“Curbside Powers Same-Day Pickup at Target, Raises $8 Million” by Liz Gannes at Recode. “That’s the premise of Curbside, a startup that’s officially launching today with significant funding and a beta test with 10 San Francisco Bay Area Target stores…Under Curbside’s current business model, retailers pay Curbside a customer acquisition fee. Customers pay neither a pickup fee nor a markup on their items.” Read more

“Target launches two new apps, updates others” by Kavita Kumar at Star-Tribune. “The changes include revamped iPhone and iPad apps that have been rebuilt from top to bottom..In total, Target is updating or launching eight new products. “Virtually all of our mobile experiences will be entirely new,” said Jason Goldberger, senior vice president of Target.com and mobile…Target has been criticized for being a bit behind the digital curve with a website that sometimes has hiccups and being slower to roll out new initiatives such as buy online, pick up in store capabilities than some of its biggest competitors.” Read more

“Shop.org Forecasts Online Sales to Grow Between 8 – 11% This Holiday Season” at NRF. “The National Retail Federation announced today it expects sales in November and December (excluding autos, gas and restaurant sales) to increase a healthy 4.1 percent to $616.9 billion, higher than 2013’s actual 3.1 percent increase.” Read the release

“iPAD is the #1 Brand Among Kids 6-12 (Candy & Snacks are #2-7)” See the Top 25 list

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“Critics evaluate Wal-Mart’s focus on sustainable food systems” by Kim Souza at The City Wire. “At Monday’s meeting Wal-Mart recognized a partnership agreement with six large suppliers: General Mills, Kellogg, Pepsi, Monsanto, Cargill, and Coca Cola. Together this group pledged to reduce 8 million metric tons of greenhouse gases by employing more sustainable practices on 8 million acres farmed over the next three years.” Read more

…Adding more information to Sam’s Club bar codes by Stephanie Strom at NY Times. “To reduce food waste, Walmart says it has begun developing more ways to use a “whole crop” in its private-label food production and to reduce spoilage. It is also adding more information to bar codes in its Sam’s Club stores. “We want to reduce the confusion that’s out there about what consumers should be eating in terms of their own health and what they should be buying in terms of what’s good for the planet,” Ms. McLaughlin said.” Read more

“The iron grip of Wayfair’s founders” by Steven Syre at Boston Globe. “But here’s where the story of Wayfair and its founders really becomes something rare: They’ve managed to retain absolute control over a venture now valued at more than $3 billion. Founders of tech businesses usually see their ownership diluted over time by venture capital firms and public stockholders who provide the money necessary to build a big company.” Read more

“The Container Store Shares Tumble To Record Low As Same Store Sales Slide” by Samantha Sharf at Forbes. “Same store sales, however, were down 0.4%. At same time that current stores are undergoing a slowdown the company is touting new stores. In a statement CEO Kip Tindell ignored the same store sales decline but said, “We are very excited about our new store growth, with three more openings ahead of us this year.” Read more

JC Penney to Close 62+ Stores? by Krystina Gustafson at CNBC. “Sozzi said he predicts Penney’s will use the event to announce “mass store closures,” which would ultimately bring its store count from 1,062 as of August, to under 1,000. But with sales and earnings moving in the right direction, he said, the closings won’t be seen as a sign of weakness.” Read more

“Amazon Expands Seller Holiday Deals Program Worldwide” “The seller holiday deals program, introduced for the first time last year, is now expanding to be available worldwide on local Amazon sites in the U.S., the EU, China, Japan, India and Canada.” Read the release

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Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet read by thousands of Retail Merchants & Executives every weekday morning. Eye-on-Retail is unique because it’s timely, smart and fun. It’s created early AM every weekday and delivered between 7-8 am CST. We love data, earnings reports, executive presentations and stories off the beaten path that get at what’s really happening in the world of retail.

CNN: Could this ‘chemist’ be the next boss of Walmart? by Poppy Harlow & Sheena McKenzie. “Could the 64th most powerful woman in the world (Rosalind Brewer), according to Forbes, one day have the top job at Walmart? “Oh boy, that is a good question,” she says, laughing a little nervously. “If ever I was afforded the opportunity, surely I would step up to the challenge.” Read more / See the video

“Walmart’s global e-commerce chief pokes at Amazon in rival’s backyard” by Blair Hanley Frank at GeekWire. “Is anybody selling the Fire phone?” he (Neil Ashe) said in response to a question on stage at today’s GeekWire Summit in Seattle, drawing a handful of laughs and a healthy crop of boos. “I guess, the more important question would be is anybody buying the Fire phone?” Read more

“Target’s Response To My Calling Out Their Girls’ Clothing Problem” by Stephanie Giese at HuffPo. “It seems that my last blog post, A Target Intervention on Behalf of My Daughters, has struck a nerve. To my surprise, it got a lot of national attention…I have been in touch with the Target Corporate Headquarters and I am so excited to report that they have read all of the comments that moms are leaving in response to that post! I am beyond thrilled to announce that I am going to start working with Target towards change, starting in my own house.” Read more

“Wal-Mart & other retailers tune in weather forecasts to spur sales” by Kim Souza at The City Wire. “Wal-Mart spokewoman Molly Blakeman said one use this summer by the retailer involved featured ads online, mobile devices and social media sites for patio furniture and grills. She said the retailer continues to use the collected weather data paired with its sales data and merchandise across the company’s entire big box format.” Read more

“Wayfair shares soar on first day of public trading” by Taryn Luna at The Boston Globe. “Investors embraced shares of Wayfair Inc. in their first day of public trading, driving the stock of the Boston online furniture and home goods retailer up more than 30 percent Thursday…“It’s a super-exciting milestone for the company,” said Niraj Shah, chief executive of Wayfair, who was joined by 90 company employees to ring the bell and open the markets in New York. “Online sales are doing really well, and people are realizing that the home goods market, furniture and décor, can be a really good category.” Read more

“As Wayfair Goes Public, Big Marketing Spending Raises Big Questions” by Jason Del Rey at Recode. “CEO Niraj Shah said he doesn’t believe the company will need to continue increasing marketing spending as revenue grows, meaning that the percent of revenue being spent on those costs should decrease over time…“What we’ve been saying is we’re trying to build a really big business, and to do that with a big base of loyal customers that come back more and more often,” he said.” Read more

“UPS, FedEx Want Retailers to Get Real on Holiday Shipping” by Laura Stevens, Suzanne Kapner & Shelly Banjo at WSJ. “Their challenge is convincing retailers to change their ways. UPS is trying to persuade e-commerce companies to hold their big sales in mid-December instead of in the countdown to Dec. 25. It also wants them to stagger special offers geographically—so a GoPro camera might be on sale one day in Texas and a different day in Florida.” Read more (Subscription required)

“Target opens its first liquor store in Minnesota since 1970s” by John Ewoldt at Star-Tribune. “Target Corp. announced in June it would soon open its first liquor shop in Minnesota in more than 40 years. And it opened the store quietly on Wednesday. For much of the afternoon, more employees than customers gathered around the cash terminals.” Read more

…See the Pics (10% off 6 or more bottles of wine) at Minn./St. Paul Bus. Journal.   See the 11 pics

“Rite-Aid: September Front-End Comp Sales +2.3%” “Same store sales for the 30-week period ended Sept. 27, 2014 increased 3.8 percent over the prior-year period. Front-end same store sales increased 0.8 percent while pharmacy same store sales increased 5.2 percent.” Read the release

“Yes, a lower calorie Pepsi you can only buy on Amazon” by David A. Arnott at Albany Bus. Review. “At the moment, launching new drinks through Amazon may seem like a mere novelty that gives them attention they wouldn’t get otherwise…But if companies keep their expectations low, launching with online sales-only could be an excellent way of gauging initial interest and drumming up demand for a product before shipping to physical stores.” Read more

“Billionaire Buffett Says Tesco Investment Was ‘A Huge Mistake’” by Paul Jarvis at Bloomberg. ““I made a mistake on that one,” Buffett, 84, said in an interview with CNBC today. “That was a huge mistake by me.” Read more

“Amazon Ad Sales VP Lisa Utzschneider: Still ‘Day One’ for Video Ads” at Ad Age. See the video

