Mergers & Acquisitions

Furniture and kitchenware giant Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (WSI) is acquiring augmented reality (AR) startup Outward in an all-cash deal for $112 million. The furniture brand, which operates stores including Williams-Sonoma, Pottery Barn, West Elm and others, will be using the startup’s 3-D imaging tech to “enhance and extend its high-touch customer service platform,” the company says. Outward, founded…

Analysts and conspiracy theorists alike have officially dubbed 2017 as “the year of the retail apocalypse.” Although retail has already undergone and will continue to undergo major shifts as we move into 2018, the doom and gloom picture painted by many actually tells the story of retail metamorphosis rather than the end of retail. Metamorphosis…

A.C. Moore, the arts-and-crafts retailer, announced today that it has acquired e-commerce company Blitsy and invested in handcraft marketplace Zibbet to boost its digital capacity. The two major investments are to boost the company’s online reach and sales, said Anthony Piperno, chief marketing and merchandising officer at A.C. Moore. Piperno said both deals were completed last week.…

CVS Health has proposed to buy health insurer Aetna for $200 a share or more, according to news reports. If the deal goes through,  CVS would become the first healthcare triple threat: a pharmacy, a pharmacy benefit manager and an insurer. The Wall Street Journal first reported the proposed deal. Acquiring Aetna would give CVS…

Walgreens plans to close about 600 drugstores as it completes a $4.38 billion deal to buy nearly 2,000 from rival Rite Aid. Company spokesman Michael Polzin said Wednesday that most of the closings will be Rite Aid stores, and the vast majority will be within a mile of another store in the Walgreens network. The store closings…

The top three executives at HSN Inc. will step down after the retailer is acquired by Liberty Interactive Group, the parent company of HSN rival QVC. Bill Brand, Rod Little and Judy Schmeling, who served as co-CEOs at HSN for the past several months, won’t be staying on after the $2.1 billion stock deal closes, according…

Office Depot said Tuesday it has agreed to acquire CompuCom, an IT provider for small to midsized businesses. The move gives 8 percent of Office Depot’s shares to Boston-based private equity firm Thomas H. Lee Partners. CompuCom, which is headquartered in Texas, has about $1.1 billion in annual sales. Office Depot will acquire CompuCom from Thomas H.…

Ace Hardware has acquired a majority stake in The Grommet, an e-commerce startup that brings to market products from independent entrepreneurs and emerging companies, officials announced Tuesday. Launched in 2008, The Grommet has worked with more than 2,500 inventors, entrepreneurs and small businesses to launch dozens of household products and brands on its website. FitBit, IdeaPaint,…

Ikea, the Swedish home goods retailer, said on Thursday that it had agreed to acquire TaskRabbit, a sharing economy on-demand platform that connects consumers with skilled “Taskers” to handle everyday needs such as furniture assembly, moving and packing, general handyman work, and home improvements. Ikea declined to say how much it would pay for the…

Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s finalized their merger this week, announcing the completion of a $4.2 billion deal to combine the two outdoor retailers. Springfield, Missouri-based Bass Pro Shops, which also owns boat maker White River Marine Group and outdoor-themed resorts, has said it will continue to operate Cabela’s as a standalone brand. The deal…