Gap

Dollar General plans to spend more on labor this year. However, the company isn't planning to pay its workers more, following the likes of Wal-Mart and TJX Companies. Instead, it plans to offer workers at its 11,800 stores more hours. The market for quality customer service staff is getting competitive. Over the last year, retailers like Ikea, Gap and most recently Wal-Mart have increased wages in an effort to retain staff, improve customer service and cut down on training and recruiting. Dollar General hopes to entice good workers with a more full-time schedule, rather than higher wages.

If the ability to throw a 100-mile-per-hour fastball sits at one end of the human capital spectrum, stocking shelves and swiping barcodes is at the opposite. But the U.S. economy gets on quite nicely with just a few dozen ace pitchers, while it takes vast stadiums of cashiers — and no small amount of investment in human capital — to keep things humming. A modest bidding war has broken out among the retailers that hire from the bottom of the labor pool, buoyed in part by improving sales. 

Streamlining the path to purchase and checkout process has been one of the key ways that e-tailers have been able to improve their customers’ online shopping experiences and drive conversions. Mobile consumers have come to expect the fastest, most seamless checkout experiences possible. They don't want to type their credit card numbers or shipping addresses into a small screen every time they shop a new site. They also never want to worry about the security of their data, which high-profile breaches at major retailers routinely call into question. New alternate payment options promise to accelerate this process, and merchants should take a hard look at implementing them for several reasons.

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.

Retail Online Integration's fifth annual list of the leading women executives in omnichannel retail features some of the brightest minds in the industry. This year's nominees were chosen for being in a top-level position within an omnichannel retail organization, along with several other criteria, including their scope of responsibility, achievements within their own companies, and their involvement within the retail industry. Take advantage of this opportunity to learn about the career paths of some of today's leading retail experts, as well as find out what they believe will be the top tip for omnichannel retail success in 2015.

TJX Cos. said it would increase the minimum hourly wage of employees in 2,500 stores to $9, joining a growing number of U.S. retailers raising the pay for workers at the lowest end of the pay scale. TJX, which operates T.J. Maxx and Marshalls chains in 49 states, follows Wal-Mart and Gap in boosting their pay well above the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour. 

Gap's namesake chain just introduced its "resolution denim," which it plugs as its best stretch line, but they're already 30 percent off full price (provided you try them on first). At Abercrombie & Fitch Co., a new denim ankle legging is half off. While consumers have long known to wait for the sale, it's becoming increasingly difficult for specialty retailers to get consumers to pay full price for anything, says Credit Suisse analyst Christian Buss, who has tracked promotions the past 18 months.

Gap launched a new digital marketing push on Thursday to promote its spring season. The #SpringIsWeird campaign included an Instagram "micro-series" and the creation of Tinder profiles, advertising that the retailer is marking down denim by 30 percent, according to Adweek. But soon after the news published about the Tinder element of the campaign, the dating app decided to shut it down.

January's proven a dire month for mid-range brands. Over the past few days, Gap not only axed its Piperlime division, it also eliminated Rebekka Bay's role as the brand's creative director. Meanwhile, Kate Spade just announced it would close all Kate Spade Saturday stores. Roughly three weeks ago, C. Wonder confirmed that it, too, was shutting down and immediately started liquidating all locations. This domino effect feels similar to the glut of teen retailers that 

Gap announced Rebekka Bay, the designer recruited in 2012 to help reboot the iconic brand, is out of the company. "In evaluating the right leadership structure for the brand," Gap is "eliminating the Creative Director role, resulting in Rebekka Bay's departure from the company, effective immediately," the company wrote in a press release. Bay's departure is the latest in a slew of changes spurred by incoming CEO Art Peck. In November, Peck named new presidents for the $16 billion company's Gap and Banana Republic brands, and last week shuttered its digital Piperlime business.