Michael Francis, Target's former Chief Marketing Officer, is leaving J.C. Penney after only eight and a half months as president of the struggling Texas-based department chain. J.C. Penney lured Francis away from the Minneapolis-based discount chain last year. He was responsible for Penney's marketing and merchandising operations.

Marketing chief Michael Francis is leaving Target and will become president of J.C. Penney. Francis has been overseeing Target's plans to expand in Canada, where the company hopes to start opening stores in 2013.

Jeff Jones, the chief marketing officer at Target, told Ad Age he wants to work with the best creative agencies in the world. "I'm not willing to commit to two agencies or four or 50. We want to have flexibility," Jones said. He is also interested in expanding the use of QR codes and more "shoppable videos," like Target's "Falling for You" short film series.

The Brooklyn Center-based coffee retail chain has named Leigh Anne Snider as senior vice president of retail operations. She joins Caribou Coffee from YUM! Brands, where she was the first woman promoted to a chief operating officer position with the Kentucky-based company.

Minneapolis-based Target and Richfield-based Best Buy closed roughly 200 stores on the east coast because of Hurricane Sandy on Monday. Eden Prairie-based Supervalu closed about 20 of its Acme Market stores.

Hubert Joly, Best Buy's new new president and CEO, officially joined the troubled Richfield-based consumer electronics giant on Tuesday, the Star Tribune reports. Joly, a native of France, is the first chief executive officer at Best Buy recruited from outside of the company. He most recently led the Minnetonka-based hospitality and travel company Carlson. Joly will begin his new role at Best Buy on the sales floor of several stores in the Twin Cities metro. He tells Reuters, "I want to not learn our businesses from the headquarters. I want to learn from the front line."