Mass Merchant

New York -- Giving a much-needed boost to J.C. Penney Co., George Soros’ Soros Fund Management bought 17.4 million shares of the troubled retailer, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.  

The stake, which was seen as a vote of confidence in returning CEO Mike Ullman, makes the billionaire investor the fourth-largest Penney shareholder, with a 7.9% stake.

BERKELEY, Calif. — Annie's, a leading natural and organic food company, has appointed Ed Aaron to the newly created position of SVP of strategic planning and investor relations.

New York -- The U.S. Senate on Thursday voted to move forward with the Marketplace Fairness Act, legislation that would allow states to force retailers to collect online sales taxes, if the states choose to do so.  

LOS ANGELES — Yowza, a leading mobile coupon app for iPhone and Android, has announced that more than 70,000 locations nationwide now accept Yowza coupons.

New York -- A Friday report by CNBC said that Goldman Sachs has lined up a $1.75 billion financing package for J.C. Penney Co., backed by the retailer’s real estate and other assets.

The news, which has not yet been confirmed by Penney, comes a day after investor George Soros reported a 7.9% stake in the company.

Earlier this month, Penney borrowed $850 million from its $1.85 billion revolving credit facility to boost its cash position and buy inventory.

Residents of tony Hilton Head Island, S.C., are getting the one thing they don’t currently have: a Kroger Marketplace, situated in the sprawling 42-acre mixed-use project under development by Kroger Real Estate and Blanchard & Calhoun Commercial.

Washington, D.C. -- Douglas Development announced that it has purchased a new mixed-use property in Chinatown DC. The 10,000-sq.-ft. building includes three levels of office space and 4,000 sq. ft. of street-level retail.
     
Douglas Development acquired the property from Washington, D.C.-based law firm Wingfield & Ginsburg, which has since leased back all of the office space from Douglas Development.
      

Walmart and other retailers are facing renewed criticism over their global sourcing practices following another factory disaster in Bangladesh.

Reuters is reporting that a block of garment factories and shops collapsed in Savar, 20 miles outside Dhaka, on Wednesday, killing 251 people and injuring more than a thousand. According to the report, an unknown number of the more than 3,000 people who work at the factory remain trapped inside. For more information, go to: