Mar 15, 2017 - Economy & Business

Walmart said to acquire online women's retailer ModCloth

Jae C. Hong / AP

Jet, a online division of Walmart, has acquired ModCloth, an online retailer of women's fashion known for its quirky vintage aesthetic, as Jezebel first reported.

Despite having been around for 15 years, ModCloth has reportedly struggled to make a profit and raise additional funding on top of the nearly $80 million it's raised in total. It's unclear how much Walmart paid for the company.

Why it matters: This latest acquisition is helping to paint a picture of Jet's—and by extension, Walmart's—strategy for online retail. Instead of building out every possible category in-house, Jet and Walmart are looking to cobble together specialized retailers with their own brands. Prior to its sale to Walmart in September, Jet acquired online furniture seller Hayneedle, and has since added shoe seller ShoeBuy and outdoor apparel retailer Moosejaw.

Go deeper

Axios
Updated 37 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

  1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 8 a.m. ET: 32,595,105 — Total deaths: 989,663 — Total recoveries: 22,508,651 — Map.
  2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 8 a.m. ET: 7,034,432 — Total deaths: 203,789 — Total recoveries: 2,727,335 — Total tests: 99,483,712 — Map.
  3. States: "We’re not closing anything going forward": Florida fully lifts COVID restaurant restrictions — Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam tests positive for coronavirus.
  4. Health: Young people accounted for 20% of cases this summer.
  5. Business: Coronavirus has made airports happier places — The expiration of Pandemic Unemployment Assistance looms.
  6. Education: Where bringing students back to school is most risky.
Go deeper (<1 min. read)Arrow
Mike Allen, author of AM
14 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Biden pushes unity message in new TV wave

A fresh Joe Biden ad, "New Start," signals an effort by his campaign to make unity a central theme, underscoring a new passage in his stump speech that says he won't be a president just for Democrats but for all Americans.

What he's saying: The ad — which began Friday night, and is a follow-up to "Fresh Start" — draws from a Biden speech earlier in the week in Manitowoc, Wisconsin:

Go deeper (1 min. read)Arrow
Jonathan Swan, Alayna Treene, Sam Baker
14 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Trump prepares to announce Amy Coney Barrett as Supreme Court replacement

Judge Amy Coney Barrett. Photo: Matt Cashore/Notre Dame University via Reuters

President Trump is preparing to nominate federal appeals court Judge Amy Coney Barrett of Indiana, a favorite of both the social conservative base and Republican elected officials, to succeed Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Republican sources tell Axios.

Why it matters: Barrett would push the already conservative court further and harder to the right, for decades to come, on the most important issues in American politics — from abortion to the limits of presidential power. If confirmed, she would give conservatives a 6-3 majority on the high court.

Go deeper (1 min. read)Arrow