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August 1, 2012
Toshiba Tec and IBM announce initial closing of acquisition of IBM’s Retail Store Solutions unit

Toshiba Tec Corp. and IBM announced the initial closing of the transaction in which Toshiba Tec will acquire IBM's Retail Store Solutions (RSS) business.

New York -- Toshiba Tec Corp. and IBM announced the initial closing of the transaction in which Toshiba Tec will acquire IBM's Retail Store Solutions (RSS) business. The agreement was announced on April 17, 2012.

Toshiba Tec has established Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions Holdings Corporation, a holding company, of which Toshiba Tec holds 80.1% ownership and IBM holds 19.9% ownership.

June 21, 2012
IBM survey: CMOs challenged to reach connected consumers

A survey released by IBM found that chief marketing officers and chief information officers must join forces in order to connect with today’s consumer across new channels including mobile devices and social networks.

Armonk, N.Y. -- A survey released Thursday by IBM found that chief marketing officers and chief information officers must join forces in order to connect with today’s consumer across new channels including mobile devices and social networks.

April 20, 2012
Winners in the Toshiba/IBM POS Deal

IBM’s decision to sell its Retail Store Solutions (RSS) business to Toshiba TEC was the most significant announcement in the retail point-of-sale industry in the last 10 years, according to industry analyst Greg Buzek, president, IHL Group, Franklin, Tenn.

IBM’s decision to sell its Retail Store Solutions (RSS) business to Toshiba TEC was the most significant announcement in the retail point-of-sale industry in the last 10 years, according to industry analyst Greg Buzek, president, IHL Group, Franklin, Tenn.

April 17, 2012
SPOTLIGHT ON: Facilities

Energy efficiency is one of the key benefits of using LED lighting. But there are plenty of other reasons to incorporate LEDs into retail stores, Sally Lee, applications marketing manager for Osram Sylvania, told attendees at the session, “Spotlight on LED: Getting the Dirt on Rare Earth Minerals.”

April 17, 2012
Trends in Building Envelopes

Retail facades and storefronts have come under increased scrutiny in recent years for the important role they play in brand identity. Chain Store Age talked with Oldcastle BuildingEnvelope’s Kent Baumann about trends in building envelope solutions and how the industry is evolving.

March 15, 2012
Fresh & Easy and Hill Phoenix collaborate on GreenChill Platinum store

Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market received the Environmental Protection Agency’s GreenChill Partnership’s highest award — Platinum-Level Store Certification — for green refrigeration technology at its new store in Folsom, Calif.

Folsom, Calif. -- Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market received the Environmental Protection Agency’s GreenChill Partnership’s highest award — Platinum-Level Store Certification — for green refrigeration technology at its new store  in Folsom, Calif. It is just the second store in California, and one of just supermarkets in the nation, to achieve platinum certification.

December 13, 2011
Whole Foods Market partners in energy-saving program

Whole Foods Market partnering with EnergySmart Jobs and PECI on high-efficiency refrigeration retrofits.

San Francisco -- Whole Foods Market partnering with EnergySmart Jobs and PECI on high-efficiency refrigeration retrofits. EnergySmart Jobs works with supermarkets and other commercial retail businesses throughout California to lower their operating costs by reducing the amount of energy they use.

November 30, 2011
Starbucks’ Times Square location lights up with LEDs

Solid-state lighting figures prominently in Starbucks’ newly renovated Time Square flagship in New York City.

New York City -- Solid-state lighting figures prominently in Starbucks’ newly renovated Time Square flagship in New York City. The retailer utilized the services of Focus Lighting, a New York-based architectural lighting design firm, which called upon LED Source, an international supplier of LED lighting.

“LEDs are the most energy-efficient lighting solution on the market,” said Joe Zamore, VP of business development, LED Source, Wellington, Fla., which specializes specializes in full-scale evaluations and retrofits.

October 24, 2011
Taking Lighting On the Road

GE Lighting devised an innovative way to educate retailers about lighting trends and products, and has been on the road since February with its GE Lighting Revolution Tour. Chain Store Age talked with GE’s Cate Gutowski about the tour, its objectives and what lies ahead for retail lighting.

