Ulta-gains: Ulta Beauty has slowed down a little, but the cosmetics chain, which opened its second Baton Rouge location in March, is still a front-runner in the retail world, Bloomberg reports. Ulta reported Thursday that its comparable sales rose 8.1% in the first quarter from a year earlier. The increase was driven by a 48% increase in digital sales as well as 5.1% growth in transactions and a 3% increase in average ticket. The chain has been adding stores at a breakneck pace, and now has almost twice the number of stores it had five years ago. Read the fill story.
Building up: U.S. construction spending surged 1.8% to a record high in April as home building rose by the largest amount in 24 years. The April gain reversed a 1.7% drop in March, the Commerce Department reported Friday, according to The Associated Press. The strength stemmed from a sizable 4.5 % rise in residential construction, the biggest percentage gain since November 1993. Non-residential construction rose by a more modest 0.8% while spending on government projects fell 1.3% as both the federal government and state and local governments saw declines. The overall gain pushed construction to an all-time high of $1.31 trillion at a seasonally adjusted annual rate, 7.6% above the level of a year ago. Read the full story.
Overtime abuse: State officials released an audit Thursday that found the Louisiana Highway Safety Commission was clocking hundreds of hours in excessive overtime, misusing thousands of state and federal dollars, allowing unauthorized travel expenses and failing to properly track employee leave. The audit, which examined the commission’s finances from July 2016 to August 2017, was released to The Advocate in response to a public records request. In the audit, the state Department of Public Safety said the commission had an alarming rate of turnover. It also outlined 15 “areas of concern.” However, state police reviewed the audit and determined there was insufficient evidence to pursue criminal charges, police spokesman Maj. Doug Cain said. Read the full story.
