Chico's

Fort Myers, Fla. -- Chico's FAS reported Tuesday that net income for the quarter ended Oct. 29 fell to $26.5 million, compared with $28.8 million a year earlier. Results include costs associated with the company’s acquisition of Boston Proper. Net sales for the quarter increased 11.5% to $538.5 million, from $483 million. Same-store sales increased 3.7%. By brand, Chico's/Soma Intimates same-store sales increa

Fort Myers, Fla. -- Chico's FAS said Tuesday it has completed its previously announced acquisition of direct-to-consumer women’s apparel retailer Boston Proper. "We appreciate the hard work that the Chico's FAS and Boston Proper teams put forth to complete this transaction in near record time,” said David F. Dyer, president and CEO of Chico’s FAS. “I see it as indicative as to how well Boston Proper fits with the Chico's FAS family of brands." Boston Proper will operate as a stand-alone division within Chico's.

Chico's was a company in transition at the end of 2009. It was coming off a turnaround year that had seen its net sales grow 8.3 percent, comparable store sales increase 6.1 percent and direct sales jump 39.3 percent. But the women's apparel retailer believed there was more market share for it to grab, particularly online. The challenge was to drive awareness for its three brands, each of which was evolving in its own right.

Chico's FAS signed an agreement to license the Test & Learn Management System from Applied Predictive Technologies (APT). After a pilot that examined a range of Chico's promotional strategies, the retailer chose the system to help it make more strategic marketing decisions. "In the highly competitive and fast-moving world of apparel retail, there is need for in depth testing and analysis in a controlled environment," says Todd Vogensen, vice president of financial planning and strategy at Chico's. "We have seen how APT's solution is able to rapidly design and test high-impact ideas before rolling them out to the entire

QUINCY, Mass. — J. Jill, a leading multi-channel specialty retailer of women's apparel based in Quincy, Mass., announced that it has appointed Scott Edmonds to its board of directors. Edmonds most recently was the chairman and CEO of Chico's FAS, where he led the company's growth from $155 million in sales and 200 locations to $1.5 billion and 1,076 locations over a ten year period. Paula Bennett, president and CEO of J. Jill, commented, "I'm very excited to have Scott join our board of directors. His proven specialty retail success and expertise in this market segment will provide tremendous

-- Net sales increased 18.5% to $551.4 million with comparable sales increasing 12.8% FORT MYERS, Fla., Aug. 17, 2011 -- /PRNewswire/ -- Chico's FAS, Inc. (NYSE: CHS) today announced its financial results for the fiscal 2011 second quarter and six months ended July 30, 2011. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20091112/FL09527LOGO ) Net Income and Earnings per Share The Company reported an increase of 47% in earnings per share with net income totaling $43.4 million, or $0.25 per diluted share for the second quarter compared to net income of $30.5 million, or $0.17 per diluted share for the same period last year.

Chico's Vice President of E-Commerce Marketing Jenn McClain discusses the cross-channel apparel retailer's latest online marketing initiatives at last week's Internet Retailer Conference & Exhibition in San Diego.

Chico's in TV, Magazine, Email Promo Blitz; Handbag E-Retailer Relies on Facebook Fan Page for Leads; Maryland Square Prospects With Free Shipping Offer.

It’s become painful to pick up the business section of the newspaper these days. My once-beloved morning routine now is preceded by trepidation. I find myself asking: What company and/or executive is in the hot seat today? WorldCom, Enron, Martha Stewart, Tyco, Arthur Andersen—once stalwarts in their respective industries—have become poster children for the post-boom era. The result is that fingerpointing has become a new national pastime. Some Democrats are saying the Bush administration hasn’t been hard enough on wayward business executives. Robert Samuelson, who covers the economy for Newsweek, recently wrote that the media is partly to blame. He argues that journalists who