News Briefs

Bob’s Discount Furniture Inc. has ​filed ​for ⁠an initial public offering.

Bob’s, which operates 200 stores across the United States and is backed by private equity firm Bain Capital, intends to list its common stock on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “BOBS.” The number of shares to be offered and the price range for the proposed offering have not yet been determined.

The proposed offering is subject to market and other conditions, and there can be no assurance as to whether or when the offering may be completed, or as to the actual size or terms of the offering, Bob’s said in a press release.

Bain Capital acquired the majority stake in Bob’s in 2014, with management continuing to own a significant stake in the company. The chain is based in Manchester, Conn.

Consumers started the new year feeling a bit more optimistic about the economy.

Consumer sentiment rose 2.1% to 54.0 in early January, its highest level this month since September 2025, although it remains at historically low levels, according to the University of Michigan’s Consumer Sentiment Index’s preliminary findings for January. The January reading marked the second straight month the index improved. 

“All told, while consumers perceived some modest improvement in the economy over the past two months, their sentiment remains nearly 25% below last January’s reading,” said Joanne Hsu, director, surveys of consumers, University of Michigan. “They continue to be focused primarily on kitchen table issues, like high prices and softening labor markets.”

Consumers’ views of current economic conditions rose 4% to 52.4. The index of consumer expectations edged up 0.7% to 55.0 from 54.6.

Although consumers’ worries about tariffs appear to be gradually receding, they remain guarded about the overall strength of business conditions and labor markets, added Hsu.

Year-ahead inflation expectations held steady in January at 4.2%, the lowest reading since January 2025. Long-run inflation expectations ticked up to 3.4% in January from 3.2% in the prior month.

More than 90% of interviews for the reading were collected prior to the U.S. capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.

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Costco Wholesale Corp. maintained its momentum in December, fueled by continuing gains online and increases in store traffic.

The membership warehouse club retailer reported that its net sales rose 8.5% to $29.86 billion for the five weeks ended Jan. 4, 2026. Customer traffic increased 2.7%, and the average ticket rose up 4.2%.

Costco’s digitally-enabled comparable sales surged 18.9%, or 18.3%, when adjusted for fuel and currency impacts. This follows increases of 16.6% in both November and October.

Total company comparable sales increased 7%, rising 6.0% in the U.S., and 8.4% in Canada. Other international comp sales rose 10.6%.

Total comparable sales excluding the impacts from changes in gasoline prices and foreign exchange increased 6.3% in the U.S., and 6% in Canada. Other international comp sales rose 5.6%.

Costco currently operates 923 warehouses, including 633 in the United States and Puerto Rico, 114 in Canada, 42 in Mexico, 37 in Japan, 29 in the United Kingdom, 20 in Korea, 15 in Australia, 14 in Taiwan, seven in China, five in Spain, three in France, two in Sweden, and one each in Iceland, and New Zealand. Costco also operates e-commerce sites in the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Mexico, Korea, Taiwan, Japan and Australia.

[READ MORE: Costco Q4 tops street; to open 35 new warehouses]

Going-out-of-business sales are underway at all remaining Value City Furniture and American Signature Furniture locations.

A joint venture of SB360 Capital Partners, Hilco Global and Gordon Brothers has received bankruptcy court approval to operate sales at all 89 remaining American Signature Inc. stores. The nearly 75-year-old, family-owned company filed for Chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware last November, which came amid a downturn in the real estate market and as consumers reined in their spending on big purchases.

The sales start on Jan. 9 at Value City Furniture's 79 stores across 13 states, and American Signature's 10 stores located in Delaware and Florida. Shoppers will find discounts of up to 50% off original prices on a wide selection of home furnishings, including living room, dining room and bedroom collections, as well as decor, lighting, mattresses and rugs.

"A sale of this magnitude will bring never-before-seen values to a broad selection of top-quality furniture already offered at truly affordable prices," said SB360 president Aaron Miller, on behalf of the joint venture. "We encourage everyone to shop early during this limited-time event while selection is at its best. The compelling liquidation discounts on stylish furniture for every room of the home will make this a short sale in these stores."

[READ MORE: Bankrupt parent company of Value City Furniture puts 23 leases on the market]

American Signature Inc.’s five previously announced closing stores in Tennessee and North Carolina have been offering storewide discounts during a store closing sale. Those five locations, which include four American Signature Furniture stores in Nashville and one Value City Furniture in Charlotte, will continue with deeper discounts as they wrap up sales over the next few weeks, according to the joint venture.

Etsy is expanding its capability to let customers shop and make purchases within AI agents.

The e-commerce retailer is partnering with Microsoft and payment processing provider Stripe to make eligible items available for purchase directly in Copilot Checkout on web browser for signed-in Microsoft users in the U.S. With this offering, Etsy is building on a partnership it launched with ChatGPT, the generative AI model from research and deployment company Open AI, in fall 2025.

[READ MORE: Etsy partners with ChatGPT for shoppable items]

According to Etsy, this new partnership with Microsoft and Stripe will help surface sellers’ unique items at the moment shoppers move from inspiration to intent.

"We’re leaning into these AI tools because they make it easier for shoppers to discover and purchase from the real people behind the items on Etsy, reinforcing the engagement that leads to repeat purchases and long-term growth – both for Etsy, and our sellers." Rafe Colburn, Etsy chief product and technology officer, said in a corporate blog post. "Etsy’s context-rich inventory, shaped by the creativity of our sellers, is easy for conversational assistants to interpret, narrowing the gap between a shopper’s intent and what we deliver."

Etsy is also leveraging its early integrations with agentic AI solutions to help understand how its inventory and brand are interpreted in assisted environments and better inform how it surfaces items on these channels.