International Business

Austin, Texas -- Whole Foods Market has named Scott Allshouse, Omar Gaye and Rob Twyman as regional presidents following the promotion of David Lannon and Kenneth Meyer to executive VPs of operations.

Allshouse fills Meyer's former role as president of the company's Mid-Atlantic Region. He moves from his position as president of the South Region.

Gaye takes the South Region president position vacated by Allshouse, moving from his position as the South Region's VP.

Dublin, Calif. -- Epicor Software Corp., announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire substantially all of the operating assets and intellectual property of New Zealand-based partner Cogita Holdings Limited. The transaction is anticipated to close by May 31, 2012.

New York -- Tiffany & Co. reported Thursday that profit for the first quarter was essentially flat at $81.5 million, compared with $81.1 million in the year-ago quarter, prompting the jeweler to reduce its forecast for both sales and profit for the year.

Worldwide revenue increased almost 8% to $819.2 million in the quarter, topping Wall Street’s estimates of $817.1 million in revenue. Same-store sales rose 4%.

Tiffany said it now projects that sales globally will be up 7% to 8%, instead of the originally forecasted 10% rise.

New York -- Ann Inc. announced Thursday that it will open two stores in Toronto, in fall 2012, marking the apparel retailer’s first foray outside the United States.

“Toronto is the perfect location to open our first international stores. It is a beautiful city filled with modern, sophisticated women who lead busy lives, and we are excited to bring a trusted fashion destination that offers great style as well as incredible versatility,” said head designer Lisa Axelson.

ISSAQUAH, Wash. — Costco reported net sales of $21.85 billion for the third quarter, an 8% increase over sales of $20.19 billion for the same period last year. Comparable-club sales for the quarter increased 5%, which consisted of a 5% increase in the United States and a 5% increase internationally. Excluding the impact of fuel, total comps were still up 5%, however U.S. comps were 4% and international comps were 8% when adjusted for gasoline inflation.

Chicago -- A new study of global wealth and spending patterns by A.T. Kearney’s Global Consumer Institute projects $12 trillion in new consumer spending over the next decade, with the United States accounting for 25% of the spending growth. Spending on food will account for about 10% of the overall total.

New York -- J. Crew CEO Milliard “Mickey” Drexler is the subject of a CNBC documentary that will premier Thursday, May 24 at 10 p.m., ET, with a re-air at 1 a.m., ET.

Paris -- The world’s second largest retailer behind Wal-Mart said Thursday that its leadership will change hands earlier than planned. France's Carrefour said that current CEO Lars Olofsson had retired at a board meeting on Wednesday, and that incoming chief Georges Plassat will take over as chief executive immediately.

Plassat joined Carrefour last month as COO. He was supposed to make his CEO transition effective June 18. He will take charge of an aggressive turnaround effort intended to reverse years of underperformance.