Michael McNamara left Tesco in 2015 after 17 years to become chief information officer at Target, where he led an 18-month initiative to refocus the tech team on projects that would drive revenue growth and help Target compete against Amazon and other rivals. The transition meant trading contract workers for in-house tech staffers, and today more than 80% of the retailer's 4,000 tech employees are full-time.

Alegra O'Hare has left Gap less than a year after being named chief marketing officer, and the company said it plans to redefine the role. O'Hare was hired last February after a decade at Adidas Originals and Style.

Luxury brand Louis Vuitton will team with the National Basketball Association to design league-inspired fashions, as part of an effort to focus more on the US market. "Our players are on social media ... and part of what people look at is fashion, it's what they're wearing. ... You've got a whole sneaker culture around the game, too," NBA executive Ralph Rivera said.

Gap-owned Banana Republic is rolling out a new campaign in time for Black History Month that will include digital spots and two short films featuring black artists and creatives who have worked with the retailer in the past. The spots, showcasing spring fashions, will run on the retailer's website and in social media channels starting in February.

Millennials favor Nike over other brands in categories including activewear, outdoor footwear and apparel, and fashion footwear, according to an annual survey by Roth Capital Partners. Dollar Shave Club is the favorite subscription service among millennials, and Yeti topped the list of most-popular reusable water bottle and tumbler brands.

Fashion retailer Rue21 will nearly double distribution of its plus-size line this year, to 480 of its 690 stores, and expand its West Coast buying team to handle the growth. The retailer's plus-size pants, tops and other pieces go up to size 4X.

Mobile location analytics technology can give retailers and restaurant operators key insights into shopper behavior and how consumers spend their time. The tech gives brick-and-mortar retailers insights that online retailers have long been able to gather by measuring shopper behavior on their sites, said Ethan Chernofsky of startup Placer.ai.

Looking to bolster its sustainability efforts, Meijer will now make its Flashfood app available in all of its stores, allowing customers to get discounts for buying meat, produce, seafood, deli and bakery items nearing their sell-by dates. Store officials said a pilot program with the app tested at four stores in the Detroit area resulted in a decrease in food waste, which "diverted thousands of pounds of food from landfills," according to Don Sanderson, group vice president of fresh for Meijer.

A survey from NRF and Prosper Insights & Analytics says this year's Super Bowl may be one of the most popular yet, with 194 million adults saying they have plans for the big game. Those watching expect to spend an average of $88.65 on food and beverages, merchandise and party supplies, for a total of $17.2 billion nationwide. Dig into the data.

About 93% of shoppers say they are more likely to choose a retailer based on convenience. Source: NRF's Winter 2020 Consumer View.

NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay sat down with Hudson's Bay Company CEO Helena Foulkes and online grocery retailer Ocado Group CEO Tim Steiner at NRF 2020 Vision: Retail's Big Show. Shay and the two executives discussed tackling new growth challenges, reimagining core customer strategies and living up to their "change agent" personas. Read more.

Wendy's hit its goal of switching to hydroponically grown tomatoes at all of its North American restaurants and has set out new animal welfare goals it aims to meet by 2024. The new Animal Care Standards Program, set to roll out this year, will include an assessment tool for the chain's meat, poultry and egg supplies.