RETAIL

Government officials, construction workers and company representatives gathered on Tuesday to break ground on EMBR Dispensary.

A developer has purchased the property and plans to demolish the building and replace it with a more modern space. For those who still have stores there, or continue to visit, it is the end of an era.

"Dear Mister Ward" is a collection of unearthed letters from almost 100 years ago, written to the complaint department of Montgomery Ward, a full-service mail-order catalog, the Amazon of its time. They recently were read aloud by actors at a theater in western Massachusetts.

If the votes are certified Trader Joe's in Hadley, Massachusetts, would be the first of the chain's locations in the country to unionize.

Many businesses, including retail stores, have shuttered since the start of the pandemic, continuing the tough times for brick-and-mortar stores. This past week another joined the list — A.J. Hastings, a store in Amherst, Massachusetts, selling stationary, books, gifts and more. Commentator Martha Ackmann thinks much more than a store has been lost.

The store will be in Tower Square in a space previously occupied by a CVS pharmacy.

Last week, the mayor of Greenfield announced she's lifting the city's indoor mask mandate. The town of Amherst still has one in place.

Liquor stores say they have met a key hurdle to launching a ballot measure to counter efforts by big chains to eliminate limits on the number of stores that can alcohol in Massachusetts. The ballot measure would double the number of liquor licenses that can be held by a single company.

Joining a heated political fight that could decide pay and benefits for more than 200,000 gig economy workers, U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Wednesday…

The rollout of New York’s new cannabis policies has new life after the state Legislature confirmed appointments to oversee the regulatory process last...