October 24, 2011
Timberland’s Lighting Upgrade

Sustainability is fundamental to The Timberland Co., which has committed to reducing its environmental footprint by cutting emissions from its facilities and stores by 50%. The company has identified lighting, which accounts for a significant portion of its total energy use, as a prime source for energy reduction. In 2009, it replaced incandescent and halogen track and flood lighting in many of its stores with LED technology.


October 10, 2011
Motorola Solutions unveils tablet built for enterprise users; first solutions focused on retail

Motorola Solutions announced the first tablet computer built from the ground up specifically for enterprise users, the Android-based ET1.

Schaumburg, Ill. -- Motorola Solutions on Monday announced the first tablet computer built from the ground up specifically for enterprise users, the Android-based ET1. With the first solutions focused on retail, the new tablet will be available in fourth quarter 2011.

Similar in appearance to a consumer tablet, the new ET1 is designed to leverage the sleek design and user experience of a tablet with the applications, durability, security, device management and lifecycle-support needs that are specific to the retail environment.

October 7, 2011
Lighting Science Group upgrading Villa stores with LEDs

Lighting Science Group is performing an LED lighting upgrade for Villa, the Philadelphia-based urban-inspired apparel and footwear retailer.

Satellite Beach, Fla. -- Lighting Science Group is performing an LED lighting upgrade for Villa, the Philadelphia-based urban-inspired apparel and footwear retailer. Villa estimates the lighting upgrade will pay for itself in one to two years, with energy and maintenance savings continuing to shave costs from its bottom line going forward.

October 5, 2011
Tompkins survey: Economic weakness and low consumer confidence biggest threats to holiday success

Economic weakness and low consumer confidence, combined with vendor capacity/reliability, are the top threats to business success this peak season, according to a recent Peak Season Trends and Strategies Survey Report by Tompkins Supply Chain Consortium.

Raleigh, N.C. -- Economic weakness and low consumer confidence, combined with vendor capacity/reliability, are the top threats to business success this peak season, according to a recent Peak Season Trends and Strategies Survey Report by Tompkins Supply Chain Consortium.

September 28, 2011
Energy cost savings to drive HVAC innovation

Innovation in heating, ventilation and air-conditioning will be driven by cost savings from more efficient energy use and pressure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to a recent from Pike Research.

New York City -- Innovation in heating, ventilation and air-conditioning will be driven by cost savings from more efficient energy use and pressure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to a recent from Pike Research.

August 22, 2011
Honeywell completes EMS acquisition

Honeywell announced that it has completed its acquisition of EMS Technologies, for approximately $491 million.

Morris Township, N.J. -- Honeywell announced that it has completed its acquisition of EMS Technologies, for approximately $491 million. EMS is a leading provider of connectivity solutions for mobile networking, rugged mobile computers and satellite communications.

August 22, 2011
The Big Chill

Sprouts Farmers Market in Westlake Village, Thousand Oaks, Calif., has joined an elite club: It is only the third store in the nation to achieve the Environmental Protection Agency’s GreenChill Partnership higher honor, Platinum Level Certification.

August 16, 2011
Two Food Lion stores earn Gold-Level GreenChill store certification

Grocery chain Food Lion said Tuesday that two of its stores have earned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's 2011 Gold-Level GreenChill Store Certification Award, one of the agency's highest honors for refrigeration.

Salisbury, N.C. -- Grocery chain Food Lion said Tuesday that two of its stores have earned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's 2011 Gold-Level GreenChill Store Certification Award, one of the agency's highest honors for refrigeration.

The stores are located in Conyers, Ga., and in Columbia, S.C.

Food Lion became a founding partner with the EPA's GreenChill program in 2007. Since that time, the grocer joined other food retailers to reduce refrigerant emissions and decrease impact on the ozone layer and climate change. Food Lion has won GreenChill's Distinguished Partner Award and its Superior Environmental Achievement Award in the past.

"Our company is committed to going beyond simply reducing refrigerants," said Susan Sollenberger, director of energy, maintenance and equipment purchasing at Delhaize America South. "In addition to reducing emissions through the EPA's GreenChill partnership, we continue to look for new environmentally-friendly technologies and increase the amount of stores that are also Energy Star certified."

