News

Issaquah, Wash. -- Costco Wholesale Corp. said Tuesday that its board of directors has approved a $4 billion share buyback program. The company also raised its quarterly dividend by 17% to 24 cents, up from 20.5 cents.

The share buyback program expires in April 2015 and replaces a previous plan set to expire in July which had $800 million remaining.

NEW YORK -- Consumer confidence recovered somewhat in April, though the impact of rising gasoline prices is still evident, according to data released Tuesday by the Conference Board.

The confidence index hit 65.4 in April, from an upwardly revised 63.8 in March. The reading is still below the 72.0 mark of February.

CINCINNATI -- Kroger has named Keith Dailey director external corporate communications. According to the company, Dailey will be oversee national media communications for Kroger, which operates 2,458 supermarkets and multi-department stores in 31 states under two dozen local banner names.

Serving as the spokesman for such a large company should come easy to Dailey. As the communications director for former Ohio Governor Ted Strickland, he likely had his fair share of media issues to tackle.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill.  -- The ability to order a product online and pick it up at a local store is a service many retailers have only recently started providing, so it may be surprising to learn the Sears Holdings will be celebrating its 10th year of providing its Buy Online, Pick Up In-Store service. 

Roseville, Calif. -- Revionics, Roseville, Calif., a leading provider in retail life cycle price-optimization solutions, announced that Fairway Market has selected the Revionics Price Optimization solution for base pricing.

Austin, Texas -- T. Stacy & Associates, who has been involved with some of Austin’s most iconic buildings, announced that it will reconfigure street-level space in its headquarters building at 823 Congress Avenue to a size and quality sufficient to attract a major retailer and that it has begun an aggressive search to find the “perfect tenant.”

New York City -- Wal-Mart Stores CEO Mike Duke said rising gas prices are hurting the chain’s main customers, who are having an even harder time stretching their dollars to the next payday than they did a year ago.

"There's no doubt that rising fuel prices are having an impact on our customers," said Duke at an event that was part of The Wall Street Journal's executive breakfast series,  according to the Associated Press. "There's more pressure."

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Just a few months after launching its Doorstep Grocer program, Meijer is allowing its online shoppers to order items and have the merchandise shipped to a local store at no cost.

The new Order-to-Store program allows shoppers to designate which Meijer store they would like to use as their pickup location. Once the order is received by the store, the customer will receive email notification that their items are ready for pickup.