Mass Merchant

This year stirred up the pot of new store closings, not because the retail industry as a whole is in crisis, but because some retailers have found it difficult (or nearly impossible) to keep up in the fast-moving, competitive retailing environment.

On May 5, 2014, Targets board of directors issued a statement detailing the executive changes.

Target Corp. has hired a new technology leader to help guide the company's information technology transformation. The company also provided details on additional security enhancements the company has made following its 2013 data breach.

Hillshire Brands will pay $165 million for Vans, which is expected to have net revenues of approximately $60 million in calendar year 2014.

Walmart works with Wild Oats to re-launch its brand and aims to save customers 25 percent or more on organic groceries.

Walmart maintains its No. 1 spot on a new list of the best retail brands, and even with a 6 percent decline in brand value it preserves an enormous margin over the next closest brand. Four brands increased their brand value by more than 25 percent this year, while others fell off the list completely.

This cleaning season, for the first time ever, consumers can experience the cleaning power of Tide both in and out of the laundry room.

Walmart launches its new corporate blog, utilizing it to announce that it is also acquiring Yumprint, a start-up company in the recipes and meal planning space.