Finance & Capital Management

Indianapolis -- The Finish Line has invested $8.5 million to acquire an 18-store chain of specialty running shops with locations in Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, and Texas. The stores operate under banners such as Greater Boston Running Co., Texas Running Co., Georgetown Running Co., Princeton Running Company, New York Running Co. and others.

ISSAQUAH, Wash. — First it was Steve Jobs, and now Costco’s legendary co-founder Jim Sinegal is stepping down as CEO.

Issaquah, Wash. -- Jim Sinegal, the much-admired CEO and co-founder of Costco Wholesale Corp., plans to step down effective Jan. 1. The chain said its board has elected the company's current president and COO, Craig Jelinek, to succeed Sinegal.

“Costco has a very strong culture and a deep bench of management talent," said Sinegal. "I have total confidence in Craig's ability to handle his new responsibilities and feel we are fortunate as a company to have an executive of his caliber to succeed me as chief executive of Costco."

New York City -- BJ’s Wholesale Club, Costco and Target all beat Wall Street expectations in August, helped by consumers seeking out emergency supplies and clean-up items as they prepared for and then dealt with Hurricane Irene.

BJ's Wholesale Club’s same-store sales jumped 11.5% in August, beating analysts' predictions for a 7.8% increase. The retailer said that gasoline sales contributed about 3.6 percentage points to the increase, and hurricane-related sales contributed another 2.5 to 3 percentage points.

As if escalating tensions with Target weren’t enough of a large format competitive concern for Walmart, Dollar General remains on a roll with its 9,641 value-oriented and conveniently located stores.

The company sounded like it lifted a line from Target’s August sales release earlier this week when it reported second quarter results that exceeded expectations due to an increase in customer traffic and average transaction size.

BOCA RATON, Fla. — Office Depot announced that it is now expanding its retail store presence in the Caribbean territory as part of its franchise agreement with Benmore International.

NEW YORK — Despite low consumer confidence, the volatile economy and a hurricane, many retailers reported better-than-expected sales in August. Hurricane Irene appeared to put a dent in the results of some retailers on the East Coast, but the storm did not appear to do as serious damage as some expected.

Total retail sales rose 4.4%, just missing the 4.6% rise that Wall Street analysts had expected, according to Thomson Reuters. Of the 19 out of the 25 retailers that Thomson Reuters tracks, 11 beat expectations.

Boston -- High-end wedding dress maker and retailer Priscilla of Boston said Wednesday it will close at the end of the year. Its 19 store locations were shuttered on Wednesday, and its brands, which include Jewel by Priscilla of Boston and Platinum For Priscilla of Boston, also will be discontinued.

"After nearly 65 years of serving some of America's most beautiful brides, we have made the difficult decision to close our salons after a thorough review of the business environment," the company said in a statement.