Corporate Governance

New York -- Staples has entered an agreement to acquire Office Depot in a cash and stock deal valued at $6.3 billon that is sure to face a high degree of regulatory scrutiny.

By Will McKitterick, analyst, IBIS World

New York -- Academy Sports + Outdoors will celebrate the simultaneous opening of four stores in the Orlando, Florida, area in March.

The new stores will be located in Kissimmee, Waterford, Lake Mary and Melbourne and will open simultaneously at 8:30 a.m. on March 6. The openings mark the Katy, Texas-based company’s furthest expansion eastward to date.

The $4 billion sporting goods retailer has entered into a multi-year partnership with the Orlando City Soccer Club beginning with the team's inaugural 2015 season.  

Academy Sports + Outdoors plans to make a splash in Orlando this spring with the simultaneous opening of four stores.

The $4 billion sporting goods retailer has entered into a multi-year partnership with the Orlando City Soccer Club beginning with the team's inaugural 2015 season. Academy Sports + Outdoors will be the official sporting goods retailer of the Orlando City Soccer Club. 

A bigger focus on the pharmacy department was a key driver of success for Fred’s in January.

The retailer reported that total sales for the month increased 3% to $138.8 million from $134.7 million in January 2014. Same store sales for the month increased 4.3% versus a decrease of 1.8% for the same period last year.

Kohl’s Corp. has increased its outlook for the recently completed business year, citing strong sales growth during the holiday season.

The company reported fourth-quarter same store sales growth of 3.7%. The company also updated its fiscal 2014 earnings per share guidance to a range of $4.20 to $4.22 per share. On average, 27 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expect the company to report earnings of $4.06 per share for fiscal 2014.

Former GameStop Senior Vice President of Human Resource Mike Buskey was elevated to the role of president of U.S. stores to oversee GameStop’s more than 2,000 locations.

St. Louis -- Brown Shoe Company announced that Kenneth Hannah has been named senior VP and CFO of the company, replacing Russ Hammer as of Feb. 16.

Hannah most recently served as executive VP and CFO of J.C. Penney Co. Prior to that time, he served in multiple executive roles at SunEdison (formerly MEMC Electronic Materials), including president of Solar Energy and of Solar Materials and as VP and CFO.