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Amazon Prime to launch in Brazil; Vitamin Shoppe shares surge over buyout bid

TOP NEWS

* Amazon.com Inc. will launch its Prime subscription service in Brazil, competing against Magazine Luiza SA and MercadoLibre Inc. in the Latin American market, Reuters reported. The Prime service reportedly will cost 9.90 Brazilian reais monthly or 89 reais annually and offer unlimited free shipping to members nationwide and maximum 48-hour delivery time in more than 90 municipalities across the country.

* Shares of Vitamin Shoppe Inc. surged more than 12% after announcing that it received an acquisition offer from a third-party bidder during its "go-shop" period, which expired Sept. 6. Vitamin Shoppe said the offer "is reasonably likely" to lead to a superior proposal under its deal with Liberty Tax Inc., but it did not assure that an agreement will take place.

TEXTILES, APPAREL AND LUXURY GOODS

* Compagnie Financière Richemont SA said Eric Vallat will step down as the head of its fashion and accessories maisons, effective Oct. 26, to pursue an opportunity outside the group.

* Kering SA will provide a minimum of 14 weeks of maternity, paternity, adoption or partner leave with full pay for all its employees, starting Jan. 1, 2020. Kering initially only granted five days of paternity and partner leave with full pay but has been giving 14 weeks of maternity or adoption leave since January 2017.

* Australian footwear company R. M. Williams aims to double its sales to A$300 million within the next five years and launch 18 stores in the U.S. and U.K., the Financial Times reported, citing CEO Raju Vuppalapati. R. M. reportedly plans to fund the expansion through its own cash resources. The executive also added that private equity owner L Catterton Asia appointed Goldman Sachs to explore a sale of the business but declined to give a potential price range for the company, the report said.

* Oasis and Warehouse Group acquired online fashion retailer The Idle Man for an undisclosed amount, marking the British company's debut into menswear, Drapers reported. As part of the deal, founder Oliver Tezcan will continue to head The Idle Man and will report directly to Oasis and Warehouse CEO Hash Ladha.

MULTILINE RETAIL

* Fred's Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and is seeking court approval to enter into a debtor-in-possession financing agreement with its lenders for up to $35 million. The general merchandiser has launched liquidation sales across all its stores, which are expected to close over the next 60 days.

E-COMMERCE

* Amazon.com Inc. is looking to fill more than 30,000 full-time and part-time jobs in the U.S. The online retail giant will hold six Amazon Career Day events Sept. 17, specifically in Arlington, Va.; Nashville, Tenn.; Boston; Chicago; Dallas; and Seattle.

* Amazon launched an online garden store in Australia as part of its expansion into new categories in the country, challenging the position of Wesfarmers Ltd.-owned Bunnings in the gardening and outdoor market, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.

* Amazon's European arm received €241 million in tax credits in 2018 after posting a pretax loss of €493 million and despite reporting that sales increased 11.6% year over year to €28 billion, The Guardian reported. "Amazon pays all the taxes required in every country where we operate," a company spokesman told the newspaper. Amazon Europe, which was ordered by the European Commission to pay more than €250 million over "illegal tax advantages in Luxembourg," reportedly set aside money in March in an escrow account to cover the potential penalty.

* JD.com Inc. launched a financial services app in Thailand called Dolfin, created in partnership with local retail conglomerate The Central Group, Reuters reported, citing a statement from their JD Central Fintech joint venture. The app reportedly has an e-wallet function, digital lending platform, and insurance and wealth management. "We aim to have 400,000 users by the end of the year and 1.5 million next year," said Rungruang Sukkirdkijpiboon, the venture's CEO.

* Zalando SE is testing artificial intelligence-driven 3D-scanning technology in order to curb size-related returns, Vogue Business reported. Stacia Carr, Zalando director of engineering, sizing and fit, reportedly said the sizing department's research and development team is using 3D avatars that can tell customers how an item is likely to fit them.

HOUSEHOLD AND PERSONAL PRODUCTS

* Coty Inc. said its supply chain's procurement operations, to be led by Chief Procurement Officer Gianluca Colombo, will be disassociated from the supply operations, which will be headed by Jean-Claude Thomas. Both segments will report directly to CEO Pierre Laubies. The company added that Chief Global Supply Officer Luc Volatier will retire from Coty.

* Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. named former SPX FLOW Inc. CFO Jeremy Smeltser as executive vice president, effective Oct. 1. Smeltser succeeds executive vice president and CFO Doug Martin, who will leave the company on or before Dec. 20. Senior Vice President and COO Randy Lewis was also promoted to executive vice president, effective Sept. 9, while Rebeckah Long was appointed senior vice president of global human resources, also effective Oct. 1.

FOOD AND STAPLES RETAILING

* Koninklijke Ahold Delhaize NV will expand into the French-speaking part of Belgium in the summer of 2020, allowing local shoppers to use the bol.com app using their native language.

* Seven & i Holdings Co. Ltd. reported that Seven-Eleven Japan sales rose 2.4% year over year in August, with 0.1% same-store sales growth. Customer numbers dropped 2.8% from the year-ago period but average customer spending rose 3%. Store numbers climbed to 21,017 from 20,990 in July.

HOUSEHOLD DURABLES AND SPECIALTY RETAIL

* Sports Direct International PLC is one of the final bidders to buy jeweler Links of London from Folli-Follie Commercial Manufacturing and Technical SA, Sky News reported, citing sources. Hilco Capital reportedly has also offered to purchase the company and could team up with Folli Follie to acquire it through an insolvency process. Sports Direct and Hilco did not immediately respond to S&P Global Market Intelligence's requests for comment, while Folli Follie could not be reached for comment.

* JD Sports Fashion PLC reported adjusted EPS for half year 2019 of 12.57 pence, up from 10.05 pence in the year-ago period, while group revenue jumped 47% year over year to £2.72 billion from £1.85 billion.

* Menkind Group Ltd. bought gift shop operator Qwerkity from The Book People Group, in order to appeal to a wider market, Retail Gazette reported. Menkind also hired its first-ever managing director, who will look into the company's international expansion.

HOTELS, RESORTS AND CRUISE LINES

* Bluegreen Vacations Corp. Executive Vice President, Treasurer and CFO Anthony Puleo will retire from the role, effective Sept. 30, but will stay with the company as an adviser to President and CEO Shawn Pearson. Puleo will be succeeded by Raymond Lopez, who will also continue as executive vice president and CFO of BBX Capital Corp., owner of 90.3% of Bluegreen Vacations.

INDUSTRY NEWS

* Retail sales in Indonesia climbed 2.4% year over year in July, compared with a decline of 1.8% in June, Reuters reported, citing a central bank survey. The sales growth reportedly was driven by the automotive spare parts and accessories sector, as well as food, beverages and tobacco.

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The day ahead

Early morning futures indicators pointed to a lower opening for the U.S. market.

In Asia, the Hang Seng rose 0.01% to 26,683.68, and the Nikkei 225 gained 0.35% to 21,392.10.

In Europe, around midday, the FTSE 100 dropped 0.26% to 7,217.27, and the Euronext 100 was down 0.64% to 1,073.50.

On the macro front

The Redbook Index for retail sales and the Labor Department's Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey are due out today.

Click here to read about today's financial markets, setting out the factors driving stocks, bonds and currencies around the world ahead of the New York open.

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