Content about Washington

May 2, 2013
Starbucks shakes up senior management

Starbucks Coffee Co. is shaking up its senior management team with five promotions and two new appointments.

May 1, 2013
Walgreens opens Boston flagship

Walgreens on Wednesday will celebrate the official opening of its latest flagship, located at School and Washington streets in Boston.

April 25, 2013
Starbucks’ Q2 profit tops estimates

Starbucks Coffee Company reported that its second-quarter profit rose 26% to $390.4 million, up from $309.9 million last year, amid sales increases in the Americas and Asia regions.

April 23, 2013
Starbucks, Chicago
Starbucks Coffee Company's two-level store at the corner of Chicago's Oak and Rush Streets has a distinct Chicago feel, and reinforces the company's recycled, reclaimed and reused materials philosophy and coffee origins theme.
April 8, 2013
Reports: Costco looks to develop e-commerce in China

Costco Wholesale appears to be eyeing China's online commerce market, according to published reports.

April 4, 2013
BJ's Restaurants opens in Puyallup, Wash.

BJ's Restaurants said Wednesday it has opened a new restaurant in Puyallup, Wash.

April 4, 2013
BJ's Restaurants opens in Puyallup, Wash.

BJ's Restaurants said Wednesday it has opened a new restaurant in Puyallup, Wash.

April 4, 2013
Starbucks ramping up Southeast Asia growth with 200 stores in four years

Starbucks Coffee Company reaffirmed its commitment to accelerate growth in Southeast Asia, announcing plans to open 100 stores in Indonesia over the next three years and another 100 stores in the Philippines over the next four years.

March 15, 2013
Criminal Background Checks

The use of criminal background checks by employers is being closely watched.

Concerns that convictions among African Americans and Hispanics were causing hiring discrimination, the Equal Employment Opportunity Council has issued new guidelines regarding employer use of criminal records under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. According to the Pew Center on the States 2010 study, while one in every 87 white men in America have been incarcerated, among Hispanics it is 1-in-36 and blacks it is 1-in-12.

March 15, 2013
Reports: Costco to expand headquarters

Costco Wholesale Corp. will expand its Issaquah, Wash., headquarters, according to published reports.

March 6, 2013
NRF backs legislation to repeal health care employer mandate

The National Retail Federation this week welcomed introduction of House and Senate legislation that would repeal the employer mandate provision of the health care reform law scheduled to take effect next year.

February 21, 2013
CSA conference debuts real estate track; Container Store, Starbucks, Macy’s among retail speakers

The SPECS conference, presented each year by Chain Store Age, will debut a real estate track as part of the 49th annual event.

February 6, 2013
2013: The year retail rebounds?

By Gary Glick, Cox, Castle & Nicholson LLP

February 6, 2013
Obama taps CEO of REI to head Interior Department

President Obama has selected Sally Jewell, president and CEO of Recreational Equipment Inc., to lead the Interior Department, White House officials said.

February 6, 2013
Starbucks makes New Delhi debut

Tata Starbucks Limited, the 50/50 joint venture between Starbucks Coffee Company and India’s Tata Global Beverages Limited, opened Starbucks’ first location in New Delhi.

February 1, 2013
Starbucks makes Vietnam debut; sees potential there for ‘hundreds’ of cafes

Starbucks Coffee Co. opened its first location in Vietnam, following an expanded long-term relationship with Hong Kong Maxim’s Group.

January 30, 2013
NRF: Retailers unlikely to surcharge for credit card use

Despite some groups’ claims, the National Retail Federation said that few, if any, merchants are expected to surcharge customers for using a credit card as theoretically allowed under a controversial proposed lawsuit settlement with Visa and MasterCard being debated in the courts.


January 28, 2013
NRF forecasts slower sales for 2013

Retail industry sales (which exclude automobiles, gas stations, and restaurants) will increase 3.4%, down slightly from 4.2% in 2012 and 5.8% in 2011, according to the National Retail Federation’s 2013 economic forecast.

January 28, 2013
Starbucks targeting drive-thru format for growth in U.S.

Starbucks Corp. is expanding its drive-thru format, the chain said in its first-quarter earnings call.

January 4, 2013
Actor Patrick Dempsey's group wins bid for Tully’s

TC Global Inc., which operates 47 Tully’s Coffee Shops, announced that it is a step closer to exiting from bankruptcy with the sale of its assets to Global Baristas, the investment group led by actor Patrick Dempsey, star of television’s Grey's Anatomy.

January 2, 2013
NRF welcomes agreement to avoid fiscal cliff



The National Retail Federation on Wednesday welcomed an agreement reached between the White House and Congress on a plan to avoid the fiscal cliff.

January 2, 2013
Report: Starbucks among the bidders for Tully’s Coffee

Starbucks Coffee Co. is one of seven bidders for Tully's Coffee, according to The Seattle Times.

December 27, 2012
IT Hot Buttons

From mobile payments to mining big data for customer insights, savvy retailers are using all the tools at their disposal to engage and connect with shoppers and provide relevant, convenient and personalized shopping experiences across all channels.

As retailers competitively position themselves for growth in 2013 and beyond, there are a number of hot buttons or key considerations that will be driving their strategies. Here is a look at some of the top ones:

Marketing and IT collaboration

December 11, 2012
Shades of Gray on Black Friday

By Jeff Green, president and CEO, Jeff Green Partners

December 7, 2012
Starbucks, Amsterdam

Starbucks blends tradition with innovation, transforming the vault of the historic Amsterdamsche Bank, a landmark building in Rembrandt Square, into its largest store in Europe. The chain’s first “concept” store in Europe, it spans 4,500 sq. ft. and was conceived as a theatre space with a 57-foot coffee bar as its stage, with multi-level areas that provide stages for local bands, poetry readings and other cultural activities. The store will function as a test space for rare and exclusive coffees, diverse coffee brewing methods, and new food concepts.

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