OPERATIONS / SUPPLY CHAIN

Hoffman Estates, Ill. -- Sears Holdings announced that Norman Miller will join the company as senior VP and president, Automotive. Miller, who most recently served as president and COO of Dollar Financial Corp., will be responsible for the oversight and leadership of the company's automotive business, including Sears Auto Centers.

Corpus Christi, Texas - Steve DeSutter, president and CEO of Susser Holdings’ retail segment, is leaving the company, effective Feb. 28, 2014, to accept an opportunity to lead a significant company outside the convenience store industry. That segment will now report directly to Sam L. Susser, chairman and CEO of Susser Holdings, on an interim basis.

Winston-Salem, N.C. - Dan Beem will be joining Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, Inc. as senior VP of the company and president international later in February 2014. Beem, 44, will report to president and CEO Jim Morgan, and will be responsible for the company's international franchise business segment.  

New Albany, Ohio -- Abercrombie & Fitch Co. has promoted Jonathan E. Ramsden, currently the company's executive VP and CFO, to the position of COO, a new role at the company. Ramsden will continue to serve as CFO, in addition to his COO role, until a new CFO is appointed.

Seattle – The price of subscribing the Amazon Prime preferred shipping program will reportedly increase. According to the Huffington Post, Tom Szkutak, CFO of Amazon, said on a Jan. 30 investors call that the company is considering raising the current $79 yearly fee for Amazon Prime, which includes free two-day shipping, by $20 to $40 in the U.S.

Costa Mesa, Calif. – Anna’s Linens has named company president Scott Gladstone CEO. Founder and former CEO Alan Gladstone will remain as chairman of the board.

Gladstone, 44, joined Anna’s Linens in 2005 and was named president of the company in 2012. Prior to joining Anna’s, Gladstone spent 10 years as president of the U.S. division of Sparco, a global manufacturer of automotive performance products and safety equipment.

Washington, D.C. – The National Retail Federation (NRF) is scheduled to testify before a Senate committee the week of Feb. 3, as lawmakers begin to look into criminal attacks in which millions of consumers’ credit and debit card numbers were stolen.

New York -- In a study of the returns and refunds performance of the 25 largest online retailers, StellaService found that the majority of retailers evaluated aren’t meeting consumer expectations.

StellaService analysts ordered the same product from each retailer to be delivered to the three separate regions of East, West and Midwest. They then returned the product, tracking metrics such as the presence of a prepaid, adhesive return label, total time to receive a return authorization and refund speed. The average refund speed of was 10.7 days.