Personnel

Jan Singer, who has held executive positions at athletic shoe and apparel makers Nike and Reebok, has been named CEO of Atlanta-based shapeware maker Spanx Inc. Singer will join Spanx early next month, the company said. She's been corporate vice president of global apparel and corporate vice president of global footwear for Nike. Singer also was vice president and general manager of Reebok's women's business. Spanx announced in February that CEO Laurie Ann Goldman would be leaving. The former Coca-Cola licensing executive joined the company as top executive in 2002.

You've probably heard that a stunning 95 percent of the gains the United States economy has made in the years since the Great Recession have gone to the top 1 percent. What you may not know — but which plays no small role in explaining that phenomenon — is that most of the jobs created in the same time period have been low-wage, service sector gigs (or McJobs, as some people call them). In fact, according to a 2012 study from the National Employment Law Project, McJobs make up 58 percent of employment growth we've seen during the recovery.

Wal-Mart workers and union organizers say they'll hold strikes in more than 20 cities Wednesday in their campaign to raise wages. The job actions are timed in conjunction with Wal-Mart's annual shareholder meeting, which takes place Friday in Fayetteville, Ark., near the company's Bentonville headquarters. OUR Wal-mart, a group backed by the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, helped orchestrate a candlelight vigil Monday night outside the Phoenix home of Rob Walton, Wal-Mart's board chairman. 

In one of his first public appearances as Wal-Mart's new CEO, Doug McMillon talked respectfully about its giant competitor Amazon.com, but explained why physical retail is here to stay. He also talked about how digital platforms and sales channels will become increasingly important to the retailer's business, including the need to improve its presence in digital media.

After years of resisting pressure to ditch Abercrombie & Fitch's outdated strategy, Chief Executive Officer Mike Jeffries is relenting. Faulted by investors for a management style that alienated underlings and

CNBC's Courtney Reagan speaks with former Saks CEO Steve Sadove; former Toys"R"Us CEO Jerry Storch; former Bloomingdale's CEO Michael Gould; and former Sears Canada CEO Mark Cohen about the outlook for retail.

The first nonfamily member to lead L.L.Bean says he's planning to step down in 2016 after more than a decade as CEO. Chris McCormick, president and CEO, told employees in a memo that he's giving early notice so there can be a smooth transition. During his tenure, McCormick helped to transform the 102-year-old outdoors retailer from a catalog company into a multichannel retailer that does most of its business online. He's also sped up the opening of retail stores, with 19 stores now in operation and plans to open three more this year.

Jenna Lyons and the J.Crew design team as well as CEO Mickey Drexler are in Hong Kong to celebrate the opening of the brand's first store in the city-state, the first in Asia to have free-standing J.Crew stores. Below, I talk to Jenna about J.Crew and fashion, Lena Dunham and her role on "Girls," and why she refuses to join the social media craze.

Google named a new leader for its computerized eyewear Glass unit as it gears up for more sales. Ivy Ross will start leading the internet-connected spectacles unit on May 19, according to a post on the company's website. She most recently was chief marketing officer at Art.com, following positions at Coach and Bausch & Lomb. "With your help, I look forward to answering the seemingly simple, but truly audacious questions Glass poses: Can technology be something that frees us up and keeps us in the moment, rather than taking us out of it?" she wrote on the company's website.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said it wouldn't oppose an increase in the federal minimum wage, its most explicit comment yet on the controversial debate to move past the $7.25-an-hour minimum. "We're not opposed to minimum wage increase, unless it's directed exclusively at us," said Wal-Mart U.S. President Bill Simon, referring to an attempt by the District of Columbia city council to require big retailers to pay starting wages that are higher than Washington's minimum wage.