.retailtrafficmag.com/retail_traffic_court Wed, 08 Feb 2012 19:05:32 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Eddie Lampert might be ready to leave the sinking ship that is Sears/Kmart, according to a report in The New York Post. Though the rumors that Lampert is looking for a buyer are for now "unsubstantiated," the move would make sense given Sears Holdings' long-term struggles, its intention to close up ... http://blog.retailtrafficmag.com/retail_traffic_court/2012/02/08/sears-up-for-sale/ The same-store sales numbers for January are coming out today and they seem to be pretty good. Thomson Reuters estimates that same-store sales rose 4.2 percent for the month, much higher than expected, according to The Wall Street Journal. Target, Kohl's and Saks Fifth Avenue surprised analysts with strong results, while ... http://blog.retailtrafficmag.com/retail_traffic_court/2012/02/02/january-sales-better-than-expected/ Perhaps getting more realistic about its current market value, Talbots is reportedly reconsidering its rejection of Sycamore Partners as a potential buyer for the chain. Last week, the company signed a confidentiality agreement with Sycamore that will allow the private equity firm access to Talbots' financial information. Initially, Sycamore offered $3 per ... http://blog.retailtrafficmag.com/retail_traffic_court/2012/01/30/more-on-talbots-potential-sale/ When Ron Johnson, the retail executive credited with making Apple stores into the money-making machines they are today, took over the helm at JC Penney last June industry executives expected he would spell major changes for the lagging department store. Today, they got a glimpse of what Johnson has in ... http://blog.retailtrafficmag.com/retail_traffic_court/2012/01/25/major-changes-coming-at-jc-penney/ In an effort to drum up more sales after the morning coffee rush ends, Starbucks announced plans to sell wine and beer at coffee shops in Chicago, Atlanta and Southern California, according to the New York Post. Up till now, Starbucks has been testing the strategy at five stores in ... http://blog.retailtrafficmag.com/retail_traffic_court/2012/01/24/starbucks-transitions-more-cafes-to-wine-bars/ The first store closing announcements for 2012 are in. On Wednesday, Macy's announced it will close nine underperforming stores, including five Macy's locations and four Bloomingdales. The five Macy's stores slated for closing are located in the middle of the country, including Ohio, Maryland, Tennessee and Kansas. In their stead, Macy's ... http://blog.retailtrafficmag.com/retail_traffic_court/2012/01/05/macys-to-close-nine-company-stores/ We might have to wait a day or two for the official December same-store sales results, but Fast Up Front has already published a list of this holiday shopping season's winners and losers. Unsurprisingly, Walmart (as well as Amazon.com) is on the good list. Also unsurprisingly, Sears is on the ... http://blog.retailtrafficmag.com/retail_traffic_court/2012/01/03/2011-holiday-season-winners-and-losers/ Even before the holiday season reached its official close, Sears Holdings Corp. is admitting defeat. After posting a 6 percent drop in same-store sales for its Sears division and a 4.4 percent drop in sales for its Kmart stores for the quarter ending Dec. 25, the department store chain decided ... http://blog.retailtrafficmag.com/retail_traffic_court/2011/12/27/sears-to-close-hundreds-of-stores/ ChainLinks Retail Advisors, a retail-only real estate services firm, has just released its U.S. National Retail Report 2012 Forecast, which predicts another slow year ahead for the sector. According to the report, there will be fewer retail bankruptcies in 2012 than there were in 2011 and the national vacancy rate will ... http://blog.retailtrafficmag.com/retail_traffic_court/2011/12/12/2012-forecast-more-of-the-same/ In spite of putting forth their best efforts, drugstores trail dollar stores in the war for U.S. consumers. A report published earlier this week by brokerage firm Colliers International looks in-depth at dollar stores' rapid expansion over the past few years and finds that they've been opening new stores at ... http://blog.retailtrafficmag.com/retail_traffic_court/2011/12/08/dollar-chains-ahead-in-race-for-market-dominance/