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Samuel Zell, the billionaire who built a real estate empire, plans to sell a stake in his Equity Office Properties Trust, a real estate investment trust expected to be the largest U.S. office properties owner, to the public in an initial public offering worth $300 million, according to an SEC filing. . . . Convalescent home operator Vencor Inc. raised its offer for Las Vegas-based Transitional Hospitals Corp. from $600 million to $639 million, urging shareholders to reject Transitional’s plan to accept a lower bid. . . . Gillette Co. said it will cut 1,700 jobs, mostly of Duracell employees outside the U.S., as a result of the companies’ merger. . . . Undersecretary of Commerce Everett Ehrlich is leaving his post to open his own economic consulting firm. . . . Ford Motor Co. said it will launch a program pairing Ford retirees with minority-owned supply companies in need of manufacturing technical assistance. The Better Business Bureau has begun issuing its seal of approval on commercial Web sites and online advertisements.