Finance & Capital Management

The old expression, “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime,” was taken to heart at Whole Foods where a recent fundraising campaign will provide loans to help people improve their lot in life.

Whole Food held concerts and craft fairs and thousands of small events that raised $4.6 million with the goal of alleviating global poverty. To achieve such a lofty mission, the retailer isn’t donating money to food banks to provide hand outs, but rather using the dollars to fund a microlending campaign.

West Des Moines, Iowa - WineStyles Tasting Station, a boutique wine and craft beer retail chain, is launching expansion plans to grow its national footprint. The company currently has more than 20 locations across the country, and aims to grow the business to nearly 50 stores during the next several years through franchising.

Bentonville, Ark. -- Global responsibility and sustainability continue to be priorities for Wal-Mart Stores Inc.  The company filed its proxy statement ahead of its June 5 annual shareholders meeting, and also issued its annual report, and the 2015 Global Responsibility Report and Global Compliance Program Report.

The Global Responsibility Report outlined social and environmental work over the past year.  Accomplishments, according to the company, include:  

New York -- Following its January 2015 spinoff from private-equity firm Sycamore Partners, Jones New York has been acquired by Authentic Brands Group, LLC, owner of a global portfolio of fashion, sports, media and entertainment brands.

Sycamore previously announced it would close all Jones New York retail locations and seek strategic alternatives for the beleaguered brand.

New York -- A major new credit agreement has been secured by the 262 store Hancock Fabric chain with Wells Fargo Capital and the newly formed Great American Capital Partners subsidiary of B. Riley Financial.

The new financing deal, executed a year and a half before an existing credit facility was due to expire, provides the struggling Hancock Fabric chain with a new five year, $100 million asset-backed credit facility from Wells Fargo and a $17.5 million term loan from Great American.

Walmart increased hourly pay for employees earlier this year but top executives didn’t earn as much as they could have after the company came up short on key metrics.

The TJX Cos. Inc. announced Wednesday that Chairman Bernard Cammarata will retire following the company’s annual shareholder meeting scheduled for June 11.

Sidney, Neb. -- Cabela's Inc. saw profit rise 6.9% to $27.5 million in the first quarter, topping Wall Street expectations. Revenue of $827.1 million, a 14% increase, also exceeded Street forecasts.

By segment, retail store revenue increased 18.9% to $524.4 million; direct revenue decreased 3.3% to $173.5 million; and Financial Services revenue increased 24.7% to $122.9 million.

During the period, consolidated same-store sales decreased 1.3%.