Customer Experience

After struggling for years to remake itself, Dell Inc. has announced it will be taken private in a deal valued at about $24.4 billion. Under the terms of the agreement, the Round Rock, Texas, company will be acquired by Dell founder and Chief Executive Michael S. Dell and global technology investment firm Silver Lake. Microsoft Corp. will invest $2 billion in the deal, a move the Redmond, Wash., company said it was undertaking to help support "the long-term success of the entire PC ecosystem.

J.C. Penney Co. is falling deeper into a rut, reporting yet another quarter of tanking sales and net loss as the department store chain struggles in its reinvention. The Plano, Texas, company reported a net loss of $552 million, or $2.51 a share, in its fiscal fourth quarter, which ended Feb. 2. During the same period a year earlier, it lost $87 million, or 41 cents a share. Revenue plunged 28.4% to $3.9 billion. Same-store sales, which track revenue at locations open at least a year and are less volatile, plummeted 31.7%.

Five Guys Burgers and Fries topped a new survey of favorite burger chains, leaving bigger chains such as McDonald's and Burger King in the dust. Market Force Information questioned 7,600 consumers, calculated the fan favorite based on total votes and then factored in the number of locations for each chain. In every region, Five Guys led the list. Overall, In-N-Out was second, followed by Fuddruckers, A&W and Smashburger. Dairy Queen ranked last in the group of 16 chains considered.

After struggling for years to remake itself, Dell Inc. has announced it will be taken private in a deal valued at about $24.4 billion. Under the terms of the agreement, the Round Rock, Texas, company will be acquired by Dell founder and Chief Executive Michael S. Dell and global technology investment firm Silver Lake. Microsoft Corp. will invest $2 billion in the deal, a move the Redmond, Wash., company said it was undertaking to help support "the long-term success of the entire PC ecosystem.

The Melt, a young Bay Area grilled cheese chain with a Silicon Valley pedigree, is betting that health-conscious Angelenos will embrace its comfort-food offerings as it expands in Southern California this month. On Dec. 15, the chain will launch in the heart of Hollywood at the intersection of Sunset Boulevard and Vine Street. Visitors who find a special password on the company's Facebook page will get a free sandwich and soup combination on opening day. The Melt will open another eatery at Figueroa and 7 th streets downtown on or before Dec. 15. Instead of food trucks, the Melt will start running two buses around Los Angeles to serve its food at roughly the same time.

J.C. Penney Co. is falling deeper into a rut, reporting yet another quarter of tanking sales and net loss as the department store chain struggles in its reinvention. The Plano, Texas, company reported a net loss of $552 million, or $2.51 a share, in its fiscal fourth quarter, which ended Feb. 2. During the same period a year earlier, it lost $87 million, or 41 cents a share. Revenue plunged 28.4% to $3.9 billion. Same-store sales, which track revenue at locations open at least a year and are less volatile, plummeted 31.7%.

William Shakespeare once wrote: "A fool thinks himself to be wise, but a wise man knows himself to be a fool. " That seems to be the guiding philosophy behind a new line of Shakespeare e-books from Sourcebooks that seeks to demystify the playwright's work. Called the Shakesperience and available through iTunes' iBookstore for $9.99 per title, the e-books use audio readings, a glossary, photos from notable performances and other tools to help student readers better understand Shakespeare's famously challenging texts.

At first blush, Ritz-Carlton , Drury Inn & Suites , Four Seasons , Hotel Indigo and Hampton Hotels might not seem to have much in common, other than being places to lay your weary head at the end of the day. Some cater to the high-thread-count crowd; others want to attract those who mind their money but also mind an uncomfortable accommodation. But according to a J.D. Power & Associates study released this month, those lodgings are "customer service champions," which focus on serving the clientele and not the other way around.

