Mergers & Acquisitions

Amazon.com launched its new Amazon Business marketplace earlier this year and now companies such as cloud-based e-commerce solution provider ChannelAdvisor are making it easy for suppliers to tap into the platform’s potential.

"The combined company will allow us to provide more value to customers and more effectively compete in a rapidly evolving environment,” said Ron Sargent, Staples chairman and CEO.

New York -- Target Corp. has laid off about 140 employees from its Minneapolis headquarters as part of its transformation efforts, and eliminated 50 open positions, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported.

Including the latest round of cuts, Target has let go about 2,500 workers this year.

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Camp Hill, Pa. -- Rite Aid's first-quarter earnings plunged 55%, mainly on costs tied to a $2 billion acquisition. The chain also lowered its full-year profit outlook.

The drugstore chain in February announced that it would buy pharmacy benefits manager EnvisionRx.  Rite Aid said it expects the deal, expected to close by the beginning of July, to increase its annual revenue by as much as 18.6%.

The retailer earned $18.8 million in the quarter that ended May 30, down from $41.4 million in the year ago period.

New York -- A former executive from Wal-Mart Stores has joined up with a real estate executive to expand New York City-based luxury home décor retailer Gracious Home.

Dottie Mattison who served in a variety of executive roles from 2006 to 2010 at Wal-Mart, including senior VP and general manager of the apparel global merchandising center and chief merchant of Walmart.com, has teamed up with David Mitchell to buy a majority stake in Gracious Home for an undisclosed price. Mattison will serve as CEO and Mitchell as chairman.

On the heels of big news from rival drugstore CVS this week, Rite Aid says it is expecting its EnvisionRx acquisition to increase the company's annual revenue by as much as 18.6%.

A former Walmart executive has joined with a real estate executive to expand New York City-based luxury home décor retailer Gracious Home.

Alibaba wants to put a robot, specifically one named Pepper, in your home — or store.

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune is reporting that Target laid off 140 staffers and eliminated 50 open positions at its headquarters on Wednesday.

According to the newspaper, the eliminated positions were in places “we identified redundancies or opportunities for greater efficiencies,” Molly Snyder, a Target spokeswoman, wrote in an e-mail. 

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Montvale, N.J. -- The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. is actively shopping 137 of its stores, including 10 Food Emporium locations in New York City, according to the New York Post.  

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New York -- One of the world’s largest retailers has undertaken a search is underway for a new CEO to execute a massive transformation. But getting to the interview will require U.S. executives to take a very long flight and the successful applicant will need good listening skills to decipher the accent of co-workers.