DATATRAC

Personnel Updates

• Gordmans Stores Inc. named Ramin Mozafari as Senior VP Planning and Allocation.

• HSN, Inc. has appointed Rod Little as CFO, effective January 3, 2017.

• Office Depot Inc. has announced its President, Marc Crosby, is leaving the company. No date was given for his departure. Also leaving the chain is CEO Roland Smith, who announced he would retire once a successor is named.

Mergers & Acquisitions

• Bed Bath & Beyond has acquired PersonalizationMall.com, an online retailer of personalized products based in Burr Ridge, IL.

Industry Insight

• Amazon.com Inc. has launched its newest brick-and-mortar concept. Located in downtown Seattle, the 1,800 sq. ft. convenience store, Amazon Go, is currently open only to Amazon employees, but is expected to open to the public in early 2017. There is no checkout, instead shoppers use the new Amazon Go app and their purchase is billed to their Amazon.com account. Amazon Go sells ready-to-eat meals and essentials such as bread and milk.

• Barnes & Noble Inc. opened its first new-concept store in the Galleria in Edina, MN, with a full-service restaurant and bar. The 21,500 sq. ft. store replaces a 38,000 sq. ft. store. The 100-seat restaurant serves breakfast, lunch and dinner.

• Costco Wholesale Corp. announced it will launch its first Business Centre store in Canada in Toronto in March 2017.

• PetSmart Inc. is testing a new store format. PetSmart Pet Spa combines pet services and an enhanced pet lifestyle experience in a smaller retail footprint. The stores average 5,000-8,000 sq. ft. and include a self-service dog wash, a new grooming salon design and a coffee bar-lounge area, among other amenities.

• Staples Inc., which operates some 105 stores in the United Kingdom, has announced it will sell its U.K. retail business.

• Walmart Stores Inc. has opened its latest concept in grocery pick-up in Thornton, CO. The 4,000 sq. ft. store is the second one in the country and it’s a new concept of an online grocery order pick-up location, a convenience store that sells hot sandwiches and coffee, as well as a gas station.

Real Estate

• PetSmart Inc. announced it has opened its 1,500th store.