Consumer Affairs & Relations

Twenty retail industry professionals dreaming of making it big in the retail industry have a unique opportunity thanks to the National Retail Federation.

NRF is collaborating again with University of Phoenix School of Business to award 20 full-tuition scholarships to retail industry professionals who want to enhance their careers through education.

Mahwah, N.J. - Ascena Retail Group Inc. has named board member Randy L. Pearce to the newly created role of lead independent director. As lead independent director, Pearce will preside at executive sessions of the independent directors, will serve as liaison between the independent directors and the chairman of the board and between the independent directors and senior management, and will call meetings of the independent directors.

Small business customers are the lifeblood of Sam’s Club and to ensure the continued vitality of the crucial shopper segment the retailer is supporting an entrepreneurial youth organization.

Sam’s donated $250,000 to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation (USCCF) and the Young Entrepreneurs Academy (YEA!) to grow and support YEA!’s national educational program that works to transform middle and high school students into confident entrepreneurs.

Toano, Va. – Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Florida) is publicly calling for federal agencies to investigate the formaldehyde levels in wood flooring sold at Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc. Nelson, highest-ranking Democrat on the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, sent an open letter to the heads of Consumer Product Safety Commission, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Federal Trade Commission.

New York – Activist investor Starboard Value LP, which holds a 4.5% ownership stake in Staples Inc., is telling Staples it needs to improve its board of directors to complete a proposed acquisition of Office Depot. In an open letter to members of the Staples board from Starboard Value managing member Jeffrey C. Smith, the combined companies’ board must have the “proper skill set” in place to oversee the integration.

New York -- Robert Nardelli, the former chairman and CEO of The Home Depot and Chrysler, is joining Pep Boys.

Nardelli has been appointed to Pep Boys’ board of directors, bringing the current size of the board to nine directors.

New York – A Dutch court has reportedly set aside a $449.5 million arbitration payment Tiffany & Co. had been ordered to make to Swiss watchmaker Swatch Group AG in December 2013. According to the New York Times, a three-member panel of judges ruled in favor of a counterclaim Tiffany filed in March 2014.

Publix, Aldi and H-E-B now share something else besides operating in the grocery sector: They all do a stupendous job of serving their customers.

According to a study of 10,000 U.S consumers, the three supermarket chains earned the highest scores in the 2015 Temkin Experience Ratings. The list ranks 293 companies across 20 industries.

Joining those firms in the top 12 spots are retailers Chick-fil-A, PetSmart, Amazon.com, Trader Joe's, Papa John's, Walgreens, and Hannaford's.