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Once was not enough. Winter Park power couple Marc and Sharon Hagle traveled to space on a Blue Origin New Shepard rocket back in 2022. Now they’re set to fly again.

The duo were among the six people announced for Blue Origin’s NS-28 mission, the ninth human spaceflight for Jeff Bezos’ company’s suborbital rocket that launches from west Texas.

Also flying will be science communicator Emily Calandrelli, financial services exec Austin Litteral, who won his seat from a contest run by livestream shopping platform Whatnot, entrepreneur James Russell and investment banking CEO Henry Wolfond.

The Hagles were among the first to purchase spaceflight reservations on Blue Origin competitor Virgin Galactic more than 17 years ago, but have yet to on Richard Branson’s space tourism venture. They finally made it space with Blue Origin on the NS-20 mission on March 31, 2022, the fourth ever flight of New Shepard with humans.

The entire flight took just over 10 minutes, and featured just a few minutes of weightlessness as the rocket’s capsule traversed the Karman line — about 62 miles high — the internationally recognized altitude for someone having gone into space. It then made a parachute-assisted landing just a few miles from the launch site. read more

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER and ANNE D’INNOCENZIO, Associated Press Business Writers

WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans stepped up their spending at retailers last month in the latest sign that healthy consumer spending is driving the economy’s steady growth.

Retail sales rose 0.4% from September to October, the Commerce Department said Friday, a solid increase though less than the previous month’s robust 0.8% gain.

A 1.6% jump in sales at auto dealers drove much of the gain. Purchases climbed 2.3% at electronics and appliances stores and 0.7% at restaurants and bars. Though some of October’s rise in retail sales reflected higher prices, it mainly indicated increased purchases.

Friday’s report arrives as retailers are poised to enter the critically important holiday shopping season in less than two weeks. Analysts envision a solid holiday shopping season, though perhaps not as robust as last year’s, with many shoppers under pressure from overall still-high prices despite the easing of inflation. read more

DETROIT (AP) — General Motors is laying off about 1,000 workers worldwide, shedding costs as it tries to compete in a crowded global automobile market.

The workers, mostly white collar, were notified about the decisions early Friday. The company confirmed the layoffs in a statement but gave few details.

“We need to optimize for speed and excellence,” the statement said. “This includes operating with efficiency, ensuring we have the right team structure and focusing on our top priorities.”

GM and other automakers have been navigating an uncertain transition to electric vehicles both in the U.S. and worldwide, trying to figure out where to invest capital and how fast the switch will happen.

The company has had to develop and update gas-powered models while investing in EV battery and assembly plants as well as minerals and other parts for the next generation of electric vehicles.

By RIO YAMAT, Associated Press

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Hundreds of hotel workers at a casino near the Las Vegas Strip went on strike just before dawn Friday after a long and highly publicized fight for a new contract.

The strike at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas marks the first open-ended strike in 22 years for the Culinary Workers Union, the largest labor union in Nevada, with about 60,000 members.

The union posted on the social platform X on Friday morning: “@VirginHotelsLV casino is ON STRIKE! Virgin hotel workers are walking out RIGHT NOW at Virgin Las Vegas for a fair contract! Stand with the workers, DO NOT CROSS THE STRIKE LINE!”

“24/7 picket lines around the property” would be in place during the strike, the union said in a news release, urging customers to cancel reservations or check out and to choose a union accommodation.

The company’s proposal worked out to an estimated $0.30 per year to wages over five years after deducting money for benefits, Culinary Union Secretary-Treasurer Ted Pappageorge said in the news release. read more

The City of Kissimmee closed on the $14 million acquisition of the Kmart and Big Lots property on W. Vine Street and plans to seek a development partner in 2025 for the 22+-acre site.

The City Commission voted unanimously in June to buy the property, which sits on three parcels and also includes a vacant lot fronting N. Thacker Avenue. Kissimmee hopes ultimately to convert the site from aged and blighted big-box stores to commercial and residential, perhaps including affordable housing, but believes a public purchase and redevelopment process is needed for that to happen.

The Kmart store has been closed since 2017. It’s 101,000 square feet. The Big Lots, which is 36,380 square feet, has a lease that expires in 2026 and generates $120,000 a year in rental income, which the city can use toward the holding costs of the property.

Big Lots filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in September and announced plans last month to close nearly 500 stores nationwide, but the Kissimmee store was not on the closure list. read more