On August 17, 2017, it was reported, Sears Canada Executive Chairman Brandon Stranzl is stepping down to pull together a bid for the company, according to an internal memo obtained by CBC News. In June Sears Canada said it had filed for creditor protection under Canadian law with a plan to downsize and reemerge as a going concern. In July the company faced the ire of employees who got wind of big bonuses for executives amid massive layoffs, according to another report from CBC News. In July ESL Partners, the hedge fund run by Sears Holdings CEO Eddie Lampert, and Fairholme Capital Management were said to be interested in propping up the company in some way, but those talks fell through, according to the Wall Street Journal. ESL and Lampert own about 45% of Sears Canada while Sears Holdings, which spun off Sears Canada in 2014, owns another nearly 12%. Fairholme owns 20.8% of the Canadian retailer. On August 17, 2017, it was reported, Sears Canada Executive Chairman Brandon Stranzl is stepping down to pull together a bid for the company, according to an internal memo obtained by CBC News. In June Sears Canada said it had filed for creditor protection under Canadian law with a plan to downsize and reemerge as a going concern. In July the company faced the ire of employees who got wind of big bonuses for executives amid massive layoffs, according to another report from CBC News. In July ESL Partners, the hedge fund run by Sears Holdings CEO Eddie Lampert, and Fairholme Capital Management were said to be interested in propping up the company in some way, but those talks fell through, according to the Wall Street Journal. ESL and Lampert own about 45% of Sears Canada while Sears Holdings, which spun off Sears Canada in 2014, owns another nearly 12%. Fairholme owns 20.8% of the Canadian retailer. On August 17, 2017, it was reported, Sears Canada Executive Chairman Brandon Stranzl is stepping down to pull together a bid for the company, according to an internal memo obtained by CBC News. In June Sears Canada said it had filed for creditor protection under Canadian law with a plan to downsize and reemerge as a going concern. In July the company faced the ire of employees who got wind of big bonuses for executives amid massive layoffs, according to another report from CBC News. In July ESL Partners, the hedge fund run by Sears Holdings CEO Eddie Lampert, and Fairholme Capital Management were said to be interested in propping up the company in some way, but those talks fell through, according to the Wall Street Journal. ESL and Lampert own about 45% of Sears Canada while Sears Holdings, which spun off Sears Canada in 2014, owns another nearly 12%. Fairholme owns 20.8% of the Canadian retailer.
On August 14, 2017, it was reported that Target said it will acquire Grand Junction, a San Francisco-based transportation technology company, for an undisclosed amount, to improve and expand delivery capabilities. The acquisition will accelerate Target's investments and ongoing efforts to transform its supply chain, the company said in a blog post. Grand Junction, founded in 2014, is a software platform used by retailers, distributors and third-party logistics providers to manage local deliveries through a network of more than 700 local and regional carriers. The company is already working with Target on a same-day delivery pilot at the Target store in New York's Tribeca neighborhood, the company said. Upon deal close, Grand Junction founder and CEO Rob Howard will become a vice president of technology at Target and employees will become Target team members, according to the report.
On August 10, 2017, it was reported, Payless ShoeSource has emerged from bankruptcy, with a slimmed down U.S. portfolio and a cleaner balance sheet. The company touted its successful emergence from Chapter 11, and announced that, following the completion of its restructuring, Paul Jones will retire as CEO. The board will begin a search to identify a new chief executive. In the interim, Payless will be led by a newly appointed executive committee comprised of company's CFO, Michael Schwindle, and COO, Mike Vitelli, and Martin R. Wade, III, chairman of Payless' post-emergence board and interim CEO. Payless, which filed for Chapter 11 in April, has closed approximately 700 stores during bankruptcy. It currently has about 3,500 stores around the globe. It also eliminated in excess of $435 million, roughly half, of its funded debt. Going forward, Payless said it plans to invest in areas that will help it stay competitive, including online and international expansion in Asia and Latin America. It is also investing in systems that will adjust inventory quickly in response to customer demand and improve its competitiveness online, according to CNBC.
On August 09, 2017, it was reported, Pier 1 Imports is losing its chief financial officer, Jeffrey Boyer, who is joining Fossil Group as CFO. Boyer's departure is effective Oct. 3. Boyer, who joined Pier 1 about two years ago, has served on the board of Fossil, a fashion designer and watchmaker, since 2007, according to a Pier 1 press release. Pier 1 said it will engage an executive search firm to recruit a new CFO. Also on Tuesday, Pier 1 announced that Bhargav Shah is stepping into the retailer's chief information officer position, effective immediately. Shah has nearly 20 years of technology, digital and supply chain experience, according to Pier 1. Most recently he served as CIO and head of e-commerce at IntegraCore, a global supply chain management company, and CIO and chief technology officer at online retailer Overstock.com. He has also served in IT positions at KPMG, Pfizer and Ernst & Young.
