Retail

Bloomberg In a sign of the intensifying battle for New York’s online shoppers, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. acquired Parcel, a company specialising in same-day deliveries of groceries and meal kits. The world’s largest retailer plans to use the business to offer free, same-day delivery in New York City—the most populous city in the US—as it continues to push into e-commerce to …

Bloomberg High-income shoppers will fuel holiday spending in the US this year, even as less affluent consumers keep their purse strings tight. That’s the finding of a survey released by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP. The firm expects Americans overall to increase spending by 6 percent this season, but those with household incomes under $60,000 will cut their outlays for both gifts and …

Bloomberg Amazon.com Inc.’s takeover of Whole Foods Markets has shaken the grocery business. Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Trader Joe’s and Sprouts Farmers Market Inc. may be hurting the most so far. Whole Foods’ foot traffic from new shoppers jumped 33 percent in the first week following Amazon’s acquisition, and Wal-Mart regulars accounted for the largest percentage of first-time customers, according to …

Bloomberg Canadian grocer Metro Inc. pledged to sell some assets to reduce its financing needs and retain its credit rating as part of a $3.6 billion purchase of pharmacy chain Jean Coutu Group Inc. Metro will pay C$24.50 a share in cash and stock for Jean Coutu, about a 6.1 percent premium to Jean Coutu’s price before the two companies …

Bloomberg Hema, a 91-year-old Dutch retailer known for design housewares, is for sale. Private equity firm Lion Capital LLP, which bought the chain a decade ago, is considering strategic options for Hema and appointed Credit Suisse Group as an adviser to a possible sale, the Amsterdam-based retailer said. Hema, which opened its first store in 1926 in Amsterdam, owns more …

Bloomberg Procter & Gamble Co. is facing longer odds in its standoff with Nelson Peltz, the billionaire investor who is vying for a board seat in one of the most contentious proxy fights in years. Peltz won the approval of prominent shareholder-advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services Inc , following a similar endorsement from Glass Lewis & Co. the previous week. …

Bloomberg Pakistan’s burgeoning youth and their freewheeling attitude towards rising incomes have turned the nation into the world’s fastest growing retail market. The market is predicted to expand 8.2 percent per annum through 2016-2021 as disposable income has doubled since 2010, according to Euromonitor International. The size of the middle class is estimated to surpass that of the UK and …

Bloomberg Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has just fired a broadside in the battle for your baby’s bottom. The world’s biggest retailer is going after the new parents who typically shop at rival Target Corp. with dozens of new products for infants—including bedding and a softer, more absorbent diaper that took more than a year to design. Wal-Mart said that it’s overhauling …

Bloomberg As sales of Gucci’s snake-covered handbags and heels lead the luxury industry’s upswell, many of the brand’s Italian rivals are struggling to catch the wave. Shares of Prada SpA, Salvatore Ferragamo SpA and Tod’s SpA have all posted double-digit declines in the past six months as profits fall, while privately held Giorgio Armani SpA is pruning its lineup after …

Bloomberg Target Corp. is giving thousands of its employees a pay raise next month, hoping to stay ahead of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and other rivals in the war for talent. The retailer announced plans to boost its minimum hourly wage to $11 an hour in October. Target will later up the rate to $15 by the end of 2020. The …