Georgia

Electronics retailer TigerDirect is closing all but three of its 34 stores in the U.S. and internationally. The Miami-based company will keep serving customers online but will close its brick-and-mortar locations. The only stores it's keeping open are its flagship store in Miami, one in its technology products distribution center in Georgia and one in Puerto Rico, which has a significant business-to-business operation in that market. The 31 other stores are expected to be shuttered by the end of June. Each store that's closing is eliminating about 40 jobs, according to TigerDirect.

Home Depot has been hit with a class-action lawsuit stemming from a suspected data breach at the home improvement retailer. While one legal expert portrays the lawsuit as premature because the investigation is still under way, another says the filing was made because it's highly likely the breach will be confirmed. The lawsuit, filed Sept. 4 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, alleges that the retailer failed to meet its legal obligation to protect customers’ credit card and personal information. It also accuses Home Depot of not notifying its customers about the alleged breach.

Carter's increased its sales in 2013 for the 25th consecutive year, with both its wholesale and retail businesses reporting sales topping $1 billion. As sales continue to grow, the children's apparel and accessories retailer's distribution costs became inflated, prompting the construction of a fully automated multichannel distribution center (DC) in Braselton, Georgia that's already improved the bottom line and has yet to reach full ramp-up. In 2013, Carter's spent nearly $110 million on distribution, a number EVP and CFO Richard Westenberger hopes to trim when the new DC is fully ramped up later this year.

Thirty-two states and U.S. territories, and the federal government, will share in a $2.55 million agreement reached with Kmart, which was accused of obtaining full government reimbursements for partially filled prescriptions at the retailer's pharmacies, Georgia's attorney general's office announced Wednesday. Kmart didn't admit to any wrongdoing but agreed to pay civil damages and penalties to compensate Medicaid, Medicare and other federal healthcare programs, Attorney General Sam Olens’ office said. In a statement to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Kmart said it settled to avoid a lengthy legal battle.

Amazon.com famously started life in the "no taxes ever" column. More recently, the Bezos-driven behemoth emerged from its chrysalis with a pair of sales tax wings. Starting Sept. 1, Amazon added two states, Virginia and Georgia, to its growing stable of states in which it collects sales tax and remits it to the state. Amazon already collects sales tax in Arizona, California, Kansas, Kentucky, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Washington. Plus, Amazon taxes are coming soon to Connecticut, Massachusetts, Nevada and Indiana.

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