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No, it's not a new promotion, but it is the latest excuse for J.C. Penney's holiday losses. OK, sure, the market hasn't been at its best, but shares of J.C Penney tumbled last week after the ever-struggling, emotional engagement-deficient retailer posted a loss for the holiday quarter, despite improving category sales trends. We can't quite figure out why people were surprised about the results, which was the way it was spun in the press. We weren't. Surprised, we mean. J.C. Penney had been at the bottom of our Customer Loyalty Engagement Index for a while now. 

A unanimous Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that federal courts can hear a dispute over Colorado's internet tax law. One justice suggested it was time to reconsider the ban on state collection of sales taxes from companies outside their borders. The ruling is a win for business groups that want to challenge the state's so-called "Amazon tax," which requires extensive reporting by out-of-state retailers that don't collect the state's 2.9 percent sales tax from Colorado customers. Online retailers claim Colorado is violating protections for companies doing business in other states.

Fab.com finally has a new home. PCH International, a company that helps startups design and manufacture hardware products, has announced that it's purchased the shopping site that was the one-time darling of venture capitalists and design aficionados alike. PCH CEO Liam Casey declined to comment on a price, but Re/code previously reported Fab would sell for $7 million in cash and about $8 million in stock, based on PCH's most recent financing round. Fab.com's 35 employees will join PCH as part of the acquisition, the company said.

Kate Spade has taken another step toward its goal of being the next Ralph Lauren by announcing new lines of furniture and home goods. On Tuesday, the company announced it's entering into four new licensing agreements to expand into furniture, bedding, bath, wallpaper, rugs and other household items. "The breadth of our home décor line will feature products at all access points in both pricing and distribution from an $8 notebook to an $8,000 piece of furniture," Kate Spade CEO Craig Leavitt said on a conference call with analysts on Tuesday.

Target plans to invest billions of dollars this year streamlining operations, opening more small stores and creating a product mix designed to appeal to a younger, broader consumer demographic. The retailer will also cut several thousand jobs in the next two years as part of a cost-savings plan, Target managers said at a meeting Tuesday with financial analysts and investors. The company didn't say how many of its employees will be cut, although most are expected to be at the company's Minneapolis base, where it employs 13,000.

Led by relentless retail guru Mickey Drexler, Madewell is in expansion mode. It will ramp its store count up to 100 this year and is growing its availability at outside retailers to include Net-a-Porter and, beginning yesterday, Nordstrom. The department store landed 70 styles for its first delivery, which includes outerwear, easy dresses, and denim from shirts to shorts to flares. Tricia Smith, Nordstrom's executive vice president and general merchandise manager of women's apparel, said the partnership was Madewell's idea.

Bealls CEO Steve Knopik is betting that the Bradenton, Fla., retailer's latest experiment called Bunulu will become a permanent fixture for the 100-year-old company. "We're certainly moving forward as if it's going to be a permanent concept," Knopik said. Pronounced Boo-new-lou, Bealls is targeting the affluent customer living the coastal lifestyle by opening its first three to five stores this fall. "Bunulu is an Aboriginie name that means a place of water," said Bealls Department Stores President Lorna Nagler, who is heading up the launch. "Our tagline for our store is Land, Water and Style."

In January, Gap announced it would scrap the role of creative director, and with it, the job of Rebekka Bay. It was, frankly, a bummer for anyone nostalgic for the days when Gap was a source for true basics: trend-proof pocket tees, blue jeans, cotton sweaters, and even, yes, khakis. Bay, who came to Gap in 2007 from the H&M-owned label Cos, had vowed to restore the retailer to its clean, casual heyday. But, as Lauren Sherman pointed out at Fashionista, Gap's merchandising structure has muddied the creative direction of leaders such as Bay in the stores.

The world's biggest maker of Android phones launched a major challenge to Google Wallet on Sunday, saying it will soon launch a rival phone-based payment system. Samsung Pay will appear first in the summer in the U.S. — later in other markets — and will allow consumers to make tap-and-go payments with a smartphone. It's being introduced as Google is moving to strengthen its position in the mobile payments market to better compete with Apple Pay.

As far as celebrity stylists go, Rachel Zoe has done an unparalleled job of disseminating her taste to the masses. Between her reality show on Bravo, that stint at Halston, her editorial site and daily newsletter The Zoe Report, her books, and her eponymous clothing line, Zoe is both accessible at every level and nearly impossible to ignore. But in case you hadn't gotten enough, The Zoe Report is now launching a subscription service as well, delivering to members’ doors a selection of Zoe-approved goods four times a year. The first batch will start shipping late this month.