Strategy

The case for domestic sourcing received a boost this week after Walmart was required to recall 73,400 five-piece card table and chair sets sold under its Mainstays brand.

The recall was initiated after Walmart said it received reports of 10 injuries including one instance of a finger amputation and several fingertip amputations. The product was manufactured by the Heshan Camis Industrial Co. Ltd., of Guangdong, China, according to the Consumer Products Safety Commission.

Austin, Texas -- Whole Foods Market’s Local Producer Loan Program has reached the initial goal of funding $10 million in low-interest loans to local and independent food businesses, and has now committed up to $25 million in funding. The Local Producer Loan Program (LPLP) has provided 184 loans to 155 companies since its inception in 2007.

Alfred Marshall, a founder of the Marshalls department store chain in the mid-1950s, died Saturday, Dec. 28 in Boca Raton, Fla., at the age of 94, according to a New York Times report.

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New York -- U.S. consumer confidence, which decreased in November 2013, rebounded the following month, according to The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, which now stands at 78.1 (1985=100), up from 72 in November.

Walgreens, Walmart and Kroger were among major retailers quick to implement temporary new programs designed to help customers coping with one of the many glitches associated with the roll out of the Affordable Care Act.

New York — Target Corp. said a “small percentage” of its gift cards were not properly activated and, as a result, are not working properly when customers try to redeem them.

“We are aware that some Target gift cards were not fully activated and apologize for the inconvenience,” Target spokeswoman Molly Snyder said in an e-mail, Reuters reported.

Dublin, Ohio — The Wendy's Company has sold 30 locations Austin, Texas and another 19 in the Sacramento, Calif.-area in separate transactions. With the completion of the transactions, the company has now either sold or announced sales agreements for a total of 282 restaurants in 2013 as part of its System Optimization initiative.

Atlanta -- An affiliate of Roark Capital Group has acquired a majority stake in CKE Restaurants Inc., owner of Carl's Jr., Hardee's and various other quick-serve restaurant chains.