“Northern Colorado Costco opens to public” by Pat Ferrier at The Coloradoan. “Bryson joined 247 other shoppers who stood in the cold morning air waiting for the 155,000-square-foot store to open its doors at 8 a.m. Many were California transplants…Debbie Brown dragged her husband, Mike, to the opening “kicking and screaming,” he said. Both were among the 6,000 attending the VIP reception Wednesday.” Read more/Pics/Video

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Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet read by thousands of Retail Merchants & Executives every weekday morning. Eye-on-Retail is unique because it’s timely, smart and fun. It’s created early AM every weekday and delivered between 7-8 am CST. We love data, earnings reports, executive presentations and stories off the beaten path that get at what’s really happening in the world of retail.

Canada: “Target’s ‘sexist’ baby pajamas spark social media outcry” by Colin Perkel at The Canadian Press via Globe & Mail. “Hundreds of people have denounced Target for selling “sexist” baby pyjamas after a university professor posted a photograph of the clothing on social media. The boy clothing features a Superman logo and the line, “Future Man of Steel,” while the girl item has the same logo but the line: “I Only Date Heroes.” Read more

“Amazon.com, Disney Back at Peace” by Ben Fritz & Greg Bensinger at WSJ. “Amazon.com appears to be close to settling a nearly two-month dispute with Walt Disney Co. during which the e-commerce giant stopped offering Disney DVDs for preorder. Among the subjects at issue were pricing, promotion on the Amazon website and questions over who makes up the difference when Amazon loses money to match the prices of competitors.” Read more

“Target’s Lack of CISO Was ‘Root Cause’ of Systems Breach” by Clint Boulton at WSJ. “The absence of a chief information security officer was a “root cause” of the major computer systems breach at Target last year, said a former manager at the retailer, during a panel discussion here at the Work-Bench Enterprise Security Summit Tuesday. Without a CISO, no one was able to articulate cyber risks to senior executives, said Karl Mattson, who worked at Target from 2008 until 2013, most recently as manager of cyber and global intelligence. “[Target] didn’t have an advocate at the C-level, as an executive, advocating for IT security investment.” Read more

“REI revamping online store” by Angel Gonzalez at Seattle Times. “Online commerce, which accounts for nearly a quarter of its sales, has been its fastest-growing segment, CEO Jerry Stritzke told an audience of retail executives Tuesday at the Shop.org summit in Seattle. REI executives are working on giving their online store the same luster as its physical flagships. The launch of the first iteration is expected in the first half of 2015, said Brad Brown, who is in charge of digital efforts.” Read more

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“Walgreen suffers 4Q loss on acquisition charge” by Ellen Jean Hirst at Chicago Tribune. “Revenue for the quarter rose 6.2 percent, to $19.1 billion. Sales at stores open at least a year, a key gauge of retailer health, increased 5.4 percent.” Read more

“Walgreen Q4 Front-End Comp Sales +1.3%” Read the release

“Diapers.com Founder Wants to Raise $600 Million for New Startup Jet.com” by Jason Del Ray at Recode. “Many details about Jet.com are still under wraps, but sources have previously told Re/code that it will be a shopping site that sells many of the same types of everyday goods that can be found on Amazon.com. Part of Jet.com’s model, sources say, involves pricing products based, in part, on how close to the customer they are being stored.” Read more

Tracy Morgan: “Walmart Blaming Me for an Accident They Caused” by Hilary Lewis at The Hollywood Reporter.  “My friends and I were doing nothing wrong. I want to thank my fans for sticking with me during this difficult time. I love you all. I’m fighting hard every day to get back.” Read more

“Dem Senators urge Kroger to ban guns” by Alexander Coolidge at Cincinnati.com. “Democratic U.S. Senators Dianne Feinstein, of California and Chris Murphy and Richard Blumenthal, of Connecticut, urged Kroger CEO Rodney McMullen to explicitly prohibit the open carry of guns in grocery stores.” Read more

