Business

Fans of fresh bread, rejoice. Kneads Bakeshop, the Harbor East bakery and cafe, plans to open a second location at the Village of Cross Keys later this year, according to a press release from Caves Valley Partners. The Cross Keys location will be a 1,300-square-foot grab-and-go bakery and coffee shop, significantly smaller than the 17,000-square-foot flagship.

American Airlines has raised the price to check a bag for the first time in more than five years and said it would limit which travel agency bookings are eligible to earn frequent flyer miles. Passengers will pay $35 to check a first bag for domestic flights if the service is booked online in advance, or $40 if they purchase the option at the airport, the carrier said Tuesday.

The year 2023 was a dynamic one for businesses across all sectors. Artificial intelligence went from a novel technology to a more widely utilized business productivity tool. Many companies invested additional resources in sustainable business practices. And digital business solutions helped companies thrive. Here are predictions for what current and emerging trends will further shape businesses in 2024.

Capital One Financial is set to acquire Discover Financial Services in a $35.3 billion all-stock deal. Under the agreement, Discover shareholders would receive 1.0192 Capital One shares for each Discover share or about a 26% premium from Discover’s Friday closing price of $110.49. The companies said they expect the deal to close in late 2024 or early 2025, after which Capital One shareholders would hold 60% and Discover shareholders would own 40% of the combined company.

A trio of executives — including a former Baltimore Ravens player — are teaming up to build a venture capital fund with a business model tailor-made for an era when capital is harder and harder to find. The Tiger Fund is the creation of former Ravens player and Super Bowl champion Kyle Richardson, Patrick McQuown, Towson University’s executive director of entrepreneurship, and venture capitalist Alfred Ko of the StepStone Group, a fund with $139 billion of assets under management. The group plans to raise at least $2 million through institutional and retail investors before investing any money.

Gov. Wes Moore (D) said Friday that one of the biggest challenges that manufacturers are facing in Montgomery County and elsewhere in the state is a shortage of skilled workers—an issue that his administration is focused on tackling. “Right now, in the state of Maryland, there are two available jobs for every single person filing for unemployment,” Moore said.

A small Anne Arundel County community is the best market for first-time homebuyers in Greater Baltimore, according to a new analysis by Realtor.com. Riviera Beach, a small census-designated place south of Baltimore, ranks high on the site’s evaluation of friendly markets in the region. Riviera Beach’s median home prices have stayed manageable compared to those in the region and across the country. The median home price in the community between December 2022 and November 2023 was $264,079, well below Greater Baltimore’s median price of $360,172.

Corporate America has a message for Wall Street: It’s serious about cutting costs this year. From toy and cosmetics makers to office software sellers, executives across sectors have announced layoffs and other plans to slash expenses — even at some companies that are turning a profit. Barbie maker Mattel, PayPal, Cisco,
Nike, Estée Lauder and Levi Strauss are just a few of the firms that have cut jobs in recent weeks.