Retail roundup: Shakeup at Bloomingdale’s, Lululemon; plus AmazonSmile
Bloomingdale’s is getting a younger chairman and chief executive, according to parent company Macy’s Inc.
Michael Gould, 70, will step down as head of the upscale retail chain on Feb. 1 after 22 years in his dual position. He will be replaced by current president and chief operating officer Tony Spring, whose successor will be announced next year.
Spring, 48, has held his position since 2008 but began working at Bloomingdale’s in 1987.
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Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s together have 840 department stores and 13 Bloomingdale’s outlet stores. The company is trying to position itself as an omni-channel brand, moving seamlessly between brick-and-mortar operations and digital presence.
Macy’s, along with rival Barneys, is currently facing a probe from the New York attorney general’s office into allegations that the chains racially profiled customers.
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Lululemon is also bringing in a new top executive, hiring Kmart alum Tara Poseley as chief product officer.
The yoga-wear retailer lost Poseley’s predecessor Sheree Waterson in April, shortly after a ruckus about too-sheer black pants forced a pricey recall.
The company is still looking for a replacement for Chief Executive Christine Day, who said she plans to depart once a successor is found.
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Lululemon poached Poseley from Kmart, where she was president of the retail division. She previously served as president at Bebe Stores and Disney Stores North America.
In a note to clients, RBC Capital Market analyst Howard Tubin raised concerns about Poseley’s lack of experience with technical athletic apparel but said her appointment “will remove some of the uncertainty around the LULU story.”
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Amazon.com, the world’s largest e-commerce operation, is leveraging its enormous order volumes to give charities a boost. The company on Wednesday launched a new program that it’s calling AmazonSmile, which will send 0.5% of each purchase amount to a charity of the customer’s choosing.
Amazon said it won’t put a cap on donations.
Users can go to smile.amazon.com and select a charity from a list of nearly 1 million options, including St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and the American Red Cross.
From there, the shopping experience is the same as it’s always been – prices aren’t higher, check-out isn’t more complicated. Donations will come out of the AmazonSmile Foundation.
Not interested? Just use Amazon’s standard website.
Amazon on Tuesday said it is building its fourth Californian fulfillment center in Moreno Valley, adding that it anticipates healthy demand for the upcoming holidays.
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