Finance & Capital Management

Staples didn’t have a great year, so Chairman and CEO Ron Sargent won’t accept a $31,000 base pay raise the board of directors had previously approved.

The company announced that Sargent would not accept the 2.5% pay increase, along with several noteworthy governance moves, including the appointment of an independent chair when Sargent retires.

In other board moves, current director and former Toys “R” Us CEO Robert Nakasone is relinquishing his seat to make room for a Google executive.

While there were some reported ups and downs over the course of last year’s holiday shopping season, the early takeaway is that the season was, in the end, positive. While we’ll have to wait for hard numbers for more detailed insight, and while definitive conclusions might be a bit much to draw at this point, it does seem to me like the increased length of the ever-expanding holiday shopping season didn’t have any appreciable negative impact.

New York -- E-commerce in the United States in 2015 will top the $300 billion mark for the first-time ever, according to Forrester Research’s principal analyst Sucharita Mulpuru.

“This is big news,” Mulpuru said during a presentation at the National Retail Federation’s annual “Big Show” conference.  

New York -- The fast-growing online grocery delivery startup Instacart confirmed it has raised $220 million in a funding round led by the venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. This latest round of funding values the San Francisco-based company, founded in 2012, at a whopping $2 billion, according to various reports.

Memphis -- Discount general merchandise chain Fred’s has named Michael K. Bloom as its president and COO, effective immediately. Until recently, Bloom held the same position at Family Dollar Stores Inc.; he resigned in early January after just over two years in the position and could be owed as much as $4.8 million in severance by Family Dollar, according to an SEC filing.

Memphis -- Discount general merchandise chain Fred’s has named Michael K. Bloom as its president and COO, effective immediately. Until recently, Bloom held the same position at Family Dollar Stores Inc.; he resigned in early January after just over two years in the position and could be owed as much as $4.8 million in severance by Family Dollar, according to an SEC filing.

New York -- RadioShack could receive another dose of life support. According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, Salus Capital Partners has offered to provide $500 million to RadioShack Corp. in a kind of debtor-in-possession loan used by companies to fund operations in bankruptcy.

Dallas -- Corner Bakery Café has named Salil Bapat as CFO, effective immediately. Bapat previously was CFO for YUM Brands' Latin America and Caribbean region.

The Fresh Market is heading into the new year with fresh leadership changes at the top.

The specialty grocery retailer announced that Craig Carlk, president and CEO, and a member of the board of directors, has left the company and has resigned as a member of the board.

The board has appointed Sean Crane, executive VP and COO, as interim CEO while the company evaluates candidates to replace Carlock.

Los Angeles -- Millennial fashion authority and online retailer Nasty Gal has tapped Sheree Waterson has CEO, effective immediately. Waterson, promoted from her position as president and chief product officer, which she has held since early 2014, previously was lululemon athletica’s executive VP and chief product officer.

Founder Sophia Amoruso will continue as executive chairman to oversee creative and brand marketing functions.