United Parcel Service of America, Inc. (UPS)

New York -- Seasonal hiring in the retail sector is expected to outpace 2013, according to a report by Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

Retailers are projected to hire more than 800,000 seasonal workers for the upcoming holiday season, the highest number since 1999. In 2013, the retail industry hired 786,200 seasonal workers.

Every holiday season is filled with uncertainty, and this year is no different, except when it comes to e-commerce, where the only unknown is the size of the sales increase.

NEW YORK — 18 | 8 Fine Men's Salons has leased its first New Jersey locations in Somerset and Essex Counties. Winick Realty Group New Jersey broker Alison Cohen, the exclusive broker for 18|8 Fine Men's Salons in New Jersey, represented the salon in both transactions.

New York -- UPS Stores, a subsidiary of United Parcel Service, said that a security breach may have led to the theft of customer credit and debit data at 51 UPS stores in the United States.

In a statement, the company said that customers who had used their debit or credit cards at affected locations (which are listed on the UPS site) from Jan. 20 to Aug. 11 may have been exposed to the malware. However, the company noted, exposure began after March 26 in most cases.

The malware was eliminated as of Aug. 11, UPS said.

If the retail industry needed a catalyst for change, one that nearly mandates more efficient and sustainable packaging practices, FedEx recently provided the blowtorch to ignite it.

Johnson & Johnson has added UPS chairman and CEO D. Scott Davis to its board as director. Davis will serve on the audit committee and the regulatory, compliance and government affairs committee.

Davis has been with UPS for 29 years and was appointed its CEO in 2008. Under his leadership, the company has expanded its logistics network reach and capabilities throughout Europe, Asia and the Americas. Davis plans to retire Sept. 1, and will remain non-executive chairman of UPS’ board.

Atlanta — Online shoppers want retailers to make it easier to purchase their goods and services, and also want websites and stores to work better together. For now, according to a new survey of 5,800 consumers from UPS and comScore Inc., they also prefer to evaluate and purchase products from their desktops rather than their mobile devices, and when it comes to shipping and returns, "free" is a driving factor to complete the sale.
 

Palo Alto, Calif. — Endicia, a provider of e-commerce shipping technologies and services, has released a solution called "Pay-on-Use Returns" exclusively for the United States Postal Service (USPS). Unlike traditional USPS labels, Endicia's Pay-on-Use Returns shipping labels are not pre-paid.

Stamps.com has integrated its USPS shipping with Shopify, a leading commerce platform that allows consumers to sell online or at their retail locations.

Preparation is key when it comes to natural disasters