Retail

NEW YORK - Barnes & Noble announced a strategic partnership with Books-A-Million, to bring its NOOK e-readers to Books-A-Million’s 229 stores as the company’s exclusive e-reading devices. The announcement marks the first partnership of its kind between two major bookselling retailers in the United States, Barnes & Noble reported.

Two days after announcing the resignation of chairman and CEO Steve Odland, Office Depot on Wednesday announced improved results for the third quarter ended Sept. 25 despite a challenging economic climate which pressured sales. The company said it achieved third-quarter profits of $54 million, reversing a prior-year loss of $413 million, while earnings per share rebounded to 18 cents compared with a prior-year loss of $1.51. Total sales declined 4.3% to roughly $2.9 billion, including the unfavorable effect of foreign exchange rates.