Mergers & Acquisitions

Amazon Prime has added yet another item to its growing lineup of membership benefits: discounts on student loans.   The online giant is teaming up with Wells Fargo to offer Amazon Prime Student members a discount on private student loans that are taken out through Wells Fargo Educational Financial Services, the largest private student lender among U.S. commercial banks. (Membership in Amazon Prime Student costs $49 a year, which is half the price of a regular Amazon Prime membership.)  

Efficient Collaborative Retail Marketing (ECRM), a leader in business innovation and technology, has hired retail business-to-business media veteran Wayne Bennett as senior VP, retail to lead business process initiatives between the retail industry and the supplier community that serves them.  

Even geeks appreciate the convenience and hands-on experience of visiting a physical store.   Recognizing the continuing popularity of brick-and-mortar, specialty video game retailer GameStop Corp. has been extending its pure-play ThinkGeek banner into physical stores. GameStop purchased ThinkGeek parent company GeekNet Inc. in 2015. ThinkGeek specializes in selling “loot,” or collectible items and memorabilia, rather than video games.  

Consumer goods giant Unilever is paying a reported $1 billion to buy an online retail start-up that has yet to turn to profit.   Unilever PLC announced it is buying Dollar Shave Club, the razor delivery subscription service known for its irreverent brand positioning and viral You Tube videos. Terms of the deal were not announced, but The New York Times and other media outlets reported Unilever is paying $1 billion in cash for the scrappy company, which has yet to turn a profit but expects to do so by yearend.  

The Unilever-Dollar Shave Club deal reflects the growing importance of emerging brands, vertical integration, and the consumer direct route to market favored by new CPG market entrants such as Dollar Shave Club, Honest Co., and NatureBox.

The Kroger Co. is expanding its position in the pharmacy vertical.   Axium Pharmacy Holdings Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kroger, will acquire Orlando, Florida-based specialty pharmacy retailer ModernHealth. Financial terms of the agreement with ModernHealth parent company ModernHC Holdings Inc. were not disclosed.   The deal will create a combined specialty pharmacy that will operate as a wholly-owned Kroger subsidiary.  

Versa Capital Management has formed a new holding company, called Eastern Outfitters, which will continue the restructured operations of Eastern Mountain Sports (EMS) and Bob’s Stores.  

Adhering to its company motto of “Quality Shopping Malls in Compelling Markets,” PREIT reached an agreement to sell the Washington Crown Center in Washington, Pennsylvania. At the same time, it announced it had put the Beaver Valley Mall up for sale.   In a press release, PREIT noted it had embarked on a portfolio optimization program focusing not just on new properties, but on new types of tenants that could fuel growth.