Retail

Bloomberg The increasing pain at Sears Holdings Corp. could mean big gains for competitors, with appliances the biggest moneymaker up for grabs. The struggling retailer has been giving away market share for years, but its Kmart and Sears chains still generate about $14 billion in annual sales. And if the company ultimately files for bankruptcy and liquidates its roughly 800 …

Bloomberg Ikea plans to expand to about a dozen new markets in the coming years, including branching into South America, as the Swedish furniture giant aims to reach a total of 3 billion potential customers by 2025. The company will in the coming years open stores in Chile, Colombia and Peru through a new Ikea franchisee called Falabella as part …

Bloomberg JM Smucker Co. is doubling down on pet food as consumers move away from mainstream packaged human fare. The maker of jams, Folgers coffee and Jif peanut butter is unveiling four treats — including two under Milk-Bone brand — to beef up its pet-food unit, now largest division by sales. The company said it aims to generate $100 million …

Bloomberg After more than four decades at the helm of French Connection Group Plc, Chief Executive Officer Stephen Marks is preparing to sell the clothing company he helped create. The company said it’s in the early stages of looking for a buyer, lifting its shares as much as 45 percent. Marks, who has a stake of almost 40 percent, is …

Abu Dhabi / Emirates Business­­­­­ The traditional idea of where we get the feeling of home has been disrupted, according to a global research project by IKEA Group. The fifth edition of the Life at Home Report — an annual study into domestic living trends around the world — found that 29% of people globally say there are places where …

Bloomberg The all-important holiday season is fast approaching, and there’s very little JC Penney Co.’s incoming chief executive officer can do about it. The struggling department-store chain named its new CEO, retail veteran Jill Soltau, with less than three months of 2018 holiday shopping to go. JC Penney’s orders for the critical period were placed months ago, giving her little …

Bloomberg Watch out dollar stores, Target Corp. wants to steal your shoppers. The Minneapolis-based retailer is introducing Smartly, a line of essentials and personal-care products mainly priced under $2, for budget-conscious consumers who don’t want to buy in bulk. It’s in step with Target’s strategy to offer new brands to get customers excited. It has added a dozen over the …

Bloomberg Jeff Bezos scored a public-relations victory by giving his workers a raise, even drawing praise from Amazon.com Inc. scold Bernie Sanders. But at its root, the $15-an-hour minimum pay is an incentive for people to come work for Amazon — rather than Walmart or Target — as the retail industry gears up for the holiday shopping season amid historically …

Dubai / Emirates Business­­­­­ Following the launch of new smartphones from leading brands, Jumbo Electronics, the leading omnichannel retailer in the region, is forecasting that smartphones will drive sales at this year’s edition of Gitex Shopper, scheduled to be held till October 6 at Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC). During the five-day event, the new iPhone XS/XS Max, Samsung Note …

Bloomberg JC Penney Co named Jill Soltau as its first female chief executive officer, bringing her 30 years of retail experience to the embattled department-store chain. Soltau, who has served as CEO of Joann Stores since 2015, will step into the role on October 15, JC Penney said in a statement. Shares of the retailer surged as much as 12 …