Cars have the ability to connect with apps such as Spotify or Apple Music, but what’s next for in-auto entertainment?
Volvo says it’s all about the apps.
“The best apps...making those super easy to use,” Atif Rafiq, the company’s Chief Digital Officer, told Cheddar. “That’s what we’re focused on.”
But it doesn’t stop there.
Volvo plans to make all of its fleets “at least” hybrid by 2019, an effort to build on its electric and self-driving car initiatives. The company recently announced that it will provide Uber with 24,000 XC90s, for its self-driving fleets.
Rafiq says that the Uber partnership is reflective of where the car industry is moving: autonomous driving as a service.
“We’re focused on both the consumer and these B2B markets when it comes to autonomous driving,” he said.
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/how-volvo-is-driving-innovation-in-2018).
Retailer Kohl's revealed a changeup to its business model on its investor day with plans to open 100 small format shops over the next four years and a push to bring its Sephora brand annual sales up to $2 billion — all this while facing activist investor pressure to sell the business outright. Jill Timm, Kohl's CFO, joined Cheddar to discuss the latest direction the department store chain intends to take after its latest earnings report and while navigating the calls for new ownership. "We found that we can open a hundred stores to ensure that we're reaching more customers in smaller markets," Timm said after testing the expansion plan. "We actually expect this to be a $500 million sales opportunity, and we're targeting to return over 15 percent from this investment." She also noted the company's optimism about Sephora's future growth in the next three-and-a-half years.
Bobby Berk, designer, author, and star of Netflix's "Queer Eye," joined Cheddar News to talk about his new partnership with Lowe's Hometowns, a program to help projects across the nation over five years and with $100 million in funding to give aid to selected communities. Bobby Berk nominated “My Friend’s Place”, a shelter for homeless LGBTQ teens in Los Angeles. "I was homeless when I was a teen. I left home because I had to come out, and to be able to give back to these people who are going through the same things that I went through, it just means so much," he said.
Gasoline prices are pushing even farther above $4 a gallon, the highest price that American motorists have faced since July 2008, as calls grow to ban imports of Russian oil.
In recognition of National Women’s Day, the pharmaceutical company Organon is giving all of its employees the day off. Geralyn Ritter, head of external affairs and ESG, for the women's therapeutics business, joined Cheddar News to discuss its call to action and its platform to grow awareness regarding specific health challenges women face. “We need to be more aware of the disproportionate impact that a tremendous number of stressors have on women and that includes broader global events from climate change to the tragedy unfolding in Ukraine with miles-long lines of women and children," Ritter said. "We simply have to make a decision that this is not acceptable anymore."
The investment firm of billionaire Ryan Cohen has taken a large stake in Bed Bath & Beyond and is recommending that the struggling retailer sell all or part of its business.
