Archive for month: September, 2015

 

Target pharmacy workers form union, first in company’s history by Nandita Bose at Reuters. “Target said it was “disappointed” by the vote within its store and will appeal…”Because of the pending sale of the business, we don’t believe it was appropriate for the NLRB to move forward with the petition,” spokeswoman Molly Snyder told Reuters…”It is a big win for us,” said Lou Solicito, organizing director of the United Food and Commercial Workers union that supported the vote.” Read more

 

…The Brooklyn employees decided to pursue a union vote after CVS agreed to buy Target’s pharmacy business, according to a pharmacy employee via Sarah Nassauer & Paul Ziobro at Dow Jones. “After filling the petition with the NLRB on Aug. 11 “our daily routine got turned upside down,” as Target executives from corporate headquarters streamed to Brooklyn, said this person. Several Target and CVS executives came to Target in Brooklyn over several weeks to convince the pharmacy employees they didn’t need a union to be heard, said this person.” Read more

 

Confusion: Wal-Mart worker group splits in two; both sides vow to continue wage fight by Nathan Layne & Lisa Baertlein at Reuters. “Both wings are claiming the name OUR Walmart and vow to continue their work, moves that could sow confusion among supporters. The United Food & Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW)…will only financially support the wing that it believes represents the broader set of workers.” Read more

 

Rite Aid Q2 Comp +2.1% (0.3% front-end, 2.8% pharmacy) Read the release 

 

Target Fall Meeting Highlights: Cornell Apologizes/Concept Store with Robots/Walmart Stock Price Comparison Slide by Kavita Kumar at Star Tribune. “But the meeting was not strictly business. As Target does every year, it treated employees to surprise performances from a number of artists with whom it has partnerships. This year the list included Shakira, Imagine Dragons, Luke Bryan and Florida Georgia Line.” Read more

 

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CVS Health in $48 million settlement of lawsuit over hiding loss by Jonathan Stempel at Reuters. “CVS Health Corp reached a $48 million settlement of a lawsuit accusing the U.S. drugstore operator of fraudulently concealing a big loss of revenue in its pharmacy benefits manager business, culminating in a plunge in its stock price.” Read more

 

Retailers under pressure to pursue costly web sales, or lose sales entirely, study finds by Hollie Shaw at Financial Post. “75 per cent of the retailers surveyed believe some of the sales at their own e-commerce division are cannibalizing sales that would have otherwise taken place in their stores.” Read more

 

Target to test a checkout lane free of junk food by Kavita Kumar at Star Tribune. “Target is ditching the junk food in the check-out lane at 30 stores this fall…set to begin in October…”We feel like we need to make the healthy option the default option,” Christina Hennington, Target’s senior vice president of merchandising told reporters on Tuesday…But she added that the company doesn’t want to be “preachy” about it so are curious to see how shoppers respond.” Read more

 

…Group Rails Against Candy At Bed Bath & Beyond Checkouts by Sapna Maheshwari at Buzz Feed. “We already face temptation everywhere we go,” the CSPI said in an email to its members, which provided links for tweeting at the retailer. “The last thing we need is for a trip to Bed Bath & Beyond to buy a blender, crockpot, or pillowcases to turn into yet another test of willpower and an extra 250 calories that we did not plan to eat.” Read more

 

Kroger may have fueled Albertsons IPO plans by Steve Watkins at Cincinnati Business Courier. “Kroger Co.’s powerful stock performance is a driving force behind the decision of rival Albertsons Companies Inc. to go ahead with its initial public offering sometime in the next month, according to a Reuters report.” Read more

 

Macy’s next test: Mixing up the jewelry counter at Cincinnati Business Courier. “40-store test in Southern California that will incorporate multiple new approaches at once…Los Angeles store managers designed the test, which will broaden and deepen the jewelry options Macy’s offers, increase staffing and boost product knowledge.” Read more

 

