BJ's Wage and Hour Suit destroys Q3 Numbers...Expansion details...

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We know this story has been re-published throughout the blog, just bringing it to everyone's attention.  The story broke about three weeks ago...

We'll take you through the timetable:

BJ's has an abysmal Third Quarter.  (Read the entire Q3 report at Yahoo!.)

Further research to BJ's Wholesale Club dissatisfying Q3 numbers has BJ's and investors scapegoating the $11.7 Million Dollar wage and hour lawsuit which was settled during the end of the quarter as the main contributer to the terrible Q3 numbers. 

More on the Lawsuit:

Press Release:  http://www.tradingmarkets.com/.site/news/Stock%20News/2663574/

Klafter Olsen & Lesser LLP has reached a $9.3 million settlement of an overtime pay class action lawsuit against BJ's Wholesale Club Inc. (NYSE: BJ). The settlement, which is subject to Court approval, is intended to resolve claims that BJ's misclassified certain Mid Manager employees as exempt from receiving overtime for hours worked in excess of 40 hours per week.

Plaintiffs claim that they were misclassified because their primary responsibilities included hourly duties such as loading and unloading materials, stocking shelves and other activities which are not exempt under federal and state overtime laws Under the settlement, approximately 1,500 current and former Mid Managers employed by BJ's since November 2007 will be entitled to make claims to share in the recovery, based on the number of weeks they were employed by the company. 

From BJ's.com, quote: "The settlement of the lawsuit is not an admission on the part of the Company of any wrongdoing. "

What are your thoughts? Any company wrongdoing here? Lot's of people complain that they do work outside their job classification, which allows companies to take advantage of most workers, what are your thoughts?


As far as chain expansion in the coming months:

"Chain expansion, club renovation, our technology roadmap and team member training and development. Our preliminary expansion plans call for 79 new clubs, including two in Massachusetts, one in Metro New York, one in Orland, Maryland and a club relocation in Rhode Island."

Keep the emails and posts coming,

Another New BJ's Wholesale Club to open in Mass.

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Another plan for BJ's expansion was unveiled today when the company announced yet another 80,000 square foot new store to be opening in 2010.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A Braintree developer has announced plans to construct a BJ's Wholesale Club on Hubbard Avenue. It would be the first BJ's in Berkshire County

The Berkrire Eagle says the store will be 88,000 square feet, and provide the community with 120 retail jobs. 

BJ's in Quincy set to open in April

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So amidst any further delays the club in Quincy is set to open in April....The Patriot Ledger has more on the 85,000 sqft store.

Aside from the barrage of complaints we're received regarding the increased Club politics during the past few months (in metro NY) we'd like to hear from workers all over, are these politics affecting your work atmosphere as much as they are here in NY?  Even the Long Island workers are saying things are "tightening up" more and more.

Let us know, keep the emails coming.

Another BJ's Wholesale Club for Brooklyn???

Community Board 11 is reviewing the proposal but developer Joe Sitt, of Thor Equities has proposed to bring a BJ's Wholesale Club to Brooklyn's Shore Parkway.

Thor Equities Developer Joe Sitt is getting back to his retail roots and proposing construction of a new 214,000-square-foot shopping center at 1752 Shore Parkway.

The Amboy Bus Company is currently using the site to store its school buses.

Plans to construct space for a new BJ’s Wholesale Club and three other retail stores between 24th Avenue and Bay 37th Streetwill get a hearing at the Department of City Planning on October 29.

 You can check out Thor Equities site on the development of 1752 Shore Parkway here. Let us know what you think!

BJ's begins laying foundation for new store in Mass.

This weekend, workers began laying foundation for a new BJ's Wholesale Club in Quincy Massachusetts.  The 85,000 sqft store is slated to be completed by April 2010. 

Elsewhere, BJ's sales announced that its comparable club sales for August 2009 decreased by 6.0%, including a negative impact of 8.2% from lower gasoline prices and volumes. Excluding gasoline, merchandise comparable club sales increased by 2.2%.

