August 11, 2025

  • Claire’s is actively seeking a buyer as it navigates its second bankruptcy. The company said it has received multiple letters of intent, with the deadline for a buyer to acquire the company tentatively set at Aug. 31 (via CNBC).
  • U.S. total retail sales improved in July, moving upward by 1.45% month-over-month and 5.89% versus the year prior, per CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor data (via Chain Store Age).
  • Ford has announced a $2 billion investment in its Louisville, Kentucky plant, largely centered around plans to produce a family of lower-cost EV trucks (via The Verge).
  • Adidas has formally apologized after criticism launched by Mexico’s president, Claudia Sheinbaum, targeted its production of a shoe which replicated traditional Indigenous huarache sandals without attribution or credit to artisans (via Reuters).
  • Goldman Sachs analysts project that CPI inflation will come in at 2.8% for July, up from 2.7% reported the month prior. Core inflation is anticipated to register at 3.08%, trending upward from 2.9% marked the month prior (via FOX Business).
  • Back-to-school shoppers are expecting to spend the same, or more, than they had in 2024, a Bread Financial survey suggests. More than half of survey respondents (53%) indicated as much (via Chain Store Age).
  • Tesla has made an application to U.K. energy regulator Ofgem, hoping to supply electricity to households in the United Kingdom (via CNN Business).
  • Gen AI is slated to be a major player in frictionless checkout, within the ChatGPT or Perplexity ecosystems first, according to experts. This could represent a “seismic shift” in e-commerce (via CNBC).
  • Stitch Fix appears to be poised to engage in a potentially successful turnaround effort, returning to growth recently. Despite the customer count decline, average order value has grown for seven consecutive quarters (via CNBC).