International Business

San Jose, Calif. - EBay Inc. has appointed three new executives who will fill key positions on CEO-designee Devin Wenig’s leadership team. The company makes these appointments as it prepares for the separation of eBay and PayPal into independent, publicly traded companies in the second half of 2015.

New York -- Stuart Weitzman Holdings announced that Alyssa Mishcon has joined as president, global retail. Mishcon will oversee all aspects of the global retail business including customer experience and relationship management, strategic operations development, merchandising and international retail growth.

Mishcon brings more than 15 years of experience in luxury brands, working most recently as president of Thomas Pink Inc., LVMH Fashion Group and then previously VP strategy, merchandising & retail at TAG Heuer, LVHM Watch & Jewelry Division.

Best Buy President and Chief Executive Officer Hubert Joly has added the title of Chairman to his responsibilities at the retailer after long time board member Hatim Tyabji and several others decided to step down.

By Christoph Stehmann, Pitney Bowes

According to the U.S. Commerce Department, retail e-commerce sales totaled over $304 billion in 2014, up 15.4% from the prior year. Also, eMarketer predicts that U.S. retail e-commerce sales will total approximately $350 billion in 2015.

The growth in e-commerce sales represents a huge opportunity for U.S. retailers. However, to be successful, retailers need to make sure they have the right shipping strategies and solutions in place to encourage shoppers to purchase goods online.

Starboard Value, the investment firm driving change at Staples, pushed the retailer to merge with Office Depot and now has achieved another of its goals with the addition of a new board member.

Sears Holdings will eventually need to sell more stuff to shoppers to remain viable as a retailer, but in the meantime the company has shown itself to be more adept at generating cash through complex real estate deals that unlock the value of an increasingly less productive store base.

San Diego – Net income at PriceSmart Inc. fell 12% to $24.83 million during the second quarter of fiscal 2015, from $28.28 million in the same period a year earlier. Increased operating expenses helped cut profit even as revenues grew 10% to $750.3 million, from $674.38 million.

PriceSmart also attributed the drop in net income to the devaluation of the Colombian peso.

New York -- General Electric Company on Friday announced it will sell or spin off the majority of its $500 billion GE Capital finance business over the next two years as it looks to simplify and concentrate on its industrial roots. The company said it will keep its aircraft leasing operation and smaller lending lines.

GE said it has sold its real-estate assets, which include commercial loans and office buildings, for $26.5 billion, with  Wells Fargo & Co. and private equity firm Blackstone Group buying the bulk of it.