Mergers & Acquisitions

Goal Zero, innovator of portable solar power systems, has appointed former REI SVP of merchandising Lee Fromson to president and COO.

The company has also made strategic changes to its executive team, with current president and CEO Joe Atkin assuming the role of co-chairman of the board, and founder and chief creative officer Robert Workman becoming CEO.

Atlanta - Flip Flop Shops has signed a master franchise agreement with Happy Toes Caribbean that calls for the establishment and development of at least 20 new shops throughout the islands, the first of which will open in Aruba in late 2014. The master franchise rights agreement also covers the management of three established stores in St. Thomas, St. Maarten and Curacao.

Bentonville, Ark. – Wal-Mart Stores Inc. incurred a net loss of $151 million in the process of ending its partnership with former Indian partner Bharti Enterprises. According to Wal-Mart financial statements, in October 2013 the retailer paid $100 million for Bharti’s 50% interest in Bharti Wal-Mart Pvt. Ltd., which operates 20 wholesale stores in India.

New Albany, Ohio - Bob Evans Farms Inc. has appointed Kevin M. Sheehan, president and CEO of Norwegian Cruise Line, Kathy S. Lane, former CIO of TJX Companies Inc., and Larry S. McWilliams, co-CEO of Compass Marketing, to its board of directors. E. Gordon Gee, 70, is stepping down from the board effective immediately, following his acceptance in March of the permanent position of president of the West Virginia University.

Houston - Mattress Firm Holding Corp. has entered into an agreement to acquire Mattress Liquidators Inc., which operates Mattress King retail stores in Colorado, and BedMart retail stores in Arizona, for about $35 million. This will add approximately 75 specialty retail stores to the Mattress Firm company-operated store base in markets where it currently operates, primarily Denver, Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona.

The closing of the acquisition is expected to occur by the end of the second fiscal quarter of 2014, subject to normal closing conditions.

Miramar, Fla. - Elizabeth Arden has reportedly hired Goldman-Sachs Inc. to help contact private equity firms and other possible buyers. According to Bloomberg, Elizabeth Arden is undergoing a sales process but has not made any definitive deals and may not wind up selling itself.

The move to hire Goldman-Sachs comes after reports indicating that South Korean CPG firm LG Household & Health Care Ltd. was considering a takeover bid for the retailer.

Philadelphia — Century 21 has signed into The Gallery in Center City Philadelphia. It is the iconic fashion retailer’s first location outside of the New York market, according to the Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust, the owner and manager of The Gallery.

Dallas - DGSE Companies Inc. has closed all locations in its Southern Bullion Coin and Jewelry division. As previously disclosed, six Southern Bullion locations were closed in February, and subsequently, four additional locations were closed in early April, and the final 13 locations were closed on or about April 21, 2014.