2016 TOP STORIES: Locally based retailers send CEOs packing
Three major Indianapolis-based retailers struggling with declining sales replaced their CEOs this year as they tried to improve company financials.
Retailers
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Struggling Finish Line strives to reduce reliance on apparel
Slumping sales of apparel led the Indianapolis-based athletic clothier to report a steep loss in its latest quarter.
Three area Sears stores set to close in January
The stores are all operated by Sears Hometown and Outlet Stores Inc., a struggling public company that was spun off by Sears Holdings Corp. in 2012.
Scotty’s Brewhouse founder completes sale of 17-restaurant chain
A Scottsdale, Arizona-based company announced Friday that it has closed on its acquisition of Indianapolis-based restaurant chain Scotty’s Brewhouse. IBJ first reported the deal in October.
Starbucks’ plan to win lunch crowd may be tough task for new CEO
Starbucks Corp. wants to persuade its coffee-loving customers to come back for lunch, after stumbling several times in previous attempts to expand its food offerings.
Report: Thanksgiving, Black Friday sales up 9 percent
According to First Data, almost 25 percent of the holiday dollars spent over the two-day period came from e-commerce, up from 18 percent last year and nearly 16 percent in 2014.
With deals offered early, Cyber Monday may lose online sales title
The Monday after Thanksgiving is traditionally the busiest online shopping day, but stores are releasing internet deals earlier, stretching them through the week, as well as making them available in stores.
Thanksgiving weekend shoppers spend less in stores, more online
Weekend shoppers picked up hot toys, TVs and new Apple products, buying both online and in stores, but spent less per person because of rampant discounting that they’ve come to demand.
Department stores change tactics as more sales go online
The beleaguered department-store industry, facing declining mall traffic and mounting online competition, will need more than Santa Claus to get customers in the door this year.
Harley-Davidson moving from Carmel to Fishers, nearly doubling store size
Harley-Davidson plans to construct and open a 43,000-square-foot store in Fishers near State Road 37 and 126th Street in the Reynolds Industrial Park and close its existing north-side location.
Finish Line expecting $44M charge related to JackRabbit decision
The Finish Line Inc. on Tuesday confirmed a two-week-old report that it was looking to rid itself of its underperforming JackRabbit chain of specialty running-shoe stores.
Dirty linen: Bed sheets scandal roils major U.S. retailers
A team of investigators spent the summer trying to answer what should have been a simple question: What were hundreds of thousands of sheets sold by big retailers like Target and Walmart actually made of?
J.C. Penney cuts sales forecast as turnaround bid stumbles
Shares of J.C. Penney slumped Friday after the department store chain with five local stores reported sluggish third-quarter sales, particularly in apparel, and cut its forecast for the remainder of the year.
Sixteen Indy-area Popeyes acquired by franchise group
Indiana-based Womack Restaurants began its association with the Atlanta-based chicken chain in 2014 and also has locations in Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma.
Kohl’s shares soar on quarterly profit growth
The retailer, which operates 14 stores in the Indianapolis area, recently bought a massive distribution center in Plainfield that it plans to use in its strategy to boost online sales.
Carmel’s Midtown project finds its momentum
It took nearly two years to finalize design and financing for the first phase of Midtown, but its developer predicts that other components will fall into place quickly now that construction has started.
Carmel phone retailer Round Room acquires 357-store chain
Round Room LLC, which operates hundreds of stores under the name TCC (formerly The Cellular Connection), said the deal to acquire Wireless Zone of Rocky Hill, Connecticut, will expand its footprint to 1,160 stores in 41 states.
Thanksgiving Day shopping is here to stay, but with some tweaks
Thanksgiving Day shopping isn’t going away, but some stores are rethinking their strategies on whether it makes sense to be open on the holiday itself.
HHGregg posts steep quarterly loss on falling sales
The Indianapolis-based appliance and electronics retailer suffered another money-losing quarter, though its strategy to focus more on appliances is making headway.
Steak n Shake rebounds to post small same-store sales increase
Sales at established Steak n Shake restaurants rose slightly in the latest quarter following disappointing results last period that snapped a streak of 29 consecutive quarterly increases dating to 2009.