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Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Mass. merges with former rival Big Sister Association of Greater Boston
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Massachusetts has merged with Big Sister Association of Greater Boston.
Photo courtesy of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Massachusetts
The sibling rivalry is finally over. Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Massachusetts has wrapped up its merger with Big Sister Association of Greater Boston after months of planning. They announced the deal's completion earlier this week, saying it would expand access to their one-on-one youth mentoring programs. The two groups had once been rivals: They faced off in court in the 2000s after the Big Brothers group added 'Big Sisters' to its name. But now, they say it's one big happy family. Big Brothers Big Sisters serves around 4,000 kids, split evenly between girls and boys, and has a budget of around $9 million, with 90 employees. At the time of the merger, Big Sister Association of Greater Boston served 350 girls, had 16 employees and a budget of around $1.5 million. Big Sister had faced some fundraising hurdles, post-pandemic, and has pared back its budget over the past two years. The two groups will operate as one out of the bigger organization's office at 184 High St. Mark O'Donnell, the chief executive, will continue to lead the combined organization. Annissa Essaibi George, a former city councilor and mayoral candidate who led Big Sister, will be a senior partnership advisor, helping with the integration. The merger was effective as of Jan. 30, with the larger nonprofit keeping the Big Brothers Big Sisters name. The organization said Big Sister's mentoring matches have all been transferred, and at least seven staffers from Big Sister have joined Big Brothers Big Sisters. 'This merger ... will help us to expand girls' programming outside of Boston and help to further our collective impact across the region,' O'Donnell said in a statement, 'to ensure young people have consistent access to mentorship.' — JON CHESTO
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RETAIL
Walmart rolled through 2024, but uncertainty about consumers and tariffs seep into year ahead
A Walmart store in Martinez, Calif., on Feb. 4.
David Paul Morris/Bloomberg
Walmart delivered another year of strong sales and profits as its competitive prices became a strong magnet for inflation-weary shoppers. Yet, uncertainty about the state of the American consumer and the potential impact of tariffs have seeped into expectations for 2025. The financial outlook from nation's largest retailer, which has thrived amid stubborn inflation, delivered a jolt across the retail sector. Walmart sees per share profit over the next year coming in as much as 27 cents below analyst projections, a notable shift that sent company shares down more than 6 percent at the opening bell. Its sales outlook was also mild, potentially a reflection of challenges ahead as consumers pull back on spending and President Trump's tariffs on China and other countries threaten the low-price model that is the core of Walmart's success. During an interview with the Associated Press Thursday, Walmart's chief financial officer John David Rainey said shoppers remain resilient while cautious, but there is no apparent change in behavior related to tariffs. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
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DEI
Pepsi joins companies retreating from DEI in Trump era
Pepsi soda bottles are on display for sale on Feb. 5, 2021, in Dallas.
LM Otero/Associated Press
PepsiCo Inc. is the latest company to dial back its diversity, equity and inclusion programs as President Trump's push to purge DEI ripples through corporate America. The company will abandon workforce representation targets, no longer have a dedicated chief DEI officer, and expand its supplier diversity program to include all small businesses, among other changes, according to a memo from Chief Executive Ramon Laguarta. He said the company had been refining its approach over the past year 'to ensure it is aligned with our long-term business strategy, responsive to local markets, and focused on the principles that drive sustainable growth.' — BLOOMBERG NEWS
MEDIA
Fox News, CNN, other news outlets urge White House to drop ban on the AP
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt took questions during a briefing for reporters at the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington on Jan. 31.
ERIC LEE/NYT
Dozens of major news organizations, including CNN, The Washington Post, and Fox News, wrote to the White House this week urging the Trump administration to immediately lift its ban on The Associated Press, which had been prohibited from attending a number of official press events over the past week. The White House has said it is blocking reporters from the news service because the outlet refers to the Gulf of Mexico in its articles, rather than 'Gulf of America,' as decreed by President Trump in an executive order on Jan. 20. The letter, which was coordinated by the White House Correspondents' Association and delivered on Monday, was signed by 40 outlets. It said the decision to bar the AP was 'an escalation of a dispute that does not serve the presidency or the public.' 'The First Amendment prohibits the government from asserting control over how news organizations make editorial decisions,' the letter said. 'Any attempt to punish journalists for those decisions is a serious breach of this constitutional protection.' — NEW YORK TIMES
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MANUFACTURING
Boeing CEO says Musk helping speed troubled Air Force One jets
President Trump boarded Air Force One at Palm Beach International Airport in West Palm Beach, Fla., on Feb. 16.
