Retail sales increase again in May as consumers continue to fuel economy
Retail sales in May increased  0.4% from April and were up 4.4% year over year, according to the National Retail Federation, whose calculation excludes automobile dealers, gasoline stations and restaurants to focus on core retail sales.

Shoe company Rockport files for bankruptcy for second time in 5 years
Rockport claims liabilities and assets of $50 million to $100 million and says it owes its top five creditors– all vendors or suppliers — nearly $47 million.

Pilot Co. completes 80-plus remodels under new horizons initiative
Pilot Co. recently added two new travel centers in California and Texas and completed more than 80 store remodels as part of its $1 billion New Horizons initiative.

Bank of America to enter 7 new markets for retail banking
The nation’s second-largest bank is set to reach 90 of the nation’s top 100 markets by the end of 2025 and muscle in on deposit share in cities like Milwaukee and New Orleans.

Kroger (KR) experienced a slight increase in total sales during the initial months of the year, reaching $45.2 billion, which was slightly higher than the $44.6 billion recorded in Q1 2022. This represented a year-over-year sales growth of 3.5%. The company achieved an operating profit of nearly $1.5 billion in Q1, and its adjusted EPS for the quarter amounted to $1.51 billion.