Business

Frustration and worry crossed the faces of customers coming Sunday to Immokalee’s only supermarket — Winn-Dixie — after they discovered it had closed. For good. Winn-Dixie’s parking lot was mostly leaves, dust and litter blowing in the windy weather Sunday after the store closed for business Saturday. A steady stream of customers tried for much of the morning to make purchases, only to be turned away by employees.

The Fallout from the immigration raids conducted by Immigration & Customs Enforcement are beginning to take a toll on small businesses.

Starbucks said Thursday it's closing hundreds of U.S. and Canadian stores and laying off 900 nonretail employees so it can focus resources on its turnaround plan. The Seattle coffee giant wouldn't say exactly how many stores it's closing. But the company expects to end its fiscal year this Sunday with 434 fewer stores than it had at the end of June. Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol said in a letter Thursday that the company is closing stores that don't have a path to financial stability or have physical spaces that don't meet customers' expectations. Starbucks said employees will be offered transfers to other locations if possible.

Inflation has been on a lot of people’s minds. As the costs of items like household goods and clothing continue to skyrocket, many are turning to the thrift story to snag a bargain.

Small businesses have been hit hard by the increase in import prices from tariff changes in the past year. The Small Business Administration (SBA) is combatting this through its new Make Onshoring Great Again portal.

Many companies are looking to Florida to be the leader in the future of space travel. To meet this growing demand, Charlotte County is looking to expand its educational aerospace program.

When Sunseeker Resort finally opened, it was slated to be "the" tourist spot of the region. Recently, Allegiant Travel put the huge resort up for sale less than 18 months after its grand opening.

Google Executive and Entrepreneur-in-Residence at X, Clarence Wooten, literally wrote the book on how technology can help get your idea off the ground and transform it into a flourishing business.

Forever 21 has filed for bankruptcy protection for a second time as traffic in U.S. shopping malls fades and competition from online retailers like Amazon, Temu and Shein intensifies.F21 OpCo, which runs Forever 21 stores, said late Sunday that it will wind down the business in the U.S. under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection while determining if it can continue as a business with a partner, or if it will sell some or all of its assets.The company has 23 stores in Florida, with the remaining Southwest Florida outlets in the Coastland Mall in Naples and in the Mall at University Town Center in Sarasota.

Kohl’s said Friday it was closing 27 underperforming locations in 15 states by April — a fraction of its 1,150 store base — as the struggling department store chain aims to boost profitability and improve sagging sales.The announcement comes as the Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin-based chain has posted 11 consecutive quarters of sales declines. Michaels CEO and retail veteran Ashley Buchanan is set to take over as the chief executive of Kohl’s next week.