Retail

Bloomberg Amazon.com Inc reported a record-breaking holiday season as shoppers loaded their online baskets with items from Echo speakers to Calvin Klein clothes, suggesting consumer optimism isn’t being deterred by a tumbling stock market. The internet retailer said “tens of millions of people worldwide” signed up for its Prime service, which offers free two-day shipping on millions of items as …

Bloomberg Bankers meeting to discuss financing for Sears Holdings Corp.’s impending bankruptcy erupted in disbelief when a headline crossed their smartphone screens. Its subject: them. A breaking news report said the bankers, gathered on October 11 at the Manhattan offices of law firm Weil Gotshal & Manges, were pushing to liquidate the American retail icon instead of saving it with …

Bloomberg Johnson & Johnson paid a steep price this year for claims that its celebrated baby powder was contaminated with asbestos. Problem is, 2019 could be even worse. A jury ordered the company in July to pay $4.69 billion to 22 women who blamed the talc-based product for causing their ovarian cancer. The prospect of similar judgments helped erase $45 …

Bloomberg “Sell” may be the chorus on Wall Street, but optimistic shoppers looking to fill the empty space under the country’s Christmas trees were out in full force during the season’s final shopping weekend. With Christmas, Americans streamed into brick-and-mortar stores on Saturday and Sunday looking for deals. The International Council of Shopping Centers predicted heading into the weekend that …

Bloomberg Nike Inc. shares fell the most in more than two months, erasing much of the gain that followed strong earnings results. The world’s biggest sports apparel and footwear company tumbled 5.9 percent to $68.10 in New York, the biggest loss since October 10. The drop was likely a product of the current market, where investors are making emotional decisions …

Bloomberg Pandora A/S has spent 2018 purging its upper ranks, including getting rid of its chief executive and its chief financial officer. The question now is what’s in store for its board, which oversaw an abysmal year in 2018 as shareholders in the Danish jewellery maker suffered a 61 percent slump in value, the worst in seven years. The company’s …

Bloomberg Unilever is acquiring The Vegetarian Butcher, a Dutch maker of plant-based meat substitutes, as part of an ambition to expand its foothold in foods that are healthier and have a lower environmental impact. In taking over the business, the maker of Dove soap and Ben & Jerry’s ice cream is “responding to the growing trend among consumers to increasingly …

Bloomberg Amazon.com Inc continues to struggle in the $840 billion grocery market, more than a year after it spooked the industry with the $13.7 billion acquisition of Whole Foods. The number of Amazon Prime members who shop for groceries at least once a month declined in 2018 compared with 2017, according to the results of a consumer survey by UBS …

Bloomberg Coca-Cola Co., facing shifting shopping habits that have roiled the food and beverage industry, is taking a minority stake in Iris Nova, the company behind a cashierless New York City store where customers pay for drinks via text message. Coke, now the startup’s largest investor, led a $15 million investment round that values Iris Nova at about $60 million. …

Bloomberg Nike Inc. surged the most since June after its second-quarter results soared past projections, particularly in its two most important regions: North America and Greater China. Domestically, the world’s largest sportswear company posted its third-straight quarter of growth. That sustained momentum is a critical benchmark for investors. Nike was previously in a yearlong slump at home, letting rival Adidas …