Tipsheet: Overstock Bitcoin Mess | Flu Rages | Kohl’s CEO Iview | Nstrom +1.2%
Supervalu Q3 Comp Store Sales -3.5% Press release
Kohl’s CEO: Physical stores are ‘critical’ no matter where consumers choose to shop at CNBC. “While the CEO wouldn’t comment on whether Kohl’s unique partnership with Amazon will eventually result in the e-commerce giant acquiring Kohl’s, he did speak to its benefits. “We’re focused on any ideas, however far-out they may seem to somebody outside our business, that would essentially drive more people into our stores,” Mansell said.” Video Iview/Read more
Target will open its ‘student union’ to public for Super Bowl week by Dan DeBaun at Minneapolis/St.Paul Business Journal. “Target Plaza Commons, which is typically only available to Target employees, will open to the public as the “Bullseye Lodge” from Jan. 26 through Feb. 4. The building is in a prime Super Bowl location.” Read more
Retailers (not just Amazon and Walmart) can unlock your front door now — if you let them at CNBC. “August Home has partnered with same-day delivery service Deliv to safely open shoppers’ front doors to retailers, merging August Home’s access platform with Deliv’s client base, which includes such companies as Macy’s, meal-kit service Plated, Kohl’s, Best Buy and Walgreens.” Read more
San Diego: Flu’s death toll doubles to 91 – “wireless fist bump” encouraged by Paul Sisson at San Diego Union-Tribune. “The number of flu deaths doubled and thousands more cases were reported last week, but county supervisors backed away from declaring a local health emergency Tuesday.” Read more
…IV bag shortage has hospitals scrambling to treat flu at AP via Yahoo. “Supplies of saline and nutrient solutions were already tight before hurricanes pounded Puerto Rico and cut power to manufacturing plants that make much of the U.S. supply of fluid-filled bags used to deliver sterile solutions to patients.” Read more
Nordstrom comp sales +1.2% for the nine weeks ended December 30, 2017 Press release
JCPenney moves account to Badger & Winters from McGarryBowen by Adrianne Pasquarelli at Ad Age. “Partnering with Badger & Winters, an agency known for powerful, social-driven campaigns such as #WomenNotObjects, marks a new direction for the retailer, which hired Marci Grebstein as CMO in May. New work is expected to debut this spring.” Read more
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Home Depot Packs Whole DIY Projects, Start to Finish, Inside Pinterest Pins by Gabriel Beltrone at Adweek. “Titled “Built-In Pins,” the promotional effort includes videos, images and a 360-degree interactive online shopping experience created with virtual reality advertising platform OmniVert.” Read more/See ad
LeBron James rips H&M advertising image, says ‘African Americans will always have to break barriers’ at ESPN. Read more
Bass Pro CEO challenges former Cabela’s execs to give to severance fund for Sidney workers — and pledges to match them by Paige Yowell at Omaha World-Herald. “(Johnny) Morris has said he will personally match all of the contributions to the severance fund, up to $10 million, said Bass Pro spokesman Jack Wlezien. Bass Pro has said it already has committed an additional $10 million on top of its normal severance program to help people in Sidney.” Read more
Overstock.com just fixed a serious glitch that allowed Overstock customers to buy any item at a tiny fraction of the listed price at Krebs on Security. “Overstock’s site just as happily accepted bitcoin cash as payment, even though bitcoin cash is currently worth only about 15 percent of the value of bitcoin…I had just made a $78 purchase by sending approximately USD $12 worth of bitcoin cash. Crypto-currency alchemy at last!” Read more
Victoria’s Secret’s flawed holiday sale ‘worked too well’ by Lisa Fickenscher at NY Post. “In November, Victoria’s Secret handed out $20 reward cards to customers who spent $40 or more at its stores during the first two weeks of December…But the lingerie behemoth soon found out that customers were looking for bargains and not its pricey, constructed bras that sell for north of $60 each….sales ended up dipping 1 percent in December.” Read more
Target’s Brian Cornell Discusses Holiday Season & 2018 at A Bullseye View. “We’ll open 30 small-format stores, including our first small-format store in Dallas and our first store in Santa Barbara. We’ll triple the number of stores we reimagine, with more than 325 remodels planned this year on our way to more than 1,000 stores by 2020.” Q&A
…Target’s Mark Tritton Talks Denim “…we’re offering all apparel within Universal Thread in sizes 00-26W. This is the first time we’ve introduced a brand with such an expansive range.” Q&A
Inside Amazon’s traveling smart home trailer by Nat Levy at GeekWire. “GeekWire got a look inside the Amazon Alexa and Intel Smart Life Roadshow, an airstream trailer that travels all over the country and is equipped with a variety of Alexa-powered devices.” Video tour/Read more
Between Walmart and Kroger, 500 stores are about to ditch cashiers at CNBC. “Walmart is expanding its “Scan & Go” technology to an additional 100 locations across the U.S., the retailer announced Tuesday.” Read more | Walmart release
Multimillion-dollar settlement could signal end of dollar-store drama by Katherine Peralta at Charlotte Observer. “In the latest development in a prolonged, dizzying dollar-store drama, Dollar Express and Dollar Tree have settled a pair of lawsuits filed last summer. Dollar Express and parent firm Sycamore Partners are paying Dollar Tree, which owns Family Dollar, $35 million.” Read more
Lands’ End wins American Airlines employee uniform contract by Lewis Lazare & David Schuyler at Milwaukee Business Journal. Read more
Ikea Wants You to Pee on This Ad. If You’re Pregnant, It Will Give You a Discount on a Crib by Tim Nudd at Adweek. “Sounds a bit gross, and maybe it is—but there’s a fun twist. If you’re pregnant, peeing on the ad reveals a special discounted price on cribs, thanks to technology similar to that in pregnancy-test kits.” See ad/Read more
Tipsheet Extra Stories
Ontario’s 21% minimum wage hike off to rocky start
Adweek: Why Target Is Gambling on the Tricky Task of Making Jeans for Women
More Mega-Ships Are a Big Problem for Cargo Carriers
Amazon Is Said to Pit Argentina Versus Chile in Data-Center Race
Restaurant charges ‘ridiculous’ $15 for Bud Light to promote craft beer instead
U.S. lawsuit says Wal-Mart deceived buyers of organic eggs
17 stores in Quebec converted to RONA banner on February 26
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