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Shoppers spent 14 percent more online during the week ending Dec. 18, according to comScore. Online spending totaled $6.4 billion for the week, the most ever spent in one week. Shoppers have spent almost $32 billion online for the holiday season to date, a 15 percent increase from a year ago.

Dreams, a technology-driven, multichannel retailer focused on the licensed sports products industry, has launched Indiana University’s online merchandise store at www.indianauniversitystore.com. The site consists of an assortment of hard and soft goods, including apparel, headwear, gifts, novelties, home décor and collectibles. The site is supported by Dreams’ online marketing and proprietary e-commerce technology.

On the eighth day of its "12 Days of Giving" Facebook campaign, Wal-Mart awarded $140,000 to nine nonprofits aiding veterans, active members of the military and their families. Over 12 consecutive days, Wal-Mart will award a total of $1.5 million to 145 organizations in all 50 states, Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico. Organizations being honored on the company's Facebook page on Monday are serving communities in California, Delaware, Florida, Missouri, North Carolina, Texas and Washington.

Shopping cart abandonment is one of the most pervasive concerns among online retailers, and with good reason. According to a study from Listrak, 75 percent of your site visitors will likely leave without making a purchase, and 85 percent of the top 1,000 online retailers are doing nothing to combat this growing issue. If you're investing in channels to drive traffic to your site this holiday season, take advantage of the opportunity to add value to your campaigns and maximize return on investment by using your existing AdWords Conversion Tracking pixel to remarket to past converters.

American Apparel, a clothing manufacturer employing thousands of workers at its production facility in Los Angeles and at retail stores around the country, will pay $60,000 and furnish other relief to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.

It's the season of giving, and major retailers are doing just that with "giving" contests on Facebook. Leveraging the widespread popularity of the social channel, Walmart and Kohl's are running Christmas-themed giving contests where users vote for individuals and organizations to receive donations. In turn, the retailers a boost in traffic from shared pages and increased Facebook likes. When visiting Walmart's Facebook page, the "12 Days of Giving" tab takes fans to a page for the campaign, which will award over $1.5 million to nonprofits that were nominated by users. The campaign's call for submissions resulted in more than

_ JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Dec. 20, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Stein Mart, Inc. today announced that D. Hunt Hawkins, previously the company's executive vice president and chief administrative officer, has been named chief operating officer. "Hunt has been an important part of Stein Mart since 1994 and has had a key role in our significant operational improvements over the last several years," commented Jay Stein, interim chief executive officer of Stein Mart, Inc. "This is a great reward for his many years of quality service." Information technology, supply chain and human resources reported to Hawkins as chief administrative officer. With

Family Dollar Stores has named Paul White its executive vice president, chief merchandising officer. White will report to Michael Bloom, president and COO. White joined Family Dollar in 2011 as senior vice president, apparel, home and seasonal. Before joining the company, he served as president, CEO and director of Goody’s, where he refocused the merchandising and marketing strategies on the core customer while leading the company’s exit from bankruptcy.

York, Pa. -- The Bon-Ton Stores announced it has signed a new, multi-year private-label credit card program agreement with Alliance Data, a provider of loyalty and marketing solutions. Under the terms of the agreement, Alliance Data, through its bank subsidiary, will provide end-to-end proprietary credit card services from account acquisition to multi-channel marketing and customer service. Bon-Ton’s current proprietary credit card program will remain in place until the accounts portfolio conversion occurs, which is anticipated in the second quarter of fiscal 2012.

At Kmart stores across the country, Santa seems to be getting some help: Anonymous donors are paying off strangers’ layaway accounts, buying the Christmas gifts other families couldn't afford, especially toys and children's clothes set aside by impoverished parents.