Quad/Graphics to Close Arkansas Facility

| Jim Tierney

Printer Quad/Graphics announced plans to cease production at its Jonesboro, AR facility in the fourth quarter of this year as it continues to consolidate work onto its most efficient and competitive manufacturing platforms. Here’s why the 600,000-sq.-ft. Jonesboro plant, which prints catalogs and magazines, employs about 600 workers, will close.

3 Critical Copy Elements Your Catalog Can’t Live Without

| Matthew Fey

Be strategic and selective with your copy. Obviously, your catalog needs to have basic elements, like product names, prices, color/size options, quantities, whatever informs the purchase decision. Bolster the desire to keep reading with these three crucial copy elements your catalog must have.

Catalog Critique: A Look at the February 2012 J.C. Penney Look Book

| MCM staff

Is it a well-executed store-driver, or a poorly-produced web-driver? And is it digitally-friendly, or an iPad eyesore? Everyone has an opinion about the new J.C. Penney look book that hit 14 million mailboxes right after the merchant announced its new brand identity last month. So here’s seven critiques from Multichannel Merchant’s staff and its contributing writers.

Melissa Payner-Gregor Out at Bluefly

| Tim Parry

Melissa Payner-Gregor has resigned as CEO at Bluefly, according to an 8-K the off-price luxury apparel and accessories merchant filed Feb. 2 with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Payner-Gregor, who also gave up her seat on Bluefly’s board of directors, was immediately replaced by chief operations officer Joseph C. Park.

United Retail Group Files for Chapter 11

| Jim Tierney

Under Section 363 of the Bankruptcy Code, United Retail Group has entered into an asset purchase agreement with private equity firm Versa Capital Management. Versa Capital will serve as the stalking horse bidder during the court-supervised auction of the business.

Clear and Compelling Video Thumbnails Can Boost SEO Rankings

| Dr. Melody King

Google has opened the door to one method for improving search rankings: a higher profile for videos, and as of late 2011, Google started showcasing larger video thumbnail images. Here’s why that’s important for your SEO rankings, and how to make sure you’re doing video thumbnails well.