Executives at Kohl's have cause for optimism. The first-quarter earnings for the company that has more than 1,100 stores spread over 49 states were better than analysts expected, coming in at 66 cents per share versus the expected 56 cents per share, Barrons reports. Gross margins also improved, but revenue and same-store sales went down.

"Kohl's continues to improve its merchandising and better manage inventories.  These turnarounds take time," Brian Rogers, chairman of T. Rowe Price Group, one of the company’s largest investors, told Barrons.com. "Kohl's has also raised its dividend and continued to repurchase stock. I'm still a believer."

Now the company has made a big investment to help continue its turnaround by hiring 45-year-old Michelle Gass away from Starbucks, where she spearheaded the Frappuccino's rise to prominence, to serve in a position Kohl’s created for her: Chief Customer Officer.Continue reading...

Jennifer Lopez may be the most powerful Hispanic in the entertainment business. Selling more than 75 million records and appearing in films that have grossed more than $2 billion can do that for a person. Recently, J.Lo has been taking her star power over to the business world. 

Her latest title is as the majority owner of a new chain of 15 cell phone stores aimed directly at Latinos, Variety reports. Viva Movil will sell Verizon phones and services, with the first retail outpost opening in New York on June 15.

Other cities with large Latino populations will follow after that. This isn't just another brand ambassador gig for Lopez; she’s the majority owner and chief creative officer. No stranger to cozying up to brands, Lopez will be even busier than usual as she also signed on as chief creative officer of Nuvo TV, a new English-language TV network targeted at U.S. Latinos in addition to continuing her clothing line for Kohl's.Continue reading...

Apple posts first profit drop in a decade.

AP Twitter hack results in brief panic on Wall Street.

Coach prepares for change as Creative Director announces exit.

Lance Armstrong is accused of defrauding US in lawsuit.

BlackBerry brings back keyboard phone as part of rebirth.

Coke launches 61 unique websites for new teen-focused campaign as company's board also undergoes youth movement.

Dell approves executive-retention bonuses.

FedEx fends off rivals for US Postal contract.

Ford sees profits rise to North American record, offsetting losses in Europe.Continue reading...

Want to have your face on a Pepsi can? Well, first you need to sell more than a 100 million albums around the globe and win 16 Grammy awards. At least, that’s what it took for Beyonce to get her face etched into aluminum.

As already announced, Bey is starring in the Pepsi-sponsored Super Bowl XLVII halftime show in February as part of the brand's multimillion-dollar return to the Big Game after pulling out in 2010 to reallocate its funds for the social Pepsi Refresh crowdsourced philanthropy platform. Now

Now PepsiCo is expanding its Super Bowl deal with the performer beyond the half-time show into a full-blown partnership in a $50 million deal that will burnish the Pepsi brand and Brand Beyonce, including marketing support for her new album that's dropping next year.Continue reading...

The Chanel Spring/Summer 2013 women's ready to wear runway show at the Grand Palais in Paris on Tuesday raised a few eyebrows, and not just for the new outfits from designer Karl Lagerfeld but for the design of the sets the 68 models strutted on, or the celeb wattage of Kanye West, Jennifer Lopez and her bedazzled four-year-old daughter in the front row.

It was hard to miss the 13 towering wind turbines that dominated the stage, and the solar panels that graced the stage and inspired the tiles on the catwalk. Green, it seems, must be the new black. What’s sexier than a few turbines? "Energy is the most important thing in life," Lagerfeld, who's known for his grand pronouncements, stated. "If I had to build a house, I would put (wind turbines) in the garden.”Continue reading...

Jennifer Lopez is leveraging her personal brand to bridge the Spanish/English-language marketplace in the U.S. After turning up on Katie Couric's new talkshow, JLo announced a programming/marketing agreement with NuvoTV to target bicultural U.S. Latino viewers, and is now appearing in a new bilingual (English/Spanish) campaign for Verizon Wireless.

Apple iPhone 5 launch today could reheat European carriers' price war, as other tech companies weigh the implications.

Acer to introduce smartphone using operating system by Alibaba.

Amazon cuts shipping times by building more warehouses.

Chesapeake Energy sells $6.9 billion in assets.

Digital Domain, Hollywood's hologram maker, files for bankruptcy.

Dish Network returns Glenn Beck to US TV.

Ford seems likely to pick North American chief Mark Fields to succeed CEO Alan Mulally.Continue reading...

Dish Network runs into resistance for placing its ad about its ad-skipping DVR.

Pinterest valued at $1.5 billion.

Unilever tests interactive TV concept with NBCU.

Angry Birds footwear? Check.

Apple awarded U.S. patent for soft keyboard as Retina Display patent application for OSX revealed.

Boyd Gaming to buy Peninsula Gaming.

Bristol-Myers Squibb set to lose patent protection for Plavix.

Buca di Beppo has aggressive growth in sight, new CEO says.

CNN hits 15-year low with prime-time ratings.

Comcast's NBC Sports Network will break cable record for Olympics coverage.

Facebook confronts skepticism about its advertising in wake of GM pullout.Continue reading...