aggregatedcontent

Crocs will open its doors to three new concept stores this week. The new shops are designed to drive a holistic, engaging approach to the Crocs retail experience. They are located in three busy shopping destinations: Mall of America in Bloomington, MN.; Barton Creek in Austin, TX.; and Streets at Southpoint in Durham, N.C.

Christopher & Banks, Syms and Filene's Basement are the most recent retailers to shutter some of their stores, bringing the total number of store closings so far in 2011 to 3,126.

New Albany, Ohio -- Abercrombie & Fitch earnings rose 1.7% in the third quarter, well short of analysts’ estimates, as rising costs pressures offset a big jump in sales. For the quarter ended Oct. 30, the chain reported $50.9 million in earnings, up from $50 million in the same period last year. Total sales rose 21% to $1.08 billion, more or less in line with Wall Street estimates. Total international sales including e-commerce rose 56% to $255.7 million. In the United States, sales rose 14% to $820.2 million.

Lowe's reported that net income for the quarter ended Oct. 28 dropped 44 percent as store-closing charges undercut a slight uptick in quarterly sales. The retailer reported net earnings of $225 million, compared with $404 million in the year-ago period.

Overstock.com launched the O.co iPad application, available on iTunes. The company said its new mobile app carries the same product selection that is available on the Overstock.com website, and it allows customers to easily share deals with their friends through Facebook and Twitter. Customers will be able to filter their search results on the iPad app by top sellers, review ratings, price and new arrivals, and the app includes features such as pinch zoom, swipe left/right and up/down and infinite scroll. In other Overstock.com news, President Jonathan Johnson told Advertising Age magazine that it is stepping back from the

American Eagle Outfitters announced that its board of directors has named Robert Hanson as the company’s next CEO and a member of the board of directors, effective Jan. 30, 2012. Hanson succeeds retiring CEO Jim O’Donnell, who has led the company since 2002.

Bon-Ton said that its CEO Bud Bergren will retire his position once the company finds and hires his successor. When a new CEO is in place, Bergren will transition to chairman; current Executive Chairman Tim Grumbacher will vacate the chair but remain a director.

Wal-Mart has lower online prices on a selection of toys this month than Target’s website and Amazon, according to a Bloomberg Industries analysis. Prices for a group of about 80 toys are 1.8 percent higher at Target and 0.7 percent more expensive at Amazon.

Overstock.com announced the launch of its free O.co iPad application. The new application can be found on the iTunes website and will carry the same product selection that is available on the Overstock.com website.