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Puget Sound Business Journal
REI adds former CEOs to its board
Former Fanatics CEO Doug Mack and former High Ridge Brands CEO Patricia Lopez have joined the board of REI Co-op, the Seattle area-based outdoor retailer, effective Tuesday. <\p> Their election in May brings the co-op's board total to 10 members.<\p>
Big name joins Amazon rivals with launch of Prime Day-style sale
A slew of e-commerce rivals will join Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN) in chasing after bargain hunters in July, as TikTok adds its name to the growing list of companies offering multiday sale bonanzas. <\p> Amazon announced Monday that it will hold its annual Prime Day event July 16-17. Its largest e-commerce competitor, Walmart Inc., announced the same day that it will hold a sales event the week before Amazon's, July 8-11.<\p>
Battery tech company raises $375M to finish WA plant
Sila is raising major cash to finish its plant in Moses Lake.<\p> The Alameda, California-based battery tech company on Thursday announced a $375 million funding round. Sila said the money will help it finish its factory in the first quarter of next year, allowing Sila to deliver to auto customers in late 2025.<\p>
Many managers are posting fake jobs. One reason may surprise you.
Employers are turning to fake job listings as a means of boosting staff morale in the current unsettled hiring market, but those ghost postings could have consequences. <\p> That’s according to a recent Resume Builder survey, which found 40% of 649 hiring managers surveyed have posted a fake job listing in the past year. Three in 10 responded they have an active fake-job posting. <\p>
Kirkland-based retail startup outlines plans for public launch
After announcing a $50 million seed round on Thursday, Daydream has big plans for its retail platform and its presence in Kirkland.<\p> Co-founder and Chief Product Officer Dan Cary said the artificial intelligence startup raised such a large seed round because the company is developing a new shopping experience, and the first impression needs to be strong.<\p>
Back-to-office order affects some at Seattle City Hall
Starting Monday over 100 white-collar workers at Seattle City Hall were back in their offices for most of the week by order of City Council President Sara Nelson.<\p> The callback of legislative staffers was announced April 2, giving people time to adjust from a two-day-a-week requirement.<\p>
Idaho investment company scoops up First Hill tower at steep discount
An apartment tower on Seattle's First Hill managed by residential hospitality operator Sentral has sold for $76.25 million, or nearly $20 million less than what it traded for five years ago, per public records.<\p> The 17-story, 209-unit asset at 1001 Minor Ave. is the first acquisition in the Seattle region for Boise, Idaho-based investment company Roundhouse, said Roundhouse Vice President Garrett Greene. The company views the tower as a long-term hold, and it will continue to operate as Sentral First Hill, he added.<\p>
GM names Seattle tech veteran to lead embattled self-driving car unit
General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) has chosen a Seattle-area tech veteran with decades of product experience to lead Cruise, its embattled self-driving vehicle company. <\p> Marc Whitten, who was most recently the chief product and technology officer for a division at Unity Software Inc., will become Cruise's CEO on July 16, the company announced in a blog post Tuesday. <\p>
Seattle legal tech startup lands funding to expand hiring
Seattle-based legal tech startup Clearbrief has raised $4 million.<\p> The new funding, announced Wednesday, adds to a $1.2 million seed round Clearbrief raised in 2021. The company makes a Microsoft Word add-on that allows users to find and insert facts that support their legal writing.<\p>
Medina mansion trades hands for the second time in 14 months
Carolina Dybeck Happe, former senior vice president and chief financial officer at General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE), bought a home in Medina for $17.5 million last week, according to King County sales records.<\p> Happe stepped down as CFO of GE in September 2023 after four years in that role. She remained at GE to help with the transition until April, according to her LinkedIn profile. <\p>
James Beard nominee shifts gears after closing acclaimed WA restaurant
A restaurant that The New York Times called one of the 50 best in America in 2023 has closed, at least temporarily. <\p> James Beard-nominated chef Mike Easton has closed Bar Bacetto in the Eastern Washington town of Waitsburg as he opens a pizzeria in nearby Walla Walla and prepares to take over as executive chef at the Abeja winery on July 1. <\p>
Visa, Mastercard 'swipe' fee settlement dealt a big blow
A nearly $30 billion settlement involving U.S. retailers and credit card giants Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc. has been dealt a blow after a judge said it was unlikely she would approve the deal.<\p> During a June 13 hearing on preliminary approval of the proposed settlement involving “swipe” fees, U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of New York Margo Brodie said she was unlikely to sign off on the deal. Brodie issued a written order on the case on June 25, and while the order itself was sealed, the accompanying memorandum on the court docket stated that the "court finds that it is not likely to grant final approval to the Settlement and accordingly denies Plaintiffs' motion for preliminary settlement approval."<\p>
‘Lock-in effect’ restricts homeowners despite inventory improvements
A U.S. housing market that continues to see home-price appreciation, paired with higher-for-longer mortgage rates, may prolong the lock-in effect that's stymied inventory the past couple of years.<\p> Many housing economists predicted 2024 would see more relief for homebuyers by way of greater inventory and households more willing to sell their homes after being tethered to record-low mortgage rates obtained during the Covid-19 pandemic.<\p>
Urban Renaissance Group CEO prepares to step down
Urban Renaissance Group founder and CEO Pat Callahan plans to step into a new role that includes continued service on the real estate company's board as he does more public policy work around safety and security.<\p> URG President and Chief Investment Officer Matthew Simo, who has been with the company since it launched in 2006, will take over as CEO when the transition occurs at the end of the year.<\p>
Investor acquires outdoor storage property in Sumner
Real estate investment company Realterm expanded its South Sound industrial portfolio last week with its acquisition of an outdoor industrial storage site in the Kent Valley.<\p> Annapolis, Maryland-based Realterm, which focuses on transportation properties, paid $9.8 million for the site at 805 140th Ave. Court E. in Sumner. The 4.3-acre property includes a 12,700-square-foot maintenance shop and 6,100 square feet of office space.<\p>
Hotel company enters Seattle market with new office
A U.S. hotel company expanding to the West Coast is planting its flag in the Seattle market.<\p> St. Louis-based Midas Hospitality has hired local hotel executive Kimberly O'Fallon to lead its West Coast projects as senior vice president of operations and marketing in its new Seattle office. O'Fallon most recently worked as chief operating officer of Kent-based InnVentures, a third-party hotel management company. <\p>
Heritage Bank names replacement for departing CEO
Olympia-based Heritage Financial Corp. (Nasdaq: HFWA) and its subsidiary Heritage Bank on Tuesday named a new CEO.<\p> Bryan McDonald, who has been the bank's chief operating officer since 2018, will take over the bank's CEO role July 1. He is replacing Jeffrey Deuel, who has worked at Heritage Bank for more than 14 years.<\p>
King County OKs crisis centers plan, but now comes the hard part
The King County Council last week unanimously approved a plan to implement the voter-approved $1.2 billion property tax levy, which funds five walk-in, open-around-the clock crisis care centers and other mental health treatment programs.<\p> The ordinance that sent the levy to the ballot last year requires at least one center in each of the four "crisis response zones" — central, north, east and south. Treatment at a fifth will be tailored to youth care.<\p>
Seattle Art Museum names Oklahoma museum director as CEO
Seattle Art Museum has chosen Scott Stulen as its new director and CEO, the museum announced Tuesday. He'll begin on Aug. 26, roughly 10 months after his predecessor, Amada Cruz, left.<\p> Stulen is joining SAM from the Philbrook Museum of Art in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he was president and CEO for the past eight years. Before that he was the inaugural curator of audience experiences and performance at the Indianapolis Museum of Art.<\p>
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