AL DRAGO/NYT
Boeing Co.'s chief executive officer said Elon Musk and his DOGE team are helping the planemaker work through bottlenecks that have caused the next fleet of Air Force One jets to fall years behind schedule. 'He's able to pretty quickly ascertain the difference between technical requirements and things that we can move out of the way,' Kelly Ortberg, Boeing's CEO, said of Musk during a Barclays conference. 'I'm all in on trying to get these airplanes up and get the president his airplanes delivered to him, which is what he wants,' Ortberg said. President Trump has repeatedly criticized the planemaker for failing to deliver the jets on time. Trump this week warned that he 'may have to go a different route' than the two highly customized Boeing 747-8 jets that were ordered to much fanfare during his first term in office. The first of the jumbo jets was supposed to be delivered by 2024, but is running at least three years behind schedule. — BLOOMBERG NEWS
FASHION
Can sandals be art? Birkenstock says yes, but a German court says no.
A Birkenstock sandal is pictured in Birkenstock store in Frankfurt, Germany, on Oct. 4, 2023.
Michael Probst/Associated Press
Birkenstocks: They are ubiquitous in summer, comfy, and very German. Sometimes they look chic and sometimes shabby. But can these sandals be considered art? That's the question Germany's Federal Court of Justice wrestled with Thursday, and it ruled they're just comfy footwear. Birkenstock, which is headquartered in Linz am Rhein, Germany, and says its tradition of shoemaking goes back to 1774, filed a lawsuit against three competitors who sold sandals that were very similar to its own. The shoe manufacturer claimed its sandals 'are copyright-protected works of applied art' that may not be imitated. Under German law, works of art enjoy stronger and longer-lasting intellectual property protections than consumer products. The company asked for an injunction to stop its competitors from making copycat sandals and order them to recall and destroy those already on the market. The defendant companies were not identified in the court statement. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
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The Hill
27 minutes ago
- The Hill
Bessent rips Pelosi, calls for single-stock trading ban in Congress
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called for a ban on lawmakers trading individual stocks, taking a shot at former Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) in the process. 'I am going to start pushing for a single-stock trading ban, because it is the credibility of the House and the Senate,' Bessent said on Bloomberg TV on Wednesday. 'You look at some of these eye-popping returns — whether it is Rep. Pelosi, Sen. Wyden — every hedge fund would be jealous of them. And the American people deserve better than this,' Bessent added. His comments come as momentum for a ban on members of Congress trading individual stocks has ramped up amid increasing public scrutiny of stock trades. Current law prohibits insider trading by lawmakers and requires more disclosures, but critics say the law does not go far enough. 'People shouldn't come to Washington to get rich, they should come to serve the American people, and it brings down trust in the system because I can tell you that if any private citizen traded this way, the [Securities and Exchange Commission] would be knocking on their door,' Bessent said. Pelosi has come under arguably the most scrutiny for highly successful trades made by her husband Paul Pelosi, which she is required to report in financial disclosures. Pelosi spokesperson Ian Krager told The Hill in response to Bessent: 'Speaker Pelosi does not own any stocks and has no knowledge or subsequent involvement in any transactions.' She has also endorsed a bill that advanced in the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee last month that would bar not only members, their spouses, and their dependent children from buying and trading stocks, but also the president and vice president. Since the requirement would not apply until the start of the elected officials' next terms, it would exempt President Trump if enacted. Trump has said he would support a stock trade ban, but he attacked Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) for his support of the bill. Hawley later said Trump was under the mistaken impression it would apply to him. Over in the House, members of both parties have called for stock trade bans, with Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) pledging to start a discharge petition to force a vote on another stock trade ban bill. Wyden's stock portfolio, meanwhile, saw a stunning 123.8 percent gain in 2024, according to data from the financial analysis platform Unusual Whales reported in the Salem Business Journal. Wyden's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It's not only Democrats who have come under scrutiny for stock trading, though. A report from the House Ethics Committee last month found that Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Pa.) violated the lower chamber's code of conduct when his wife traded stocks for a company in Kelly's district after the congressman learned nonpublic information about the firm. And Rep. Rob Bresnahan (R-Pa.) has caught heat for continuing to trade stocks despite saying he wants to ban member stock trading. Bresnahan has introduced a stock trading ban bill and says that he has no involvement with the trades that his financial advisers have made on his behalf. While he has said he wants to keep his current financial advisers and create a blind trust that would put a more stringent firewall between him and those trades, he has found problems in crafting that plan with the House Ethics Committee.