retail

Microsoft said Friday it is permanently closing nearly all of its physical stores around the world. Like other retailers, the software and computing giant, co-founded by now-philanthropist Bill Gates, had to temporarily close stores in late March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. According to its website, Microsoft has 83 stores worldwide, including 72 stores in …

Macy’s said it will axe 3,900 corporate employees on Thursday as it struggles to recover from coronavirus lockdowns nationwide. The department-store giant said it has also eliminated an undisclosed number of store employees, who may be rehired as the company’s sales recover. Many furloughed workers will be asked to return to their jobs starting in …

GNC filed for bankruptcy, saying it will shutter more than 15 percent of its stores after state-ordered coronavirus lockdowns crimped sales this spring. The 85 year-old supplements seller — which struggled with sagging sales in recent years, even as it shouldered more than $700 million in debt — said in a Chapter 11 late Tuesday …

That didn’t last long. Less than a month after it began reopening, Apple said Friday it will be closing 11 stores as coronavirus cases rise in states that have lifted their lockdowns. The 11 stores are in Arizona, Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina. Customers who left devices at the stores for repairs will have …

Sheltering in place is causing Americans to get a little, well, squirrelly. So many folks have time on their hands because of coronavirus-spurred joblessness and lockdowns, they’re paying more attention to the bushy tailed rodents scampering outside their windows — and opening their wallets to make them happy, according to a Wall Street Journal story Friday. …

TOKYO, June 19 – Japanese shoppers queued at Uniqlo stores and crashed its website on Friday as the clothing chain began selling face masks with breathable fabric used in the brand’s popular underwear, preparing for the coronavirus outbreak lasting through summer. Scenes of people standing in the rain waiting for stores to open were seen …

Grocery conglomerate Albertsons expects to raise up to $1.3 billion when it goes public amid a coronavirus-related sales boom. Some of the Idaho-based company’s stockholders will sell 65.8 million shares at $18 to $20 apiece in the upcoming initial public offering, Albertsons said Thursday. The high end of that price range would value Albertsons at …

Read More: Neiman Marcus to file for bankruptcy as soon as this week: sources US retail sales set another grim record amid coronavirus crisis Consumer spending plunges as Americans hoard cash amid coronavirus Retail sales surge record 18 percent as coronavirus lockdowns ease

Apple will reopen its New York City stores by appointment this week after the coronavirus shuttered them for three months. The iPhone-maker’s 10 retail locations will open their doors this week for the first time since March, it said in a statement, allowing customers to schedule appointments for order pickups or device repairs. The Cupertino, …

PARIS – Carrefour and Google said on Tuesday they were launching a voice-based grocery shopping service in France as part of the French retailer’s ambition to accelerate its expansion into food e-commerce. The service works via Google Assistant — a digital voice assistance service on smartphones and other devices — and is part of a …