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Montreal-based Beyond the Rack has won $12 million in new investment from Highland Capital Partners and Capital.  - More - 

J. Crew Group

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Avon Products Inc.

U.S. retailer Zumiez is reportedly readying a bid to top Billabong International's $80.1 million offer to acquire West 49, a Canadian-based action sports retailer. According to the Wall Street Journal, "The West 49 board told Billabong it believes the Zumiez offer could 'reasonably be expected to lead to a superior proposal' and has notified Billabong that Zumiez has been granted due diligence to determine if the offer can become a firm, and financially superior, offer." Zumiez is a mall-based action sports retailer, which sells apparel, footwear, equipment and accessories. The company operates 377 stores in 35 states. If Zumiez

Responding to the call for a doubling of exports over the next five years through the National Export Initiative, officials with the U.S. Postal Service and U.S. Department of Commerce are leveraging their strategic partnership to launch a business plan aimed at empowering American businesses interested in exporting as a pathway to growth. A partnership agreement signed at Postal Service headquarters today establishes an outreach strategy between representatives of the Department of Commerce's International Trade Administration and U.S. Commercial Service, and the Postal Service's Global Business team.

Best Buy said it also plans to invest in a centralized, ultrasonic humidification system, which it said with both save energy and provide a return on investment within a year.  The company will also focus on reducing fleet fuel use, tighter operational controls, reduced plug loads, and carbon offsets or renewable energy credits.

SYDNEY -(Dow Jones)- Billabong International Ltd. (BBG.AU) said Monday it reached a conditional agreement to acquire apparel brand RVCA for an amount that was undisclosed because the group doesn't consider it to be material. The group recently bought West 49, prompting analysts to speculate Billabong was becoming a more store-oriented retailer. RVCA is a California-based art and design-driven brand. The bulk of RVCA's revenue is earned in the U.S. but the group is starting to expand into Australia and Europe. RVCA is expected to add 2% to Billabong's group revenue and will be per-share earnings neutral in the 2010-2011

The iPhone's touch screen spurred the development of e-commerce apps from big players including Amazon and eBay. Now the iPad's larger screen and enhanced graphics and video capabilities have retailers racing to create new-format catalogs, Advertising Age reports. "The iPad is a different flavor of the same dish ... but what we're seeing is that there are more actual transactions on the iPad than the iPhone," said Ray Grady, exec VP at Acquity Group consultancy.

When hip is hot, it helps the hipster, which in this case is the budget-friendly clothing-store chain Aéropostale. Its stores, once indistinguishable from the likes of others in the mall, have become a must-stop for fashion-conscious teens and preteens.

NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--J.C. Penney Co.'s (JCP) American Living line, which was the retailer's biggest brand rollout, is finding itself on beds, on young men and behind its stores in trash bins.