OPERATIONS / SUPPLY CHAIN

New York -- The administration of Gov. Andrew Cuomo approved a wage increase that will gradually raise the minimum wage for fast-food workers in New York to $15 an hour. And now Cuomo wants the hike to be even broader.

Speaking Thursday at a labor rally in New York City, Cuomo proposed a $15 minimum statewide wage for all industries, with the increase to be enacted over time. It would give the Empire State the highest statewide minimum wage in the country. New York’s minimum wage is now $8.75 an hour.

Cincinnati — Kroger on Thursday announced the appointment of four executive VPs to lead key lines of business.

Mountain View, Calif. – Apple Pay has a new rival, and it’s a formidable one.  
   
In its second take on mobile payments, Google is officially releasing its Android Pay digital payment solution to users of Android devices in the U.S.
     

Berkeley, Calif. - Cheryl Hughes has joined Andronico’s Community Markets as CFO. Recently appointed CEO Suzy Monford leads the all-female team.

Hughes formerly held the role of controller for Chemoil, a global oil trading organization. Prior to this role she was CFO at Pacific Convenience & Fuels based in Pleasanton. Her career in food and retail dates back to her 15-year stint as director of U.S. Finance with Circle K Stores Inc.
 

Arlington, Va. -- A report says that only one in five debit and credit cards are ready for the EMV shift.

As retailers spend billions to upgrade their point of sale terminals to accept new chip cards before the Oct. 1 liability shift deadline, the nation’s largest card network acknowledged that a staggering number of magnetic “swipe” cards have not been replaced with new cards.

Issaquah, Wash. – Costco Wholesale Corp. is finally getting its online photo center partially up and running following a July 2015 data breach at the third-party hosting provider.

Returning users will have to create a new password before re-entering the site.

All photo center products except the mobile app, framed prints and mail order products are once again fully available. Costco expects to have the mobile app and mail order option available by the end of September, and framed prints available by mid-October.

Austin, Texas – Many smaller retailers only consider meeting the upcoming Oct. 1 deadline for EMV compliance as a small concern.

Despite the fact retailers face a shift in payment card fraud liability if they do not have EMV-compliant POS systems in place by Oct. 1, a new study from Software Advice finds that only 22% of small-to-midsized business (SMB) retailers are prepared to meet the deadline. However, the percentage of SMB retailers who are EMV-compliant has doubled from 11% in 2014 to 22% today.

Indianapolis – With retailers like Amazon.com entering the online services market, online services network Angie’s List is tapping a veteran retail e-commerce executive to run the company.

Scott Durchslag, who served as president of e-commerce and global marketing at Best Buy from 2012-2014, has joined Angie’s List as president and CEO.