Retail

Equestrian products retailer Dover Saddlery of Littleton has merged with a company formed by Webster Capital, a private equity firm in Waltham.

The parent companies of Hannaford Supermarkets and Stop & Shop have reached a merger agreement, the companies said Wednesday.

Shareholders of Office Depot on Friday overwhelmingly approved Staples' bid to buy its chief rival in the retail office supplies market, clearing the way for final regulatory approvals of the $6.3-billion deal.

The DCU Center retail space on Commercial Street formerly used as the pro shop of the Worcester Sharks will soon house Worcester Wares, a sell of “all things Worcester,” according to the DCU Center.

Staples has cleared another foreign regulatory hurdle for its intended acquisition of Office Depot, securing approval from the Chinese government, the Framingham-based office supplies retailer said Friday.

The TJX Cos. of Framingham will pay out a quarterly stock dividend of 21 cents per share, the parent company of off-price retailers T.J. Maxx, HomeGoods and Marshalls announced Friday.

Armed with $3.9 million in local and state incentives for real estate expansion, The Potpourri Group Inc. (PGI), a multi-channel catalog company, has kicked off a 450,000-square foot expansion project in Littleton, where it will relocate its call center and consolidate shipping operations.

The Shops at the Pond, a strip mall adjacent to Solomon Pond Mall, has been sold to a real estate developer that continues to expand its New England presence.

Staples' bid to buy its chief rival, Office Depot, has received regulatory clearance from the government of New Zealand, the Framingham-based office supply retailer announced Friday.

Cumberland Gulf Group's fuel business, Gulf Oil LP of Framingham, issued a statement Wednesday that did not confirm or deny reports earlier this week that Gulf Oil was being sold to a Boston-area private equity firm.