News

New York -- The Deloitte Consumer Spending Index (Index) posted its fourth consecutive increase in June, rising to 3.22 from a reading of 3.09 the previous month. The Index, which tracks consumer cash flow as an indicator of future consumer spending, is comprised of four components: tax burden, initial unemployment claims, real wages and real home prices.

New York -- Best Buy plans to hire 500 new Geek Squad staffers. The move comes some two weeks after the retailer said it would lay off 600 existing workers in the tech support arm of its business as it looked to focus the group less on basic installation services and more on remote tech consulting. It also comes as Verizon announced it was partnering with Geek Squad to offer services to meet the information technology requirements of small and mid-size businesses across the country.

Darden Restaurants’ recent $585 million purchase of one of casual-dining’s rising stars, Yard House USA, put a spotlight on the brand, which has 39 locations. But Yard House is also generating buzz with its first Boston location, which is located just a stone’s throw away from one of the nation’s most historic sporting venues: Fenway Park.

EMERYVILLE, Calif. — LeapFrog Enterprises has named Ray Arthur as CFO.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — For the second quarter, Mattel reported net income of $96.2 million, or 28 cents per share, compared with last year’s second quarter net income of $80.5 million, or 23 cents per share.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — Kmart became one of the first retailers to offer a reloadable prepaid card requiring no initial charge to load funds with the launch of its new Halogen Reloadable Prepaid MasterCard offered by Green Dot. In addition to the no charge for loading funds, the card offers free ATM withdrawals from network ATMs, and is available with no bank account, credit check or minimum balance required.

NEW YORK — Customers who want to explore digital reading, but aren't ready to commit to buying an e-reader can now do so through Barnes & Noble's new Nook for Web service. The service is free and customers need only a PC or Mac browser to access the content. No software download, sign-in or Nook account is required. According to the company, the service will be available this fall on Internet-enabled tablets, smartphones and other mobile devices.

HUDSON, Ohio — Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores has launched an iPad app to help customers find everything they need for their next project.

“Our customers crave fresh inspiration delivered to them through a variety of means. What we have accomplished with the Jo-Ann app for iPad is consolidating all of these inspiration sources into one highly engaging experience called the Idea Center,” said Riddi Kline, SVP and chief marketing officer for Jo-Ann.

NEW YORK — eBay's latest move to brand itself as more than just an online auction site, involves the launch of an exclusive designer collection for the holiday season. The company has partnered with designers Billy Reid, Chris Benz, Fallon, Jonathan Adler, Ruffian, Steven Alan and Tibi for an original, limited-edition gift collection of men’s and women’s apparel, jewelry, travel and electronics accessories and home décor.

PALO ALTO, Calif. — Aisle411, a mobile retail navigation service, on Tuesday announced that its virtual mapping and navigation smartphone application is available to use in all of Walgreens' 7,907 drug stores nationwide.

With Aisle411's in-store mapping platform, customers can use their smartphones to view maps of any Walgreens store, allowing shoppers to locate products down to a particular section of each aisle. Walgreens is the first national retailer with all of its stores mapped in a mobile application, Aisle411 stated.