Marketing

New York -- The Dannon Co. on Monday made its first entry into the restaurant business with the opening of The Yogurt Culture Co., in Manhattan.

The restaurant is located at 125 Park Ave., between 41st and 42nd streets. It offers small-batch premium yogurt (as opposed to the company’s pre-packaged product that is sold in grocery stores) and fruit purees and other toppings.

BEAVERTON, Ore. — Larry Miller is rejoining Nike as president of the Jordan brand, the company announced Monday. Miller will be responsible for driving the global growth strategy for all aspects of the Jordan brand and will report directly to Trevor Edwards, VP global brand and category management for Nike.

Regional sporting goods chain Hibbett Sports plans to begin construction this fall on a new distribution facility that will support more than 2,000 stores.

EMERYVILLE, Calif. — Educational toy manufacturer LeapFrog Enterprises announced that chief financial officer Mark Etnyre has resigned from the company in order to spend more time with his family and pursue personal interests. The resignation will be effective as of Oct. 1.

Minneapolis -- Christopher & Banks Corp. has rejected Aria Partners’ unsolicited $64 million takeover offer, saying it was not in the best interest of stockholders. The private equity firm owns 4% of Christopher & Banks shares. The retailer also adopted a stockholder rights plan, or poison pill, with a trigger at 15%

Private equity firm Aria owns 4% of Christopher & Banks shares.

PAWTUCKET, R.I. — Hasbro has introduced a new line of its Kre-O brand construction toys inspired by the upcoming "Star Trek" sequel. The Kre-O Star Trek line, under license from CBS Consumer Products, features a variety of vehicles from the movie along with fun Kreon figures based on iconic Star Trek. The collection will make its debut at Comic-Con on July 11.

The rhetoric over allowing foreign direct investment in India is reminiscent of the rhetoric that would have occurred in the United States 30 years ago had Walmart’s critics knew then what they profess to know now.

New York -- Ikea has been rebuffed by India on a request to relax rules on buying goods locally, Reuters reported, citing a government source. The rebuff is likely to delay Ikea’s entry into the Indian retail market.

In June, Ikea said it would invest approximately $1.86 billion and open 25 stores in India. But the chain was seeking a 10-year window to comply with India’s rule that foreign retailers source 30% from local small and medium-sized firms. The requirement is seen by overseas companies as a hindrance to investment.