Consumer Electronics

Struggling Sears Holdings Corp. may be aiming its new line of connected home appliances and tools directly at rival department store chain J.C. Penney.  

Watch out Best Buy, the nation’s largest ecommerce retailer is on your tail.   According to a report by barrons.com, Amazon has moved ahead of Walmart to take the number two spot, behind Best Buy, as the nation’s largest electronics retailer.    

Apple is training the next generation of coders — in its stores.   The company is expanding its Apple Camp workshops to include a course designed to teach children the basics of coding, Techcrunch reported.   The “Coding Games and Programming Robots” course, open to children ages 8 to 12, will also allow kids to program Sphero robots.   

Circuit City is reportedly getting closer to a relaunch.   The new owner of the defunct consumer electronics chain is currently working with brokers from CBRE to open a 6,000-sq.-ft. to 9,000-sq.-ft. prototype store in Dallas, reported consumer electronics industry publication Twice.     The relaunched business will also include a dedicated e-commerce site, as well as a presence on digital marketplaces such as Amazon.    

Circuit City is reportedly getting closer to a relaunch.  

The first-ever LinkedIn “Top Attractors” list of the most desirable companies to work is out, and several firms engaged in retail were included.  

In a new federal lawsuit, The Home Depot Inc. is accusing Visa and MasterCard of not doing enough to ensure EMV-compliant, chip-based payment cards truly prevent fraud.  

Tradepoint Atlantic, a 3,100-acre industrial hub now taking shape in Baltimore Harbor, this week unveiled plans for a 130-acre, mixed-use retail park on the former site of the nation’s largest steelmaking facility.   FedEx has signed a lease for a 300,000 sq.-ft. distribution facility and Harley-Davidson will move its training facility to the site, which offers 3,000 ft. of frontage on I-695 and exposure to 43,000 households in the surrounding area.