OPERATIONS / SUPPLY CHAIN

New York -- Walmart brought together 10 moms in Nashville, Tenn., on Wednesday night to air their thoughts about the economy , the federal government and their own household incomes. The gathering — one of several that occurred in different locations throughout the nation — was part on an annual focus group organized by the chain, reported CNNMoney. This year, the discussion focused on a subject very much in the headlines: budgets.

Chicago – More retailers are hiring extra holiday staff this year. According to a new annual holiday hiring survey from CareerBuilder and Harris Interactive, 39% of retail hiring managers reported that they plan to hire seasonal workers this year, up from 36% last year and 29% in 2011.

New York -- J.Crew ranked No. 1 overall in customer service in September for the third consecutive month, in a monthly survey by StellaService, the independent ratings provider that ranks online retailers according to their customer service. StellaService measures companies monthly across four service areas: phone, email, shipping and returns.

Here is a look at the top finishers in the four individual categories:

Woonsocket, R.I. - The first MinuteClinic walk-in medical clinics in Northern California and the Bay Area have opened inside select CVS/pharmacy stores in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. Three MinuteClinic locations are now operating in Foster City, San Jose, and Sunnyvale CVS/pharmacy stores.  

New York -- Perry Ellis International has launched a new e-commerce site dedicated to selling Callaway Golf Apparel. The Callawayapparel.com site offers U.S. and Canadian customers a fully branded, state-of-the-art online shopping experience, and will be available throughout Latin America by mid-November.

Tampa, Fla. – Marketing enterprise management systems provider Aptaris has named Bill Morrell as VP technology. Morrell previously held IT executive positions at companies including BabyAge.com and Destination Maternity, as well as consulting roles with clients including Cadbury Adams, Nascar and DME.

Seattle – Close to two million customers and employees have signed Starbucks Coffee Company’s “Come Together” petition that seeks to break the current deadlock in Washington. The petition urges the nation’s elected leaders to reopen the federal government, pay debts on time and pass a bi-partisan and comprehensive long-term budget deal by the end of the year has close to two million signatures.

Wayne, N.J. -- Toys “R” Us announced that Antonio Urcelay has been named chief executive, effective immediately, after serving as the company’s interim CEO since May of this year. In other executive news, the retailer appointed a former Wal-Mart executive, Hank Mullany, as president of Toys “R” U.S., effective Nov. 5.

Urcelay, 61, who joined Toys “R” Us in 1996, had been president of the company's Europe business before being named interim CEO.