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Two months into the job, Target's new chief executive has already given the go-ahead to one of the retailer's key holiday strategies: free shipping. Starting Wednesday, Target will offer free shipping on any online purchase — no matter the size — through Dec. 20. In doing so, Target is taking an aggressive stance early on in the holiday season. Typically, retailers require a minimum purchase amount before shipping becomes free. "We've spent time as a team to see how we can differentiate ourselves," Brian Cornell, who began as CEO in August, said in an interview Tuesday. 

Wal-Mart has high hopes for the holidays, in part because lower gas prices and unemployment rates are putting more money in the hands of its shoppers this year, said U.S. Chief Marketing Officer Stephen Quinn in an interview after his appearance at the Association of National Advertisers Masters of Marketing conference in Orlando last week. To keep up with the demand for thousands of pieces of content, largely video, the retailer has established a single "holiday hub" for producing all of its holiday work, led by Senior Vice President, Creative, Andy Murray, Quinn said.

Staples is investigating a possible breach of payment card data and has contacted law enforcement about the matter, making it the latest U.S. retailer to become a possible victim of a cyberattack. The office-supply retailer disclosed the investigation after security reporter Brian Krebs reported on his blog Krebsonsecurity.com that several banks have identified a pattern of payment card fraud suggesting that several Staples stores in northeastern United States had succumbed to a data breach.

J.Crew CEO Mickey Drexler thought about jumping into the athletic trend in apparel but decided to sit it out, citing a lack of expertise in the category. Drexler said the company considered making sports and yoga clothing, similar to gear made popular by Under Armour and lululemon athletica. The clothing, which is increasingly being worn by Americans more on the street than in the gym, is propelling sales for some retailers with others rushing to add workout clothing to their stores.

L'Oreal USA will acquire New York-based omnichannel beauty retailer Carol's Daughter, which sells its products through specialty beauty stores, mass retailers, HSN, e-commerce and two Carol's Daughter-branded stores in New York City. For the 12 months ending Sept. 30, 2014, Carol's Daughter had net sales of $27 million. Carol's Daughter will continue to operate out of its New York City headquarters under the brand's current leadership team.

With a strong focus on in-store innovation and evolving its omnichannel retail strategy, Chico's FAS partnered with Tyco Retail Solutions, a provider of performance and security solutions, to address inventory accuracy and visibility challenges in 13 Soma Intimates pilot stores. Soma store associates can now access accurate, real-time inventory information in one place to better manage their deep merchandise assortment, helping to drive sales and customer satisfaction. The ability to have this level of inventory accuracy fosters confidence in associates to provide a better customer experience.

President Obama on Friday unveiled a series of steps aimed at improving the security of credit and debit card payments, including a pledge to shift government transactions over to the PIN-and-chip system and commitments from major retailers and credit card providers. In announcing the BuySecure initiative, Obama signed an executive order directing federal agencies to phase out magnetic strip credit and debit cards issued by the government, and to implement readers for the more secure PIN-and-chip cards in government retail locations such as national parks. 

Apple CEO Tim Cook loves to talk about the security features of his mobile payments system. Apple Pay won't collect information about what people buy — and it's designed to ensure no one else can, either. Merchants have good reason to be excited about Apple Pay, which goes live today at some 220,000 shops and restaurants. But some retailers are less than thrilled about Apple's anonymous infrastructure. To understand why, take a look Panera Bread. 

Sears, the struggling one-time U.S. retail stalwart, said Monday that it would lease seven locations to European fashion retailer Primark. Primark, which is owned by Associated British Foods, will lease about 520,000 gross square feet of retail space over the next 12 months to 18 months in mall-based Sears locations in the Northeastern U.S., Sears said. Financial terms of the deals weren't disclosed. The Primark agreements mark the latest moves in Sears’ efforts to survive. 

As it looks to bolster its reputation for technological expertise, Best Buy has teamed up with Intel Corp. to showcase concepts such as augmented reality and 3-D printing that aren't yet in the mass market. Intel Technology Experience zones, which average about 240 square feet, are being placed in 50 Best Buy stores later this month. The first opened earlier this week in Portland, Ore., where Intel has engineering and manufacturing sites.