The latest survey on bank satisfaction from  J.D. Power researchers in Westlake Village has new details about how customers think fees stink and also ranks California's best-loved banks. As you might guess, they are not major U.S. financial institutions. In first place for the second year is Raboban k , a Dutch giant that has branched out into many California agricultural centers. Rabobank , a specialist in farm lending (it puts out news releases about nut sales )

Los Angeles supermarket magnate Ron Burkle went upscale with the latest addition to his portfolio: fashion retailer Barneys New York. Burkle's Yucaipa Cos. and Perry Capital took ownership of Barneys in a debt-restructuring deal, Barneys announced Monday. Perry Capital is the majority owner. The deal slashes Barneys' debt from $590 million to $50 million. “This agreement provides us with increased free cash flow that will be used to revitalize our stores, invest in Barneys.com and further enhance our customer experience at a time when our operational financial performance is very strong,” Barneys Chief Executive Mark Lee said in a statement.

Wall Street has dished up a heavy serving of doom and gloom for McDonald's Corp. in recent months as the world's largest restaurant company missed analyst expectations, suffered profit slumps and shuffled its roster of executives But the fast-food giant caught a break Monday, announcing better-than-expected November sales that gave its stock price a boost. Last month, same-store sales worldwide rose 2.4% after plunging 1.8% in October -- the first monthly slide in nine years.

The Melt, a young Bay Area grilled cheese chain with a Silicon Valley pedigree, is betting that health-conscious Angelenos will embrace its comfort-food offerings as it expands in Southern California this month. On Dec. 15, the chain will launch in the heart of Hollywood at the intersection of Sunset Boulevard and Vine Street. Visitors who find a special password on the company's Facebook page will get a free sandwich and soup combination on opening day. The Melt will open another eatery at Figueroa and 7 th streets downtown on or before Dec. 15. Instead of food trucks, the Melt will start running two buses around Los Angeles to serve its food at roughly the same time.

William Shakespeare once wrote: "A fool thinks himself to be wise, but a wise man knows himself to be a fool. " That seems to be the guiding philosophy behind a new line of Shakespeare e-books from Sourcebooks that seeks to demystify the playwright's work. Called the Shakesperience and available through iTunes' iBookstore for $9.99 per title, the e-books use audio readings, a glossary, photos from notable performances and other tools to help student readers better understand Shakespeare's famously challenging texts.

Five Guys Burgers and Fries topped a new survey of favorite burger chains, leaving bigger chains such as McDonald's and Burger King in the dust. Market Force Information questioned 7,600 consumers, calculated the fan favorite based on total votes and then factored in the number of locations for each chain. In every region, Five Guys led the list. Overall, In-N-Out was second, followed by Fuddruckers, A&W and Smashburger. Dairy Queen ranked last in the group of 16 chains considered.

LONDON -- After a chaotic and embarrassing start, the Olympic security operation wraps up this weekend without major incident or much complaint. It looks to be a face-saving ending for organizers, who were blasted in the months leading up to Games for a multitude of potential security lapses. The criticism reached its peak two weeks before the opening ceremony when the British firm picked to oversee security announced that it had not hired enough guards. The admission forced the British government to add 3,500 soldiers to the armed forces already scheduled for Olympic duty.

Add slumping profit to Best Buy's difficult first quarter: The struggling electronics retailer's net income tumbled 26% over the same period in which its CEO resigned, its chairman was replaced and its big-box store model was deemed lacking. Net income slid to $158 million, or 46 cents a share in the quarter ended May 5, down from $212 million, or 53 cents a share, during the year-earlier period. Absent restructuring charges, earnings came in at 72 cents a share. Revenue rose 2% to $11.6 billion.

Wall Street has dished up a heavy serving of doom and gloom for McDonald's Corp. in recent months as the world's largest restaurant company missed analyst expectations, suffered profit slumps and shuffled its roster of executives But the fast-food giant caught a break Monday, announcing better-than-expected November sales that gave its stock price a boost. Last month, same-store sales worldwide rose 2.4% after plunging 1.8% in October -- the first monthly slide in nine years.

Los Angeles supermarket magnate Ron Burkle went upscale with the latest addition to his portfolio: fashion retailer Barneys New York. Burkle's Yucaipa Cos. and Perry Capital took ownership of Barneys in a debt-restructuring deal, Barneys announced Monday. Perry Capital is the majority owner. The deal slashes Barneys' debt from $590 million to $50 million. “This agreement provides us with increased free cash flow that will be used to revitalize our stores, invest in Barneys.com and further enhance our customer experience at a time when our operational financial performance is very strong,” Barneys Chief Executive Mark Lee said in a statement.