  | May 31, 2011 | News for the retail industry |  |  | |
- Wal-Mart names 2 new senior executives for China
Wal-Mart moved quickly to replace the two top China executives who resigned earlier this month. Mario-Jose Medina, the CFO of Wal-Mart Chile, will head financial operations in China, and former senior vice president Del Sloneker will become COO. China, which provided about 2% of Wal-Mart's total sales last year, is one of a few countries targeted for future growth as part of a strategy to offset slower U.S. sales. The Wall Street Journal (tiered subscription model) (5/30)       - Shareholder to push Wal-Mart on global workers' issues: The New York City pension fund plans to ask Wal-Mart at Friday's annual meeting to require its vendors around the world to begin publishing annual reports detailing their factories' working conditions as part of an effort to improve the lives of workers around the world. Wal-Mart, which objects to the proposal, has maintained standards "that address the treatment of workers by suppliers and supplier workplace safety," said Wal-Mart spokesman David Tovar. "We expect our suppliers to meet or exceed these standards. Our supplier standards are not merely goals that we encourage our suppliers to meet; rather, a supplier's failure to adhere to these standards may jeopardize that supplier's continued business relationship with Wal-Mart." The New York Times (tiered subscription model) (5/30)
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 | Retail trends |  | | | - Apparel retailers see growing value in private label
As material and manufacturing costs continue to rise, more department stores and specialty apparel retailers are opting for private label lines, which can add 7% to a merchant's profit margins by cutting out the big-name middlemen. Macy's, Kohl's, Bloomingdale's and Saks are among the chains that have recently increased their private label offerings. Crain's New York Business (5/29) - Fashion brands say "Made in America" label boosts profits
Consumers are willing to pay more for Brooks Brothers shirts and Olsen twins' fashions that bear the "Made in America" label, an added value that has spurred these companies and others to do more domestic manufacturing. New York and Los Angeles factories turn out pieces for the Olsen's The Row label and made-to-measure shirts made in Brooks Brothers' North Carolina factory sell for 70% more than one made in Malaysia. Bloomberg (5/26)  | The Business Platinum Card® from American Express OPEN
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  - New apps turn tablets into digital catalogs
Retailers from traditional brick-and-mortar players such as Sears to online players including Amazon and Gilt Groupe are creating new applications aimed at making shopping on iPads and other tablets more like paging through a magazine or catalog. Touchscreens make it more fun, offering shoppers the option of moving things around on the page and sliding them into shopping carts. The New York Times (tiered subscription model) (5/29)  | If you post something on your brand's Facebook page your fans see it, right? Wrong. What you don't know about Facebook's post ranking system can hurt your social branding efforts. EdgeRank is the way that Facebook grades the relevancy of your posts to your fans. Cut through the mystery of Facebook's EdgeRank - download the White Paper now. |
 | Hot Topics | | | | Top five news stories selected by NRF SmartBrief readers in the past week. - Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers.
| | | Most Popular Headlines from Last Week Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers. |
| NRF News | | | | - After years in the back, Dad moves into driver's seat this Father's Day
According to a new NRF survey conducted by BIGresearch, Americans are expected to shell out over $11 billion this year on Dear Old Dad -- the most in the survey's eight-year history. While Father's Day spending still trails Mother's Day, this year's jump in average spending has narrowed the gap substantially. "Shoppers seem to be more excited when it comes to gift giving, an encouraging sign for retailers -- and dads -- everywhere," said NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay. Read more. - NRF SmartStat: May 31, 2011
 More than 2,500 people like NRF on Facebook. View the page. - Learn best practices for mobile retail with NRF's Mobile Retailing Blueprint
NRF has released the second version of its Mobile Retailing Blueprint, a free resource that educates retailers on best practices for leveraging mobile to enhance customer marketing, e-commerce and store operations. The blueprint features a special section on implementation planning and technology and also explains multiple secure mobile payment processes that can provide customer convenience and lower processing costs. Download the Blueprint.
| Chain Restaurant News | | | | - Burger King to revamp restaurants, expand menu
Burger King aims to build sales by appealing to consumers outside the traditional quickservice target market of young men with upscale store remodels and revamped menus that boast Asian chicken salads and smoothies alongside the Whopper, according to the company's new owner, 3G. The chain says it is offering incentives to franchisees to complete the remodels quickly, and Burger King expects to have 1,000 remodels completed in the next 18 months. The Miami Herald (free registration) (5/30) - Subway adds avocado as a pricier option
Subway is launching an avocado spread this week that will be part of pricier sandwiches and offered as an upgraded option for guests willing to pay 50 cents or $1 more for their sandwiches. The addition is part of an ongoing effort by the quickservice sandwich chain to grab market share from fast-casual concepts such as Panera and Chipotle, where avocado is already offered. American Public Media/Marketplace (5/30), USA TODAY (5/27)   | |  | | | | |  |  Divisional Merchandise Manager, Consumables | Headquarters Marine Corps, MCCS | Quantico, VA | | Senior Vice President, Communities & Networks and Executive Director | Shop.org | Washington, DC | | Director of Real Estate | Teavana | Atlanta, GA | | Vice President, Real Estate | Earls Restaurant Ltd | Vancouver, Canada | | Learning Solutions Manager - Southwest (Training Manager) | Petsmart | Southern California , CA | | Director of Retail | Wisteria | Dallas, TX | | Planogram Specialist | AAFES | Dallas, TX | | Fashion Buyer | Target | Minneapolis, MN | | Senior Merchandise Planning Administrator | Headquarters Marine Corps, MCCS | Quantico, VA | | Entry Level Culinary Full Time | Wegmans Food Markets | Bridgewater , NJ | | Entry Level Culinary Part Time | Wegmans Food Markets | Ocean , NJ | | Cook III Full-Time Customer Service | Wegmans Food Markets | Bridgewater, NJ | | Retail Marketing Manager | L.L.BEAN | Freeport, ME | | Purchasing Buyer, National Accounts | Bed Bath & Beyond | Union, NJ | | | |  | |  |
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