International Strategy

Wal-Mart said it will be spending half a billion dollars this year to expand in Canada, the latest example ot a retail rush north to take advantage of Canada's relatively robust economy and eager-to-spend consumers. 

Coach Inc. plans to gradually move some production out of China, where labor costs are rising, and into lower-cost countries such as India and Vietnam. But China is proving a boon to Coach's sales, as residents that have become more affluent buy the retailer's status-symbol bags.

Target has acquired the Canadian leases for 220 sites currently operated by Zellers, a subsidiary of the Hudson's Bay Company, for $1.8 billion. It represents Target's first foray outside the U.S. Target will sublease these sites to Zellers for a period of time, until the retailer opens its first stores in Canada beginning in 2013.

A 1,000-square-foot Victoria’s Secret travel store in a Brazilian airport, which just sells accessories and beauty products, opened a little more than a year ago. Since then, it’s done about $10 million in sales, or $10,000 per square foot.

Brookstone announced the launch of a wholesale and licensing division, which will make the company's products available to retail outlets worldwide.

Ace Hardware Corp. plans to spin off its international division at the beginning of 2011 in an effort to help foster growth overseas.

Swedish furniture giant IKEA plans over the next three years to double its annual spending on products from South Asia to $1.31 billion, and is pressing the Indian government to relax investment regulations so it can launch its retail superstores in the country, its CEO told reporters.

While store-based international expansion has been the privilege of the biggest multichannel brands, online retailers can expand another way: through international e-commerce.

Responding to the call for a doubling of exports over the next five years through the National Export Initiative, officials with the U.S. Postal Service and U.S. Department of Commerce are leveraging their strategic partnership to launch a business plan aimed at empowering American businesses interested in exporting as a pathway to growth. A partnership agreement signed at Postal Service headquarters today establishes an outreach strategy between representatives of the Department of Commerce's International Trade Administration and U.S. Commercial Service, and the Postal Service's Global Business team.

As Americans' love affair with shopping cools, retailers are venturing overseas in search of growth. Bloomingdale's and Crate & Barrel each opened their first store outside the U.S. in Dubai this year. Abercrombie & Fitch just opened its first store in London. Sears has begun shipping tools and clothing to 90 countries. Macy's is looking at going into China. And Target, the discount chain that for a decade has resisted Wall Street pressure to expand internationally, revealed this spring that it wants to open stores outside the U.S. and is looking at Canada, Mexico and Latin America.