Trading Partners

ELMWOOD PARK, N.J. — The Craft & Hobby Association (CHA) board of directors has announced Andrej Suskavcevic as new president and CEO of CHA. The appointment of Suskavcevic concludes an eight-month executive search during which Tony Lee, VP meetings and expositions, served as CHA's interim leader.

Mahwah, N.J. -- The Metropolitan Furnishings Association said it has selected TD Retail Card Services’ Renovate Card private label credit program for use by the organization’s 75 retail members in New Jersey.

Plano, Texas -- J.C. Penney Co. announced Tuesday that Thomas J. Engibous will become chairman of its board of directors, effective Jan. 28.

Engibous was named to the board in 1999 and has served in presiding director and lead independent director roles since 2008. He will assume the chairman's role from Myron E. (Mike) Ullman, III, J.C. Penney’s former CEO, who will step down as executive chairman.

Engibous is the retired chairman of Texas Instruments Inc.

Tulsa, Okla. -- Scott & Goble Architects said Friday that it has been renamed SGA Design Group, effective immediately.

The firm operates offices in Bentonville, Ark., Berkley, Calif., and Los Angeles, in addition to its Tulsa headquarters.

Clients include Walmart, Kohl’s, Lowe’s, Sports Authority and Hobby Lobby.
 

Want to see what increased government regulation and its impact on business looks like? For a review of a new supply chain law in place in California and the reporting requirement it will impose on retailers, click here. 

CHICAGO — Investment research firm Morningstar has named the outgoing CEO of Costco Wholesale as its 2011 CEO of the Year, the company said Wednesday.

Costco CEO Jim Sinegal, who retired on New Year's Day, received the recognition for what Morningstar called his "exemplary corporate stewardship, independent thinking" and creating "lasting value for shareholders."

PLEASANTON, Calif. — Safeway on Thursday announced the sale of 16 of its Genuardi's stores in the greater Philadelphia area to Giant Food Stores, a division of Ahold USA. Safeway will continue to operate these stores until the transaction closes, and the company is working through an orderly transition for all of these stores.

In addition, Safeway plans to close three Genuardi's stores and sell the remaining eight Genuardi's stores, which it will continue to operate while it is working with potential buyers.

In October of 2007, the U.K. newspaper, the Observer, reported that child workers, some as young as 10, were discovered working in an Indian textile factory in slave-like conditions to produce clothes for Gap Kids.