News

Import cargo volume at the nation’s major retail container ports is expected to see a final surge and set a new monthly record in October as the holiday season approaches, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released late this week by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.

Overstock plans to break ground on its new corporate campus, which is called the "Peace Coliseum" and is scheduled to open summer 2016.

Overstock officials have said that from the ground level, the building will look like a corporate glass-and-concrete version of the Roman Coliseum, but from the air, the three-story building will appear as a peace sign.

The groundbreaking coincides with Overstock's 15th anniversary.

Moki, a leading mobile software platform, has appointed Chander Chawla VP of marketing and product strategy. With Chawla on board, Moki said it plans to open an office in Palo Alto, California, to better serve its growing customer base.

Chawla, who has been in the mobile industry for 15 years, has been credited with leading the growth of public Wi-Fi and wearable devices at T-Mobile and National Semiconductor.

Just in time for the holiday season, Amazon is going brick-and-mortar with its first-ever physical store, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The store, which will be located across from the Empire State Building in Midtown Manhattan, will serve as a mini-warehouse, with limited inventory for same-day delivery within New York City, product returns and exchanges and pickups of online orders, according to the report.
 

Big Lots is preparing for the grand opening celebration of its newest store at 9 a.m. Friday, October 17, and baseball great Mariano Rivera will be in attendance.

Rivera, who spent 17 seasons with the New York Yankees as a relief pitcher, will kick off the store opening with an autograph session from 10 a.m-noon.

"What better way to celebrate our new store in North Bergen than by welcoming New York Yankee great Mariano Rivera to join us on this special day," said CEO and president David Campisi.

The recently released 2014 Food, Drink, and Consumer Goods Outlook Survey from audit, tax and advisory firm KPMG is highlighting some key initiatives that consumer goods executives are focusing on to transform their businesses. The goals range from updating operational efficiencies and technology to making a push for product innovation, according to survey results.
 

Armonk, N.Y. – IBM is introducing new partners developing apps based on its Watson artificial intelligence platform and world headquarters for its Watson Group, as well as new cognitive services that will be available on IBM Bluemix, IBM's cloud-based platform for mobile and Web app development.