International Business

New York – Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. has filed for an initial public offering (IPO) with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that media reports indicate could be worth as much as $24.3 billion, making it the biggest U.S. initial public offering ever.

According to Bloomberg, Alibaba is seeking a valuation as high as $162.7 million, in the upper end of the proposed price range and higher than that of any other public Internet company in the U.S. except Google and Facebook.

Walgreens has appointed Barry Rosenstein, managing partner JANA Partners, and a second new director to be named to its board of directors as the company continues moving forward to complete its merger with Alliance Boots.
 

Electrolux has entered into an agreement to acquire the appliances business of General Electric, one of the leading manufacturers of kitchen and laundry products in the United States, for a cash consideration of $3.3 billion.

The Children's Place has appointed Robert Vill as group VP of finance. He will report to Michael Scarpa, chief operating officer and CFO.

"Bob brings to The Children's Place a wealth of financial expertise in the areas of corporate finance, treasury and investor relations," Scarpa said. "I am very pleased to welcome him to our team."

San Diego -- Marcus & Millichap announced the appointment of Rick Puttkammer to the position of regional director of its National Retail Group. Puttkammer is based in the firm’s San Diego office and his appointment is part of the firm’s strategy to enhance its brokerage support and client services.

Prior to joining Marcus & Millichap, Puttkammer was senior VP at Colliers International in San Diego, where he focused on institutional investment sales in the Western United States.  

New York -- Tiffany & Co. announced that it has named Jill Beraud as an executive VP, effective Oct. 13. She will have responsibility for global retail operations including all sales channels in every region, as well as oversight of strategic store development and real estate.

Beraud will report to Frederic Cumenal, president, who, as previously announced, will become Tiffany’s CEO effective April 1, 2015.

Beraud, 54, joins Tiffany from Living Proof where she has been CEO since 2011.

Speed Commerce, a leading provider of omnichannel e-commerce services, has appointed former Oracle executive Mark Steele as the company's VP of global sales and marketing.

Steele boasts more than two decades of sales experience with a proven track record of success in firms ranging from Global Fortune 100 to early and mid-stage venture backed startups.