Amazon’s One-Hour Delivery Expands to LA & Orange County Read the release

 

Under Armour expects revenue to double to $7.5B by 2018 by Sarah Meehan at Baltimore Business Journal. “Under Armour hosted about 100 guests at its Locust Point campus for its biennial Investor Day meeting on Wednesday, a full day of presentations by company executives.” Read more

 

Pinterest finally shares its size: 100M monthly active users and counting by Ken Yeung at VentureBeat. Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra

Target partners with Techstars for new retail accelerator program

Clothing brands can’t get enough of this plus-sized Olympian

Williams-Sonoma taken to court by Fiesta dinnerware maker over trademark infringement

Dallas: Nearly 20,000 fans expected at Great Texas Food Truck Rally

Can you tell a fake designer handbag from a real one? Undercover investigation exposes $500 billion black market fashion industry

Dick’s Sporting Goods Director sells $1 Mil of stock

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Eye-on-Retail Tipsheet is created early every weekday morning and read by retail merchants and executives worldwide. 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. See our website at www.eyeonretail.net

 

Costco Heir Aims to Create New Napa Cult Wines in 1,403 Steps by Elin McCoy at Bloomberg. “My big vision,” says Sinegal Estateowner David Sinegal, “is to create a luxury experience where the product is just one part. That’s where everything is going.” By entering onto the Sinegal mailing list, you not only get access to those lower-priced bottles. You also gain access to the 30-acre historic wine estate in St. Helena. He purchased it two years ago for $17 million and spent another $8 million in refurbishing and expanding hillside caves for aging the wine.” Read more

 

Target will end school charity program, shift giving focus to wellness by Kavita Kumar at Star Tribune. “Over the last 18 years, Target has distributed more than $432 million to more than 100,000 schools across the U.S. through the initiative…Target will terminate the program in May 2016…“When that program started, it was incredibly innovative,” said Laysha Ward, Target’s chief corporate social responsibility officer. “There was nothing else like it out there. We just want to continue to innovate.” Read more

 

Lowe’s answers lots of questions in NYC store openings by Ken Elkins at Charlotte Business Journal. “Drywall sheets…were cut down to 4-feet by 6-feet so they can fit into elevators. Moldings to decorate the base and top of walls and other places in apartments, condos and businesses, were limited to eight-foot lengths for the Manhattan stores.” Read more / See the pics

 

Twin Cities: Home delivery of Target groceries, household items begins today with Instacart by Kavita Kumar at Star Tribune. “Its expansion to the Twin Cities hasn’t exactly been a well-kept secret, but grocery delivery service Instacart confirmed this morning that not only is it coming to the region but that it’s open for business starting today.” Read more

 

Amazon may have up to 80 million high-spending Prime members worldwide by Tricia Duryee at GeekWire. “RBC Capital Markets analyst Mark Mahaney said that the firm’s third annual Amazon consumer survey suggested U.S. Prime adoption has risen from 25 percent of customers in 2013 to 40 percent today.” Read more

 

Dick’s Sporting Goods Opens #629 in Chillicothe, OH & #630 in Wooster, OH

 

Some shoppers actually like Christmas creep by Krystina Gustafson at CNBC. “The first study, conducted by CreditCards.com over Labor Day weekend, found that roughly one in seven, or 32 million Americans, have already begun buying for the holidays…The second survey, issued by the Rubicon Project technology firm, found that an even more robust one-third of shoppers across the U.S., UK and Canada have already kicked off their holiday spending.” Read more

 

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Retailers Say They’re Being Robbed More Often by Organized Gangs by Lindsey Rupp at Bloomberg. “On average, retailers report losing $453,940 per $1 billion in annual sales over the past year, according to the survey. Los Angeles tops the list of cities with the most organized retail crime, followed by Miami and Chicago.” Read more

 

