Management

Whether you're trying to find out if your favorite store has that sweater in your size or if you're wondering if that box of cigars will arrive in time for your father's birthday, don't count on emails to solve your problems STELLAService data measuring the quality of email responses shows that the largest online retailers answer emails completely just 54% of the time.

Best Buy founder Richard Schulze is exploring taking the world’s largest electronics retailer private as he considers options that include selling his stake, according to a person familiar with the matter. Schulze, who has a 20 percent shareholding in the Richfield, Minn.-based company, is working with Credit Suisse Group AG on his plans, said the person, who asked not to be identified. The 71-year-old said in May he would step down as chairman after an internal probe found he failed to tell the board about allegations that then-CEO Brian Dunn was having an inappropriate relationship with a female employee. 

The Dick's Sporting Goods Foundation, quarterback Drew Brees and imPACT for PACE (Protecting Athletes through Concussion Education) have joined forces to help educate athletes at all levels of the dangers of concussions. Parents, coaches and school officials can visit www.DicksSportingGoods.com/PACE to sign up eligible middle, high school and youth athletic organizations to receive free ImPACT (Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing) testing software licenses, which provide baseline tests for up to 300 young athletes free of charge for one year ($500 value). 

Amazon.com wants to deliver your shaving cream to you before you run out. Or before you even realize you need more. The U.S. Patent Office recently approved Amazon's automatic replenishment system that would estimate when you will run out of your shaving cream and send you a message asking if you'd like to order it again. Obviously this goes beyond shaving cream, and could be applied to anything customers would order over and over from Amazon.

Apple Inc.  is raising hourly pay for employees at its U.S. retail stores by as much as 25 percent, following an internal review period earlier this year. Apple employs the equivalent of 36,000 full-time staffers at its more than 350 retail stores around the globe. About two-thirds of the stores are in the U.S. Apple Store workers are typically paid about $9 to $15 an hour at the sales level, and up to about $30 an hour at its "Genius" tech support teams.

Zappos.com left San Francisco way back in 2004. Since then it's become closely associated with its new home in Nevada. In fact, CEO Tony Hsieh is working to revitalize downtown Las Vegas, in part by turning it into a startup hub. At the same time, the Amazon.com-owned online retailer hasn't entirely severed its connection to the Bay Area. In 2010, it reopened an office in San Francisco, one that's focused on experimenting with cool new ideas.

The world’s virtual flea market, eBay, has set up shop in Russia. The Russian subsidiary will be headed by Vladimir Dolgov, a former Google manager in Russia, Vedomosti daily reported. eBay has been considering the Russian market since 2010, when its international shopping system eBay International Market (eIM) was launched. The platform allowed people living in Russia to search for products around the world, compare them with other products and buy them through the eIM Russian interface. 

Teen clothing retailer Abercrombie & Fitch plans to close 180 U.S. stores over the next few years as it tries to improve its financial performance. Abercrombie used to generate most of its sales in the U.S. but has shifted its focus to overseas markets such as Europe and Asia, where it's still growing. The chain has already closed 135 underperforming U.S. stores over the past two years.

Von Maur has begun construction on an expansion of its e-commerce fulfillment center to support continued growth in its web business. Projected for completion in October 2012, the expansion will add an additional 73,000 square feet to the company's current 46,000-square-foot center and create more than 50 new jobs in Davenport, Iowa over the next three years. The expansion reflects the Von Maur's successful online business, which has seen triple-digit percentage sales increases every year since 2008.

Costco may expand its operations to Europe soon, and is mulling opening stores in Germany, Italy, France and Spain. Bloomberg reports James Murphy, international executive vice president for the Issaquah,Wash.-based retailing giant, said the company hasn't decided which European country will be first for its expansion there, and the first European store won't open for the "next couple of years."