Retail News

Nike has named Jane Ewing to the role of chief commercial officer after having previously axed the role last year. Ewing has held tenure with Sam’s Club China and Diageo in the past. “Jane’s experience, leadership and global perspective will help us continue this work and accelerate growth across Nike Direct and wholesale,” said Nike president and CEO Elliott Hill (more).

Longtime Apple CEO Tim Cook is enjoying his last day on the job today, with plans being to replace him with John Ternus as September begins. Cook departs as a widely praised executive, having navigated Apple through 15 years of business operations with great success (more).

Build-a-Bear Workshop delivered a very soft second-quarter on revenue (down 7.2% to $115.3 million) and EPS (pegged at $0.70 against $0.94 in the year-prior period). At the same time, the company terminated chief growth officer David Henderson without cause (more).

Ulta Beauty did well in its second quarter, beating Wall Street estimates on sales ($3 billion versus $2.98 billion expected) and earnings per share ($6.55 versus $6.20 expected). “Our team delivered another impressive quarter of strong sales, profit, and earnings growth, demonstrating that we are executing with discipline and translating our Ulta Beauty Unleashed strategy into tangible benefits for our guests,” CEO Kecia Steelman said (more).

Gap has announced a new CEO for its Old Navy banner, with Michael Francis moving from chief customer officer into the CEO position, replacing current CEO Haio Barbeito. Gap shares managed to improve by 12% in price in extended trading following the announcement (more).

Burlington Stores Inc., on the back of a very strong Q2 report card, has stated its intention to reinvest the $55 million it received during the quarter back into the business to “deliver even sharper values to our shoppers.” “It feels like the right thing to do for our customers,” CEO Michael O’Sullivan said (more).

General Mills has announced that all of its U.S. cereals are now free of synthetic color additives, with the entire portfolio of its products following suit by the end of the year. “With all U.S. cereals – including Lucky Charms and Trix – now free from certified colors, 90% of General Mills’ U.S. retail portfolio has completed the transition,” General Mills said in a statement (more).

Simon Property Group has launched it own retail media network, Simon Media Network, to reach customers across its 200-plus retail properties. “Today’s marketers need more than impressions. They need partners who can prove a campaign actually moved someone to visit, engage and buy,” said Jared Blechman, CRO for Simon (more).

Best Buy has been on a bit of a roll lately, beating revenue and EPS figures for its second quarter, seeing comp sales improve during the first half of 2026, and raising its full-year fiscal outlook. “The strength of our Q2 results reflects both the deliberate actions we have taken to position the business for growth and a healthy demand environment for our category,” said incoming CEO Jason Bonfig (more)

Bath & Body Works beat Wall Street estimates with strong digital sales growth (3%) and improved discoverability in its second quarter, as well as improved net income ($118 million versus $64 million in the year-prior period) and EPS. “These proof points strengthen our confidence in the strategy, but we remain in the early stages of the transformation,” said CEO Daniel Heaf (more).