International Business

Indianapolis — Simon Property Group has named Mona Benisi director of sustainability. Benisi’s responsibilities will include advancing and leading all aspects of Simon’s sustainability strategy. That strategy includes recycling, water management and renewable energy programs.

Benisi will also lead the company’s sustainability task force, direct and manage measurement and reporting of critical sustainability metrics, including CDP, the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark and GRI.

New York -- Costco Wholesale Corp. has opened its first store in continental Europe, a 140,000-sq.-ft. location in Seville, Spain.

Costco will follow it up with a store in Madrid, according to media reports.

Mattel has elevated company veteran Tim Kilpin to the role of EVP, international. Kilpin will be responsible for advancing the company’s international presence and leading its growth in emerging markets throughout Asia, Europe and Latin America.

Seattle -- Nordstrom Inc.’s net income for the first quarter fell 3% to $140 million from $145 million in the year ago period, reflecting heavy investments in technology to support omnichannel initiatives and the retailer’s debut in Canada. Its earnings still topped Street views. The company plans to open three full-line stores and 17 Nordstrom Rack stores during the remainder of fiscal 2014

Billund, Denmark – The Lego Group opens a new Legoland Discovery Center store at Assembly Row in Somerville, Massachusetts, on May 23. The 44.000-sq.-ft. store will include two Lego rides, a 4-D cinema, and a large soft play area.

It will feature 11 attractions in total and be the sixth Legoland Discovery Center in the U.S. and 10th worldwide. The store is aimed at children ages 3-10, but minors must be accompanied by an adult.

Shoppers in Central and South America can now shop eBay in Spanish and Portuguese using their local currencies.

The global commerce platform and a mobile commerce leader launched Spanish- and Portuguese-language sites to better serve customers across Latin America.

More than 2 million people in Latin America already shop eBay in English and U.S. dollars. Now, when these customers visit eBay, they will see localized shopping experiences in Spanish or Portuguese — online and on eBay mobile.

Dallas -- Zale Corp. on Thursday restated its support for Signet Jewelers Ltd.'s $1 billion acquisition offer, urging shareholders to support the deal despite opposition from a large investor. The deal, under which Zale stockholders would receive $21.00 per share in cash, has been unanimously approved by the Zale board of directors.

Zale’s investor TIG Advisors LLC has called the deal "grossly unfair," saying the jewelry retailers should be able to get $28.60 a share in cash and stock.  

San Jose, Calif. – EBay Inc. is reportedly targeting customers in 19 Latin American countries with tailored Spanish- and Portuguese-language e-commerce sites. According to Bloomberg, the sites will conduct transactions in local currencies and serve customers in countries including Mexico and Brazil.