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Sonoma Pharmaceuticals Announces Launch of Diaper Rash Product in Walmart and other U.S. Chains
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Chicago Tribune
an hour ago
- Chicago Tribune
Amazon expands its perishable delivery service, putting pressure on traditional grocers
NEW YORK — Amazon is now rolling out a service where its Prime members can order their blueberries and milk at the same time as basic items like batteries and T-shirts and get them within hours. The online juggernaut said Wednesday that customers in more than 1,000 cities and towns including Raleigh, North Carolina; Milwaukee; and Columbus, Ohio, now have access to fresh groceries with its free same-day delivery service on orders over $25 for Prime members, with plans to reach over 2,300 cities and towns by year-end. Amazon called the move 'one of the most significant grocery expansions' for the online retailer as it introduces thousands of perishable items into its existing logistics network. The expansion is expected to put pressure on grocery delivery services offered by such rivals as Walmart, Kroger and Target, which all saw their shares take a hit in trading Wednesday. Amazon's shares rose 1%. Amazon said that if an order doesn't meet the minimum, members can still choose same-day delivery for a $2.99 fee. For customers without a Prime membership, the service is available with a $12.99 fee, regardless of order size. In the past, Prime subscribers' grocery orders were fulfilled through Amazon Fresh or Whole Foods Market. Prime members pay $14.99 monthly or $139 annually. Amazon launched its Prime membership in 2005, and it has become the gold standard for subscription services with a slew of perks including unlimited streaming with Prime Video and discounts at Whole Foods and Amazon Fresh. Walmart, which launched its membership program called Walmart + in 2020, has been racing to add more benefits. It costs $12.95 per month or $98 per year. Depending on members' location and availability, Walmart members can schedule same-day delivery for their groceries, including perishables. 'We're continuously innovating to make grocery shopping simpler, faster, and more affordable for our customers, especially Prime members,' said Doug Herrington, CEO of Worldwide Amazon Stores, in a statement. 'By introducing fresh groceries into our Same-Day Delivery service, we're creating a quick and easy experience for customers. ' Herrington noted that customers can order milk alongside electronics; oranges, apples, and potatoes with a mystery novel; and frozen pizza at the same time as tools for their next home improvement project—and check out with one cart and have everything delivered to their doorstep within hours. The company first tested the service in Phoenix, last year, and then added Orlando, Florida and Kansas City, Missouri, earlier this year. Amazon noted that many of its customers were first-time Amazon grocery shoppers who now return to shop twice as often with the same-day deliver service compared to those who didn't purchase food. It also noted that based on early sales, strawberries now regularly knock AirPods out of the top five best sellers of all products sold, while bananas, Honeycrisp apples, limes, and avocados round out the top ten best-selling perishable grocery items in their same-day delivery carts. 'It's a nice step forward,' said Jason Goldberg, chief commerce strategy officer at Publicis Groupe, a global marketing and communications company. 'It definitely makes them more competitive' in perishables. Goldberg noted that Amazon has struggled to succeed in fresh food and that shoppers have been confused ordering shelf stable items and perishables, and having them appear in different online shopping carts, including Amazon Fresh. He said this move will greatly improve the experience. Amazon said it generated over $100 billion in gross sales of groceries and household essentials last year not including sales from Whole Foods Market and Amazon Fresh. In June, Amazon said it was investing more than $4 billion to triple the size of its delivery network by 2026, with a focus on small towns and rural communities across the country. It also noted that it's using artificial intelligence to help it predict local customer preferences so it can stock popular items alongside items targeted for specific communities
