General Motors said it plans to invest more than $1 billion to re-tool two manufacturing sites in Flint, MI, to prepare for a new generation of its internal combustion engine heavy-duty (HD) trucks. GM has outlined this year a total of $1.7 billion in investments in Flint facilities to support the next generation of its heavy-duty pickups... Volvo Cars posted a 31% rise in sales in May vs. a year earlier, selling 60,398 cars. The 31% rise comes after a strained 2022, when the company, like other automakers, felt the effects of persistent pandemic lockdowns in China, chip shortages and other supply constraints that hampered production.
Bed Bath & Beyond’s sibling retail brand, Buy Buy Baby, has attracted an as-yet-unnamed bidder that would reportedly seek to keep about three-quarters of the baby gear brand’s 120 stores up and running. Another potential bid comes from baby registry website Babylist, which is interested in purchasing the Buy Buy Baby trademark and domain... Consumers are increasingly interested in workwear that is both functional and fashionable, prompting brands to collaborate on new collections. Timberland recently partnered with performance-wear brand icebreaker for a men’s and women’s collection featuring icebreaker’s sustainable, ethically sourced materials and Timberland’s urban workwear style... The Fresh Market has rolled out a Shoppable Video-Live Commerce retail media network in partnership with Firework that allows brands to purchase video ads on the grocer’s livestream series, which showcases videos on topics like holiday meal tutorials and recipes from chefs. Firework’s platform also enables The Fresh Market to bring shoppable videos to its app, website, and emails.
Sonic and Applebee’s franchisee SSCP Management will acquire 138-unit fast-casual chain Corner Bakery Cafe for $15 million, plus some assumed liabilities. SSCP, which also owns pizza chain CiCi’s and upscale casual chain Roy’s, was the winning bidder for Corner Bakery in a bankruptcy auction... Almost two years into his reign as CEO of Qurate Retail — parent company of QVC, HSN and other brands that sold $5.2 billion in home goods last year — David Rawlinson is tapping streaming to modernize the two shopping networks. Rawlinson has hired a former Amazon Prime Video executive to bring to life his forecast of growth in social media and live streaming video commerce featuring influencers, product demonstrations and strong, personalized customer connections... Dave & Buster’s Entertainment, the big-box food and games brand, has launched a new marketing platform for the summer months, aimed at adult customers. The brand said it is retiring its former tagline, “Ding, Ding, Ding!,” for the new “You Know You Want To.” As part of the new campaign, Dave & Buster’s is launching “The Dave & Buster’s Method,” a program designed to help adults unlearn what they thought they knew about adulthood and reprioritize what truly makes them happy, a spokesperson said.