Public Relations

Wal-Mart Apologizes for Racial Slur on Marketplace Listing
July 18, 2017 at 2:23 pm

Wal-Mart is receiving major backlash for publishing an ad on its website that included a racial slur. Monday’s ad featured a wig cap for sale in which the color was described as "n----r brown." Wal-Mart has since removed the ad and told the Huffington Post that…

Wal-Mart Announces Guaranteed Pay for Military Workers
May 25, 2017 at 10:09 am

Wal-Mart wants to make sure its employees who take time off to serve in the military never have to take a pay cut. The company on Tuesday announced a new pay policy for all full-time and part-time workers who leave for voluntary or involuntary military assignments. Wal-Mart's pledge is to cover the difference in pay…

Marketing Campaign Reaffirms Shinola's Commitment to American Workers
May 15, 2017 at 9:07 am

In episode 92 of Total Retail Talks, Bridget Russo, chief marketing officer of Shinola, a luxury retailer that specializes in watches, bicycles and leather goods, discusses the brand's commitment to American manufacturing and jobs. Russo details Shinola's recent marketing campaign, Let's Roll Up Our Sleeves, which celebrated the idea that hard work creates jobs and…

Forever 21, Rue 21 Accused of Stealing Designs
May 10, 2017 at 10:36 am

Fast-fashion strikes again … Los Angeles-based women’s apparel and accessories brand Valfré is accusing Forever 21 and Rue 21 of stealing its designs. Valfré’s social media followers alerted the brand of the infringement. On Friday,Valfré served “cease and desist” demands on Forever 21 for allegedly copying the rainbow design of one of its phone cases. “If…

Amazon Gives Manchester-by-the-Sea Residents Free Year of Prime
May 2, 2017 at 10:50 am

Amazon.com is celebrating the streaming debut of its Oscar-winning film, "Manchester-by-the-Sea," by giving a free year of Prime membership to the residents of the Massachusetts fishing town the movie is named after. This week, the e-commerce giant will ship to every Manchester household a gift box with a code to enroll in Prime for free…

Macy's Execs Get Raises Despite Poor Sales Year
April 17, 2017 at 9:46 am

A poor sales year didn't stop Macy's executives from getting a pay bump. The department store chain's new CEO Jeff Gennette earned total compensation of $3.9 million in 2016, which accounts for a raise of 5.5 percent from his 2015 compensation of $3.7 million, according to Macy's 2017 proxy statement. Former Macy's CEO and now executive chairman…

Nordstrom Drops Ivanka Trump Brand From its Stores
February 3, 2017 at 10:35 am

Nordstrom said on Thursday that it had decided to put the brakes on its relationship with Ivanka Trump and removed her brand from a list on its site. “We’ve said all along we make buying decisions based on performance,” Nordstrom said in a statement. “In this case, based on the brand’s performance, we’ve decided not…

Amazon to Fight Trump's Immigration Order
January 31, 2017 at 12:24 pm

Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com's CEO and founder, said his company is going into action to counter President Trump's controversial immigration order, which temporarily blocked refugees and citizens of seven countries from entering the U.S. In an email to employees Monday, Bezos said Amazon is working on a number of efforts, including exploring legislative measures and drafting a…

L.L.Bean Finds Itself in a Political Controversy
January 10, 2017 at 12:29 pm

L.L.Bean is in the middle of a political skirmish over its namesake heiress and her support of President-elect Donald Trump. Some customers vowed to boycott the family-owned company after learning last week that Linda Bean, the granddaughter and heir of company founder Leon Leonwood Bean and a longtime Republican activist, bankrolled a political action committee in…

Kroger CEO: Trump Presidency is Good for Business
November 14, 2016 at 11:57 am

Kroger CEO Rodney McMullen was a guest on CNBC on Friday and shared his optimism surrounding a Donald Trump presidency. Shares of Kroger have gained more than 6 percent over the past five days, which may indicate thus far that the Trump presidency could be good for the grocery chain. "What we're really excited about, and this would…