Kroger online ordering rolls out to more markets by Steve Watkins at Cincinnati  Business Journal. “Kroger has added Louisville, Indianapolis and Portland, Ore., to the list of cities where it offers its so-called “click-and-collect” service…Kroger plans to offer online ordering and customer pickup at the store in 80 locations by year-end, Mike Ellis, Kroger’s president at the time, told me this summer at the company’s annual meeting.” Read more

 

Lowe’s hires merchandising exec from Family Dollar by Katherine Peralta at Charlotte Observer. “Lowe’s announced today that Jocelyn Wong has been named senior vice president and general merchandising manager for the company’s seasonal product business area, effective October 12. She will report to Chief Merchandising Officer Michael P. McDermott.” Read the release

 

Stripe Unveils One-Stop Shop for Buy Buttons by Jason Del Rey & Kurt Wagner at Recode. “At a launch event Monday, the startup announced that Warby Parker and Saks Fifth Avenue are among the first group of retailers using Stripe’s new product, dubbed Relay, to sell goods outside of their own e-commerce sites. Stripe also announced that Twitter and the product discovery app ShopStyle would be two of the first platforms the retail partners can sell across.” Read more

 

Jeff Bezos to unveil Blue Origin plans today by Scott Powers at Orlando Sentinel. Read more

 

Kroger Promotes CIO to Lead Analytics Subsidiary by Kim S. Nash at WSJ. “(Kroger) last week promoted CIO Chris Hjelm to executive vice president to oversee a wholly owned analytics subsidiary. Mr. Hjelm remains Kroger’s CIO and also leads indirect sourcing, corporate travel, customer support and research and development.” Read more (Subscription)

 

Amazon: Too many dudes, not enough toilets, workers complain to state officials by Jacob Demmitt at GeekWire. “A male employee who spoke to GeekWire outside the Blackfoot building on Monday said things haven’t changed much over the past year. He talked about his daily routine of searching for an open stall, often visiting several floors before finding one. The most he has ever visited is five.” Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra

Former Home Depot exec tees up at PGA Tour Superstore

Report: Target tapping alternative energy for North Carolina store

Fortune: Here’s what you can find in Whole Foods CEO hiking backpack

Lowe’s Signs Jimmy Johnson to Two-Year Extension

Shaquille O’Neal turned down opportunity to earn millions with Starbucks because he thought ‘black people didn’t drink coffee’

Securities lawyers are circling Pier 1 Imports

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Eye-on-Retail Tipsheet is created early every weekday morning and read by retail merchants and executives worldwide. 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. See our website at www.eyeonretail.net

 

Wal-Mart’s Suppliers Are Finally Fighting Back by Shannon Pettypiece & Matthew Townsend at Bloomberg. “Saying the new fees will hurt their own bottom lines, several vendors are hiring lawyers, and a top executive from at least one supplier visited Wal-Mart’s headquarters in Bentonville, Arkansas, in hopes of reversing all or some of the new terms…A smaller supplier, notified of the fees late last month and given two weeks to accept, said it won’t be able to make a profit on its Wal-Mart business under those terms unless it fires workers or cuts wages and benefits.” Read more

 

Wal-Mart contract changes still challenging suppliers by Kim Souza at The City Wire. “One pet supplier said their new agreement with Wal-Mart asked for an additional 1% discount on what was a 20-day payment term, except now Wal-Mart wants to extend the payment window to 90 days.” Read more

 

Kroger Q2 Total Sales +0.9%  Read the release

 

Fortune’s Most Powerful Women (Helena Foulkes #14, Roz Brewer #15, Ann-Marie Campbell #37, Michelle Gloeckler #38) See the full list of 51

 

Target supports national Equality Act to outlaw LGBT discrimination by Nick Woltman at Pioneer Press. “Target proudly stands with the LGBT community through all that we do,” said Caroline Wanga, the Minneapolis-based retailer’s senior director of diversity and inclusion, in a news release.” Read more

 