In 2008, the Company reported a comparable club sales increase of 15.4% for August, including a contribution from sales of gasoline of 7.7%. Excluding the impact of gasoline, merchandise comparable club sales increased by 7.7%

BJ's Wholesale Club toys with a different store structure of 85,000 sqft

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Last Wednesday BJ's CEO Laura Sen had a lot to mention regarding the 85,000 sqft prototype store in Pennsylvania. The store plans on serving a "less dense market", and allows the company to expand into area's which they wouldn't explore before. The city of Syracuse was listening to this closey, from Friday's Post Standard: 'With new size in mind BJ's could expand to Syracuse area'

Whether or not BJ's expands to Syracuse the fact is that BJ's is thinking, and thinking wisely we should add. As a 'big box' store, and a typical 100,000+ sqft operator they have seen the fruits of holding such an immense retail space, though they have also been held back on expanding to certain areas who craved a store like BJ's, but did not have the sufficient space for them.

In 2008, Wal-Mart also toyed with the idea of a smaller format in order to take on neighborhood stores they wouldn't usually compete with their usual supercenters. The 'Marketside' test hasn't worked out the way Wal-Mart planned, as the Wal-Mart hierarchy has put a halt on expansion citing the struggling economy. We'll see if BJ's will take the same turn, downsizing to comply to an area they aren't accustom to serving.

The question on our mind though is what the new 'prototype' stores will do for jobs at BJ's?, both current and future. Will there be an infrastructure change? Will there be a different benefit package? Will there be different job descriptions? Will there be more controversial promotions?

Only time will tell, but we'd like to know what you think now...

BJ's to report Second Quarter Earnings Wednesday

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The New York Times previews BJ's Wholesale Club's second quarter earnings, after J.P. Morgan downgraded the stock yesterday. Earnings aren't expected to be too strong, we've heard that the mood has been a little tense in the stores because of this.

Yet another new BJ's Wholesale Club in the works?!?

Massachusetts: A Seyon Street site that was once slated for a Lowe’s home improvement store will now be home to a BJ’s Wholesale Club, according to a spokeswoman for the developer of the property.

Diana Pisciotta, spokeswoman for Boston-based Samuels and Associates, said an 117,000-square-foot BJ’s is planned for the 20 Seyon St. location., which the developer will build “by right.”

Read the article here. Construction is planned to be finished by the fall of 2010.

More at Boston.com: BJ's to move into former Raytheon site.

What a month for BJ's, if I'm counting right, that brings the July count of new BJ's developments up to four, and the sixth announcement of new projects since March...What recession??

Oh and they've also just inked a new 5-year contract with Wirpo Bags.

Another BJ's development in Jersey spurts up, inches away from approval

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BJ's continues to acquire more and more retail space during a recession, and set their sights on potential areas for growth.

This time they're inches away from approval in Howell, New Jersey.

Plans for the nearly 45-acre site include the 117,925-square-foot BJ's Wholesale Club with a gas station and tire sale and service area.

So as they continue to expand during a recession, do the excuses of being hurt in a bad economy warrent the complaints we recieve on not getting enough hours? Let us know...

BJ's Strategy: Take business from Supermarkets

BJ's aims to take business from supermarkets during recession:

BJ's Wholesale Club Inc. , the No. 3 U.S. warehouse club operator, is focused on taking business from grocery stores as consumers look to save money on food in the recession.

BJ's Sales Down Again...

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Another month, another dip in sales. For consecutive months BJ's sales are down, via Barron's.com

BJ's Wholesale Club (BJ) comparable-store sales have lost momentum for the second month in a row and the first time in several quarters as the company reported a below plan and below consensus comp store sales gain of 2.7%. The company believes bad weather may have pressured sales by 1%-2%. Despite a relatively low enterprise value/earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization multiple of about 5 times, we are maintaining our Hold rating given our concerns around a deceleration in sales and difficult comparisons ahead as other retailers face easier comparisons.

Thanks and keep sending in the emails on how these sales are affecting your working conditions.

Tough Month for BJ's....How is it affecting you??

