Retail

Bloomberg Booming e-commerce sales have made a unicorn out of a Utah-based startup that helps companies manage their sales on Amazon.com Inc and other digital marketplaces. Pattern Inc, which started out selling fridge magnets and other trinkets on Amazon’s third-party marketplace, on Wednesday said it raised $225 million in new outside investment at a valuation of about $2 billion. Founded ...

Bloomberg The UK’s auditing watchdog has started an investigation into Mazars’ audit of French Connection Group Plc. The Financial Reporting Council said on Wednesday the probe would focus on the year ending on January 31, 2020 without disclosing further details. The struggling UK fashion retailer has failed to keep pace on price with its high street rivals and has been ...

Bloomberg Mondelez International Inc will require employees at its offices in Chicago, Miami and East Hanover, New Jersey, to be fully vaccinated “as a condition of employment,” according to a statement. The maker of Chips Ahoy! cookies and Halls cough drops said that vaccine adoption “is essential to lowering case counts, preventing Covid hospitalisations and deaths and ending this pandemic,” ...

Bloomberg French Connection Group Plc accepted a $40 million takeover approach from a group of bidders that includes the struggling UK fashion retailer’s second-largest shareholder. Directors of the retailer unanimously recommended the 30-pence-a-share offer from a consortium, which includes Apinder Singh Ghura, Amarjit Singh Grewal and KJR Brothers Ltd. The group announced the bid on September 23. French Connection kicked ...

Bloomberg Amazon founder Jeff Bezos participated in a $87 million Series B funding for Indonesian startup Ula, marking his first-ever investment in Southeast Asia’s e-commerce space. Bezos Expeditions, Northstar group, AC Ventures and Citius joined the round co-led by Prosus Ventures, Tencent and B-Capital, the e-commerce marketplace Ula said. The previous fundraising included $10.5 million seed round in June 2020 ...

Bloomberg Tesco will announce a share buyback program this week when it reports first-half results, the Sunday Times reported. The retailer will maintain its normal dividend along with the buyback plan, although a special payout is not thought to be on the cards, according to the report. Tesco will be disciplined in its approach to buybacks, the report cited unidentified ...

Bloomberg Clayton Dubilier & Rice (CD&R) LLC won a months-long battle for WM Morrison Supermarket Plc, beating out private-equity rival Fortress Investment Group in a rare auction with a knockout $9.5 billion offer for Britain’s fourth-largest grocer. The final offer of 287 pence a share “represents excellent value for shareholders while at the same time protecting the fundamental character of ...

Bloomberg Walmart Inc is looking to sell more sustainable debt amid pressure for the retail industry to reduce its carbon emissions. The world’s biggest retailer made its debut in the green bond market in September with a $2 billion offering, the largest ever from a US corporation. The transaction was part of $7 billion bond sale spread across five parts ...

Bloomberg Dollar Tree Inc is moving above the price point that gave the discounter its name. The retailer’s legacy stores will soon begin testing sales of products that cost more than $1, according to a company statement. Dollar Tree will also add more goods that go for more than a buck at its Combo and Dollar Tree Plus stores, which ...

Bloomberg HomeGoods Inc has finally gone online as the ubiquitous retailer looks beyond brick-and-mortar at a time of soaring e-commerce demand. The discount home-decor chain began offering items including bedding, kitchen goods and seasonal products on its website. HomeGoods said it sees the e-commerce store as a complement to its network of more than 820 physical locations. The late launch ...