“Paul Ryan squawks and Amazon.com listens” by Ben Miller at Puget Sound Bus. Journal. “According to the New York Times, Ryan went on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Aug. 20 and complained, saying he was “frustrated” with the company’s actions with his book and “clearly Amazon is making kind of a power play here.”Suddenly, “The Way Forward” became way more visible on Amazon’s site.” Read more

“CA Governor signs plastic bag ban” by Allen Young at Sacramento Bus. Journal. “Gov. Jerry Brown approved the nation’s first statewide ban on single-use plastic bags Tuesday morning. The ban applies to grocery stores and pharmacies beginning on July 2015, and to convenience stores and liquor stores the following year.” Read more

“D.C. mystery: Jeff Bezos’ plan for the Washington Post” by Dylan Byers at Politico. “The disappointment at the Post, several sources there agreed, is best described as the feeling of being promised a flying car and receiving only a glow-in-the-dark keychain.” Read more

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Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet read by thousands of Retail Merchants & Executives every weekday morning. Eye-on-Retail is unique because it’s timely, smart and fun. It’s created early AM every weekday and delivered between 7-8 am CST. We love data, earnings reports, executive presentations and stories off the beaten path that get at what’s really happening in the world of retail.

Forbes Richest 400 Americans (Walton’s take 6, 7, 8, 9 – Bezos #15) at Forbes.  See the full list

“Amazon’s Grocery Delivery Business Coming to New York City” by Jason Del Ray at Recode. “Amazon is preparing to start its Fresh grocery delivery business in New York City as early as next month, according to two people who have been briefed on the plans…In New York City, Amazon will be competing against FreshDirect, a 15-year-old business that is said to do around $400 million to $500 million in annual sales, according to multiple grocery industry executives.” Read more

“New Walmart in east Tampa to help turn food desert into oasis” by Susan Thurston at Tampa Bay Times. “This has been a food desert for a long time,” (Mayor) Buckhorn said. “The folks in east Tampa have had to rely on convenience stores and get charged exorbitant prices for food that’s not particularly healthy. … Now there will be healthy alternatives available.” Read more

“Why Stores Still Rule Retail” by Laura Heller at Forbes. “E-commerce sales are just were just 6.4 percent of total retail sales for the second quarter of this year, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce, up from just 5.8 percent the same period 2013.” Read more

ND Walmart: $17.40/hour for starters at Yahoo.  “The Walmart in Williston, ND is one of the highest paying stores in the company.” See the video

“Canada warehouse retailer XS Cargo to close its 50 stores” by Hollie Shaw at Financial Post. “In its filing, the retailer’s trustee PWC made a pointed reference to Target’s entry into Canada, which appears to have pushed XS Cargo to a breaking point as it lowered prices to compete head-on with Walmart Canada.” Read more

“Does Walmart’s “Savings Catcher” Actually Work?” by Chris Morran at Consumerist. “When it was all said and done, the service found $4.83 in savings, but left $1.02 unaccounted for. And this was just for a relatively small transaction of $36…Based on just this one test, it seems like Savings Catcher might be something worth trying.” Read more

“How Ads Can Push Too Hard” by Matt Richtell at NY Times. “The worst performer was the ad that called the soap the “only choice” for green consumers. That result ran counter to the expectations of a panel of 59 marketing executives and managers who had been asked beforehand to predict which slogan would work best. Nearly half projected that the “only choice” slogan would be most effective. The study subjects reported that the off-putting slogan — with language that was not quite bullying but certainly imperative — threatened their sense of “freedom in expressing their identity,” Mr. Bhattacharjee said.” Read more

“Wal-Mart tests Pickup-Grocery prototype store” by Cyd King at NWA (Subscription). “If Wal-Mart Stores Inc. President and CEO Doug McMillon wants to treat his wife, Shelley, to a home-cooked steak dinner and bottle of wine, he can place an order online for his groceries, drive to a new Wal-Mart store prototype and pick them up without ever having to get out of his car.” Read more

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Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet read by thousands of Retail Merchants & Executives every weekday morning. Eye-on-Retail is unique because it’s timely, smart and fun. It’s created early AM every weekday and delivered between 7-8 am CST. We love data, earnings reports, executive presentations and stories off the beaten path that get at what’s really happening in the world of retail.