Skelly to pursue graduate degree

The Commercial Review’s city reporter is switching roles.

Rose Skelly is leaving her full-time role with the newspaper to begin attending graduate school Monday at Ball State University. She will remain on staff as a freelance reporter.

Skelly, who started as an intern in the summer of 2016, began working part-time for The CR in January 2017. She has worked full-time for the newspaper since May 2018, when she graduated with a bachelor’s degree from BSU with a double major in journalism and psychology.

She earned a second-place award for best feature writing in the 2018 Indiana Associated Press Media Editors contest.

During her undergraduate career at Ball State, she served as assistant news editor for the Ball State Daily News during the 2015-16 school year.

Skelly, a South Bend native, is pursing a master’s degree in psychology.



Back in SB

Allie Kirkman, a former intern and freelance reporter for The Commercial Review, is the new education reporter for the South Bend Tribune.

Kirkman served a summer internship with The CR in 2017 and continued writing for the newspaper as a freelance reporter through her senior year at Ball State University. She was also a summer intern for the Tribune in 2018.

She most recently worked as a reporter for The Times of Northwest Indiana.

Kirkman picked up third-place awards for The Commercial Review for best business/economic news coverage and best profile feature in the 2018 Hoosier State Press Association Better Newspaper Contest.

She joins former CR reporter Caleb Bauer as a member of the Tribune’s staff in South Bend.



Casey, Coke partner

Casey’s General Store and Coca-Cola partnered to raise more than $2.2 million for Special Olympics Ohio.

The companies partnered for a fundraiser that is projected to benefit more than 21,000 athletes.

Coca-Cola has a bottling plant in Portland, and Casey’s has locations in Fort Recovery and Geneva.



Acquisition complete

Sonoco Products Company recently completed its acquisition of Corenso Holdings America.

The acquisition, which was agreed to in May, was for a cash consideration of $110 million. It is intended to expand Sonoco’s paperboard and core converting operations, Yahoo! Finance reported.

Sonoco, which manufactures packaging products, has a facility in Portland.



Walmart improves

Walmart beat its sales expectations for the second quarter of 2019, bringing in $130.4 billion in revenue compared to an expected $130.08 billion.

The company also boosted its forecast for fiscal year 2020, Yahoo! Finance reported. It now projects sales growth at the high end of its previously guided range of between 2.5 and 3 percent.

Walmart’s e-commerce sales, which have been a point of emphasis, grew 37 percent during the second quarter. The company now has more than 2,700 grocery pick-up locations, including in Portland.



Yum! appoints CEO

David Gibbs will take over as CEO of Yum! Brands on Jan. 1.

The company, which owns Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, announced Gibbs’ appointment to replace Greg Creed, who is retiring after 25 years with Yum!. Gibbs will begin serving on the board of directors in November, the International Business Times reported.

Gibbs has been with Yum! since 1989 and has held leadership positions for KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell. He was named president of Yum! earlier this year.

“I’ve had the privilege of partnering with our franchisees to grow the three iconic brands within the Yum! Brands portfolio for over 30 years and am honored to follow in Greg’s footsteps,” Gibbs said.