this and that in retail

This was all interesting stuff from Chain Store Age magazine...

• Martha Stewart’s New Home: Macy’s -- Federated Department Stores, Inc. and Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. announced an agreement to develop an all-new line of Martha Stewart Collection home merchandise exclusively for Macy's. It is expected to debut in fall 2007 in Macy's stores across the country, as well as on macys.com. The companies said the line would encompass a broad range of home goods aimed for the more upscale, traditional Macy's customer. Martha Stewart also has a long-running deal with Kmart that runs until 2009. Kmart continues to sell Martha Stewart Everyday brand home furnishings.
• Food Lion’s Bloom to Expand -- About 40 of Food Lion’s Bloom new concept stores will expand past its Charlotte, N.C. testing grounds and into the Washington, D.C.-area. The company said the Bloom stores plan to hire as many as 2,500 people. Makeovers for its stores, however, will not be completed until late fall. Bloom officials also announced an expansion into the Greenville, S.C., area, where seven Bloom stores are scheduled to open later this year. Food Lion also plans to introduce its Bottom Dollar store in the Washington, D.C. region.
• Safeway, Washington Nationals Sign Marketing Agreement -- Safeway Inc. and the Washington Nationals entered into a two-year joint marketing agreement to link the city's largest supermarket chain with its new Major League Baseball team. Safeway will have in-stadium promotions, advertising in team-controlled media and host Safeway Club Card Nights, which will offer discounted tickets to select games. It is not the only baseball connection for the retailer. Former Safeway chairman Peter McGowan is owner of the San Francisco Giants.
• Wal-Mart Unimpressed by Local Advertising -- Wal-Mart Stores Inc. reportedly said it decided against buying more ads in local newspapers after a test run in Missouri and Oklahoma showed the expense was not worth it. The retailer’s run in Midwestern papers were closely watched by publishers, who complained publicly that Wal-Mart sought free publicity from their newspapers but refused to buy ads, while driving out local businesses. Wal-Mart has since agreed to run a test in the holiday shopping season by placing a full-page color ad for its electronics department in 336 smaller papers in those two states between Nov. 30 and Dec. 6.