Kohl’s makes Fashion Week debut by Lisa Fickenscher at NY Post. “Not sure the backers of New York Fashion Week had Kohl’s in mind for a runway show. But the dowdy Midwest retailer made its runway debut this week…” Read more

 

Carrie Underwood hits it big time in the Big Apple as she unveils Calia at New York Fashion Week “While Carrie is used to sitting in the front row at fashion shows, this was the first time she was front and center as she hosted her own presentation.” See the pics / Read more

 

Sam’s Club Locations to Accept American Express Cards Read the release

 

Target to end ties with Cherokee apparel brand in 2017 by Kavita Kumar at Star Tribune. “Target will not renew its license once it expires on Jan. 31, 2017. The news, which was included in Cherokee’s second-quarter results, sent the brand’s shares tumbling more than 33 percent in after-hours trading.” Read more

 

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Kroger Announces Appointments of Executive Vice Presidents via MarketWatch. “Mike Donnelly has been named EVP of merchandising, Chris Hjelm has been named EVP and CIO; Fred Morganthall has been named EVP of retail operations; and Mike Schlotman has been named EVP and CFO.” Read the release

 

Kmart Is First Out of the Gate With Holiday Ads — In September by Steven Perlberg at WSJ. “We understand it’s ridiculous to think about Christmas now,” says “Kmart Kelly” in the 30-second commercial, before listing reasons why doing so, as it turns out, is “ridiculously awesome.” See the ad / Read more (Subscription)

 

Target Style 2.0: Retailer Sends A Message Via Retro Spectacle With ‘Vogue’ by Barbara Thau at Forbes. Read more

 

FDA releases sweeping food safety rules by Lydia Wheeler at The Hill. “Small manufacturers of people food, those with fewer than 500 full-time equivalent employees, will have two years to comply with the rules, while full industry compliance is required within one year…The rules are expected to cost domestic human food manufacturing $382 million a year and foreign food manufacturers $820 million a year.” Read more

 

Boston: New Amazon warehouse hints at one-hour ‘Prime Now’ deliveries by Curt Woodward at The Boston Globe. Read more

 

Look Out, U.S Grocers, U.K.’s Free-for-All Heads Across the Pond by Saabira Chaudhuri at WSJ. “Analysts and others say the moves threaten to pressure discount chains like Wal-Mart and Supervalu Inc.’s Save-A-Lot, but could also further shake up the wider U.S. market.” Read more (Subscription)

 

The Container Store’s CEO Kip Tindell Inducted into World Retail Hall of Fame Read the release

 

Alice Walton selling $19.75 million Texas horse ranch by Carol Christian at Chron. See the 26 pics

 

Home Depot’s Craig Menear & Carol Tome Present at Goldman Sachs Retail Conferenece – Highlights:

Menear:

We think today that we are affectionately known with many (Pro’s) as a great 7-Eleven for fill-in and we are working on how to become more of a primary source of purchase for them.

On narrower delivery windows for Pro’s: It is going a little bit slower than we had anticipated.

Tome:

At the beginning of the year, we targeted $4.5 billion of share repurchases. Well, we have upped that to $7 billion for the year.

The truth is when we sold HD Supply, we would have loved to hold onto that facility’s maintenance business that they had.

Read the full transcript via Seeking Alpha

 

Tipsheet Extra

Target’s NY Fashion Week Party: Guests Ride on Carousel

Mystery solved: Lowe’s explains what’s inside the big blue boxes in front of Charlotte store

Fortune: Three questions for CVS boss Helena Foulkes (2 min video)

Lorenzo Lamas’ Son A.J. Arrested for Allegedly Stealing From Target, Punching Security Guard

Former Wal-Mart workers protest at closed Pico Rivera store

Office Depot involved in religious discrimination printing tiff

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Eye-on-Retail Tipsheet is created early every weekday morning and read by retail merchants and executives worldwide. 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. See our website at www.eyeonretail.net