Consumer Affairs & Relations

Wegmans Food Markets, Costco, Publix and CVS are among the highest ranked companies in terms of corporate reputation, according to a new poll.

The 16th annual Harris Poll Reputation Quotient study ranked the reputations of the 100 most visible companies. Scores range from excellent (scores of 80+) to poor (scores of 50 to 64).

Facing significant headwinds in its core business of bookselling, Books-A-Million has received a take-private proposal by the family who hold a majority of the company's shares.

The Anderson family has proposed to acquire 100 percent of the company's outstanding shares for $2.75 per share. Books-A-Million’s board of directors has appointed a special committee of independent directors to consider the proposal. The special committee has retained King & Spalding LLP as its legal counsel, and is in the process of retaining financial advisers.

New York -- Starbucks Corp. founder and CEO — and currently Time Magazine cover boy — Howard Schultz has lots of opinions about politics and the national agenda, but he is not interested in running for president in 2016.

“I don’t think that’s a solution. I don’t think it ends well,” Schultz told Time in a wide-ranging interview its Feb. 16 edition.   

Bebe stores CEO Jim Wiggett credited a compelling merchandise assortment with helping to drive the company’s success in the second quarter.

Cincinnati – Post-holiday returns serve as a way to ensure the stress of the holiday season lasts into the New Year. According to a survey of about 1,200 adults by loyalty program provider LoyaltyOne, one out of every two U.S. shoppers (51%) say that returning gifts adds to their post-holiday stress.

Shareholders of Victoria’s Secret parent company L Brands received an early Valentine’s Day gift after the company said fourth quarter profits were much better than expected and it would pay a $2 a share special dividend.

The company said same store sales increased 7% and total sales for the four week period ended Jan. 31 increased 7% to $783.1 million. Sales for the full fourth quarter period also increased 7% to slightly more than $4 billion while same store sales grew 6%.

New York -- U.S. retail and consumer (R&C) total transaction value for 2014 hit a five-year high and surpassed the $100 billion mark for the second year in a row, according to PwC’s U.S. retail and consumer deals insights 2014 Year in Review and 2015 Outlook report.

The retail industry’s data security efforts were upgraded week when the Retail Industry Leaders Association named the former Texas chief information security officer to lead the trade group’s new intelligence sharing organization.

RILA said Brian Engle would serve as executive director of the Retail Cyber Intelligence Sharing Center (R-CISC) and be responsible for managing the organization’s daily affairs.