Consumer Affairs & Relations

City of Commerce, Calif. — Discount store retailer 99 Cents Only Stores has received a proposal to take the company private from the company's founding family and investment firm Leonard Green & Partners LP for $19.09 per share, the Associated Press reported.

The offer would value the company at about $1.3 billion. According to 99 Cents, the purchasers would include the Schiffer-Gold family, which owns about 33% of its outstanding stock. David Gold is company founder and chairman, and his son-in-law Eric Schiffer is CEO.

PLANO, Texas -- JCPenney is giving underprivileged teens the chance to have their very own prom dress, while at the same time encouraging those more fortunate to give to a worthy cause. The company announced that from March 13 through April 2, customers can donate their gently worn prom dresses at one of more than 1,100 JCPenney stores nationwide.

New York City -- A Manhattan bankruptcy judge on Thursday has cleared the path for Blockbuster to sell itself to a group of hedge funds, preventing the movie rental chain from having to liquidate its assets.

Judge Burton R. Lifland has approved procedures for the auction of Blockbuster, with a $290 million initial offer from a group of senior bondholders led by hedge fund Monarch Alternative Capital.
 

MOORESVILLE, N.C. -- Lowe’s has joined the likes of Sears Holdings and Barnes & Noble in extending an invitation for a business partnership with online retailer affiliates.

“Lowe’s is committed to the communities where we do business,” said Gihad Jawhar, vice president of Lowes.com. “We sincerely hope businesses will consider Lowe’s as a partner.”

New York City -- The Arkansas Senate voted Thursday to require many out-of-state online retailers to collect sales taxes the same way in-state stores do, a move that is pitting Wal-Mart Stores against online stores and anti-tax activists, the Associated Press reported.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens has expanded Joseph Magnacca's role at the drug store chain by appointing him president of daily living products and solutions.

Washington, D.C. -- A report released Thursday showed that consumer confidence fell last week to the lowest level in a month, negatively impacted by rising fuel prices.

The Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index dropped to minus 44.5 in the week ended March 6, from the prior week’s minus 39.7, which was close to the highest in almost three years. Surging gas prices have left Americans concerned about personal finances.

NEW YORK — In what appears to be a case of back-pedaling to alleviate concerns of her devoted fanbase, Lady Gaga's deal to sell a special edition of her upcoming album at Target is off.