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BJ's Wholesale Club, Inc. reported Thursday a 6.8% decline in same store sales for the month of May, hurt chiefly by lower gasoline prices and volume.

BJ's said that sales for May dipped by 4.7% to $783.4 million from $822 million a year ago.

It's been a tough go for retailers, but BJ's has been doing a decent job during this recession, some say that BJ's stock will dip under $30.00 a share...We're wondering how it's affecting workers, from what we've heard on the street is that the recession has cut hours, and put most employees under tremendous pressure...What's your thoughts?

Here's what some top news agencies had to say:

BJ's down 6.8%

Marketwatch: BJ's DOWN.

BJ's same store sales down, Boston Globe reports.

BJ's Briefs...an inked deal in Flushing, a lawsuit, and more...

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Here's some recent press BJ's has gotten in the past week:

BJ's Wholesale Club inks another lease in the NYC Metro area.

BJ's to take 170,000 sqft in Canarsie, Brooklyn.

An 89 year old widow is suing BJ's Wholesale Club in an age biased firing.

BJ's eyes are still on Pittsburgh.

Another BJ's to Brooklyn

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A release surfaced last week saying BJ's just inked a deal to anchor a new shopping center in Canarsie Brooklyn. The company continues to expand in a struggling economy and to areas which lack shopping options.

Obama: "We will pass the Employee Free Choice Act," Meanwhile BJ's continues to profit, what's this all add up to?

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Yesterday the Wall Street Journal ran a story which said that President Barack Obama told AFL-CIO union leaders Tuesday in a videotaped address that the controversial Employee Free Choice Act will pass, "signaling his full backing for legislation that makes union organizing easier..."

"We will pass the Employee Free Choice Act," President Obama told more than 100 top labor officials in a closed-door meeting at the labor federation's winter gathering in Miami, according to people at the meeting.

If you'd like read the entire article at the Wall Street Journal

The real question is if you think this could be good for BJ's? Take the poll to your left, leave your comments below, The UFCW has a site on the Employee Free Choice Act for further reference also

Meanwhile, BJ's continues to grow, they reported further growth in the 4th quarter,

Earnings climbed to $52.7 million, or 91 cents per share, from $50.2 million, or 80 cents per share, in the same quarter a year ago.

Read the analysis of BJ's profit's here.

What's this mean to you also?

Back to Basics at BJ's?

From www.boston.com

An interview with Laura Sen on the future of BJ's...

How does it feel to take over during one of the worst economic crises?
We are fortunately in a business model that is well-positioned in a bad economy or a good economy. There's been a migration toward value in the retail world over the years. The value players are the winners. Do I have concerns about what the future may bring or what may happen to us? Sure, but we're very well positioned to not only survive but to grow.

Do you foresee any cuts in BJ's workforce or store closings?
For the moment, we're creating jobs. We just opened a club in Revere. But we're always looking for new efficiencies in our supply chain and club processes. We do not expect any job cuts at this time. That being said, we're very cautious about increased spending.

How long do you think the recession will last?
I wish I had a crystal ball. My guess is all of 2009 will be a tough year. We might see some light in a year from now. A lot rests on the administration and what kind of stimulus they can get that will reignite employment, housing, and the credit markets.

What is the best way to jump-start the economy - a spending stimulus, tax cuts, rebate checks?
A rebate check to somebody who is unemployed helps them for a very short time. What needs to happen - and it's the same approach we use here - is we need long-term sustainable measures that will create fertilizer for the ground so things can grow. We need systemic efforts - focusing on infrastructure improvements that will create jobs, education, and social programs that will help create jobs, and some of the tax measures will help create spending.

Another BJ's Executive to another Retail Board...

Perry Kramer, vice president of sales operations, corporate and distributed solutions at BJ’s Wholesale Club, Natick, Mass., has been elected co-chair of the board of directors of the Association for Retail Technology Standards (ARTS), the standards division of the National Retail Federation in Washington. Read it here.

On Wednesday

Wednesday BJ's Wholesale Club will release fourth-quarter financial results....Rumor has it they will report a net income of 86 cents a share, compared with 81 cents last year, continuing to blossom.

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