
Ross Stores Opens 19 New U.S. Locations
The company believes Ross can grow to 2,900 locations and DD’s Discounts can become a chain of 700 stores given consumers’ ongoing focus on value and convenience.

NRF Sees Import Cargo Levels Continuing to Rise Among Tariff Uncertainty
Imports from all trading partners could also be affected by a new fee the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is considering that would levy a fee between $1 million and $1.5 million each time a Chinese-built ship docks at a U.S. port.

CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor Sees February Y/Y Retail Sales Growing But Moderating
The Sporting Goods, Hobby, Music & Book Stores segment increased 3.6 percent year-over-year, up from 2.8 percent y/y growth in January. Clothing, Footwear and Accessories Stores were up 3.8 percent in February, half the trend in January.

Big Peach Running Sets to Open New Gainesville, Georgia Store
Alex and Stephanie (Fe) Rodriguez previously opened Big Peach stores in Dawsonville and Cumming, Georgia, respectively, and will now own and operate the Gainesville, GA.

Wolverine Worldwide Transitions International Business to Brand Chiefs
The move will result in the elimination of the International Group president role, which has been held by Isabel Soriano since June 2021. The company and Soriano have agreed that her employment would end on March 3, 2026.

EXEC: Sebago Parent BasicNet Gets DTC Lift for Positive 2024
The Turin, Italy-based parent of the Kappa, Robe di Kappa, K-Way, Superga, Briko Jesus Jeans, Sabelt, and Sebago brands said Direct sales grew 4.2 percent to €346.8 million in 2024, while Royalties fell 2.2 percent year-over-year.

EXEC: Liberated Brands Auction Process Approved
All bids are due Monday, March 10, at 5 p.m. ET. If there are two or more bids, an auction will be held on March 17, with a hearing to approve the buyer proposed for March 24.

EXEC: Journeys Riding High with DD Comps and Parent’s Main Focus for FY 2026
Since starting the program in October 2024, the company has seen 16 new 4.0 Journeys remodels (lead photo) perform well above average in comp, traffic, conversion, and transaction size.

EXEC: VF Corp. Shares Fall Following Investor Day Part 2
Presentations during the meeting were conducted by the brand presidents from The North Face, Timberland, Dickies, Altra, and Vans who outlined key strategic objectives for each brand as well as the Emerging Brands segment.

Genesco Posts Double-Digit Q4 Comp Gain on E-Commerce Boost
A 1 percent net sales increase for the quarter reflects a 10 percent increase in comparable sales, including an 18 percent increase in e-commerce comparable sales and a 6 percent increase in same-store sales.

EXEC: Stifel’s 2025 All-Star Sneaker Survey Sees Nike Mentions Fall to All-Time Low
Stifel noted that Nike styles represented three of the Top 5 styles this year versus the 10-year historical average of 4.1 of the Top 5 in the report. New Balance registered as the second most popular brand ,and Adidas styles were mentioned as the most popular in 11.9 percent of stores surveyed.

Academy Appoints EVP & Chief Information Officer
Sumit Anand joined Academy this month and reports directly to CEO Steve Lawrence. Anand oversees enterprise technology operations, including cybersecurity, IT infrastructure and operations, and IT shared services, supporting the company’s corporate, distribution center and retail initiatives.

Target Lays Out Strategic Plans to Drive $15 Billion+ in Sales Growth by 2030
This week, the retailer outlined for the financial community how ongoing investments will accelerate its strategy and drive billions of dollars of profitable sales growth across its multi-channel business by 2030.

The Buckle Sees February Comps Down 1.3 Percent
Net sales for the February period decreased 0.9 percent to $77.6 million from net sales of $78.2 million for the prior-year February period.

Macy’s Inc. Has Mixed Q4 Results; Shares Slip as Tariffs, Weak Consumer Impact Outlook
Macy’s, Inc. reported that net sales decreased 4.3 percent to $7.8 billion for the quarter ended February 1. Comparable store sales were down 1.1 percent on an owned basis and up 0.2 percent on an owned-plus-licensed-plus-marketplace basis.