"Target Picks Pepsi Veteran as New CEO (starts Aug. 12th / at HQ today)" by Paul Ziobro & Joann S. Lublin at WSJ. "Target Corp. is bringing in PepsiCo Inc. executive Brian Cornell as its new chief executive, turning to an outsider for the first time in its history to repair a battered corporate culture and navigate a sea change in Americans' shopping habits...Mr. Cornell, who has long sought to run a public company, begins his new job Aug. 12. He first started talking with Target several weeks ago after people in the Minneapolis business community mentioned him as [...]

"Walmart and Target Cosmetic Alliance Shrouded in Secrecy" by Marc Gunther at The Guardian.  "Their first event, the day-long Beauty and Personal Care Products Sustainability Summit, will be held on 4 September in Chicago...The planners are close-lipped about the summit’s 50-100 participants, although they mentioned that many will be drawn from the retail sector. The guest list includes retail competitors – presumably including CVS and Walgreen’s – as well as consumer products companies." Read more   "Costco Looking to Expand Corporate Facilities" by Peter Clark at Issaquah Press.  "Company leaders want to construct possibly three more buildings on the campus, [...]

  "Why monster dollar-store merger should scare Pepsi, Coca-Cola" by Brian Sozzi at CNBC.  "The only topic not touched on thus far is how the merged Dollar Tree/Family Dollar will exert pressures on major food, household goods, and drink suppliers, including Pepsi, Hershey, and Clorox...Walmart has 659 suppliers compared to Dollar Tree at 32 and Family Dollar at 54. However, as the unified buying teams at Dollar Tree/Family Dollar sit with the aforementioned suppliers, and others, they will boast a store base totaling in excess of 13,000 (Walmart U.S. 4,800 stores or so), and undeniably be an advantageous negotiating position [...]

  Pro: "$8.5 billion dollar store deal price too low" by Matthew Belvedere at CNBC.  "Family Dollar stock soared in premarket trading Monday—even shooting up above the generous 23 percent premium to where shares closed on Friday...The action in both stocks indicated the price tag for the deal might be too low, said Jan Kniffen, chief executive officer of J. Rogers Kniffen Worldwide... "There might be more money to be extracted here." Read more   Press Release:  "Dollar Tree to Acquire Family Dollar Stores to Create North America’s Leading Discount Retailer" "This is a transformational opportunity,” stated Bob Sasser, Dollar [...]

  "Stephen Colbert gives shout out to Staten Island Lowe's for fixing veteran's wheelchair" by Ryan Lavis at Staten Island Advance. "I don't see why all our veterans health issues can't be helped by Lowe's," Colbert quipped, adding, "Why wait months to have that hip replaced at the VA when Lowe's will fix you up in minutes with duct tape, chicken wire and a socket wrench set?" See the video / Read more   "Bezos pet projects blamed for huge losses in Q2 for Amazon" by James Covert at NY Post.  "Wall Street was caught off guard in particular by [...]

  "Walmart's Bill Simon Retiring, Greg Foran Promoted to President and CEO of Walmart U.S." "Foran will assume his responsibilities on August 9 and will report directly to Walmart President and CEO, Doug McMillon. Simon will be available on a consulting basis for the next six months to ensure a seamless transition." Read the release   "Dollar General's Diaper Ad Spells Trouble for Walmart & Target" by Shelly Banjo at WSJ.  "Dollar General Corp. offered a discount on diapers earlier this summer that ended up clogging checkouts at rivals Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and TargetCorp. , which were swarmed by shoppers trying to use the promotion to get an [...]

"Target Canada Asks Suppliers for 2% Cost Break to Share in Its Struggles" by Marina  Strauss at Globe & Mail.  "In a recent letter to its suppliers, obtained by The Globe and Mail, Target said it is setting up the Target Canada Business Development Fund (BDF) by collecting “an incremental 2 per cent accrual against receipts at cost” from its vendors, starting in March of 2015. “The BDF will provide incremental funding for the key corporate initiatives, including investment in technology and supply chain, necessary to enhance the effectiveness of our business partnership and expedite our sales growth with you,” [...]

  Report:  Happening today - Obama to hold intimate roundtable fundraiser at home of former Costco CEO Jim Sinegal at Puget Sound Bus. Journal.  Read more   "Target introduces an image recognition app" by John Ewoldt at Star-Tribune.  "The free app, which has been in development for a year by Target’s Rapid Accelerated Development (RAD) technology team, includes dozens of products, but it is still in a test mode...In a Snap is available in issues of nearly 10 magazines such as Real Simple, Architectural Digest and Domino, as well as Target’s back-to-college catalog, and via store signage featuring products in [...]