Food Lion has more than half of the nation's Energy Star stores, with 1,015 certified stores. In addition, the company has partnered with utilities to evaluate a variety of energy saving opportunities, such as solar power. 

August 10, 2011
GNC upgrading store with LEDs

General Nutrition Centers has installed high performance, energy efficient LED bulbs from Lighting Science Group bulbs at select corporate-owned locations.

Satellite Beach, Fla. -- General Nutrition Centers has installed high performance, energy efficient LED bulbs from Lighting Science Group bulbs at select corporate-owned locations.

The Energy Star-approved LEDs are 80% more efficient than the halogen bulbs they replaced, are fully dimmable and have about 50% light output than competing products, according to the company.

August 4, 2011
Fresh & Easy adds natural gas vehicles to its fleet

Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market has added 25 compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles to its distribution fleet as part of a partnership with Ryder System.

El Segundo, Calif. -- Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market has added 25 compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles to its distribution fleet as part of a partnership with Ryder System. The new vehicles produce 20% to 30% less emissions than comparable diesel vehicles and are part of the company’s ongoing efforts to reduce emissions.

June 20, 2011
Green Building Options

Blain’s Farm & Fleet knows all too well the misconception about conventional construction versus construction with a metal building system. In fact, the chain’s director of engineering, Neal VanLoo, recently was challenged by an architect when building a new store.


“The architect was against using a metal building system because he thought the design would be a square, fixed-dimension tin box,” VanLoo said. “We had to sit down and review the plans with him in order for him to realize the benefits of a metal building system.”


June 16, 2011
Flip Flop Shops signs 100th franchise agreement

Sandal retailer Flip Flop Shops announced Thursday it has signed its 100th franchisee agreement for a new store to be located in Universal Studios, Calif.

Atlanta -- Sandal retailer Flip Flop Shops announced Thursday it has signed its 100th franchisee agreement for a new store to be located in Universal Studios, Calif. The store will be followed by openings in Santa Monica and Las Vegas.

The announcement follows recent news about the growing chain’s master franchise deal for Canada, which will see units open across the country.

June 9, 2011
FM Facility Maintenance acquires US Signs

FM Facility Maintenance, a leading provider of facility management for clients with multisite restaurant and retail locations, announced that it has acquired the assets and certain liabilities of US Signs.

Hartford, Conn. -- FM Facility Maintenance, a leading provider of facility management for clients with multisite restaurant and retail locations,  announced that it has acquired the assets and certain liabilities of US Signs. With this acquisition, FM Facility Maintenance strengthens its position as a service provider of facility maintenance services to customers with a national footprint.

May 18, 2011
Golden Corral eateries cut energy with E2America’s HVAC controls

Efficient Energy America (E2America) announced that Platinum Corral, a multi-state franchise operator of Golden Corral restaurants, has signed an agreement to install the supplier’s intelligent heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) control system in all 30 of its stores.

Wilmington, N.C. -- Efficient Energy America (E2America) announced that Platinum Corral, a multi-state franchise operator of Golden Corral restaurants, has signed an agreement to install the supplier’s intelligent heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) control system in all 30 of its stores.

May 10, 2011
Three Rite Aid stores earn Energy Star certification

Three Rite Aid stores have been awarded Energy Star certification for superior energy performance by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Camp Hill, Pa. -- Three Rite Aid stores have been awarded Energy Star certification for superior energy performance by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The EPA awards the Energy Star certification to buildings that rank in the top 25% of similar buildings nationwide in terms of energy efficiency and meet strict energy efficiency performance levels set by the EPA.

May 3, 2011
Reducing facilities maintenance and repair spend -- CSA Webinar

Chain Store Age will present a Webinar – “Facilities Dollars and Sense: Unlocking Substantial Maintenance and Repair Savings by Controlling All Components of Cost” -- on Tuesday, May 10, 2011, at 2 p.m (EST).

New York City -- Chain Store Age will present a Webinar – “Facilities Dollars and Sense: Unlocking Substantial Maintenance and Repair Savings by Controlling All Components of Cost” -- on Tuesday, May 10, 2011, at 2 p.m (EST).

The presentation, sponsored by First Service Networks, will discuss a new way of thinking that systematically analyzes, controls and manages each individual component of cost to deliver substantial savings on multi-site maintenance and repair spend.