Archive for month: August, 2017

 

Gap Q2 Comp Sales +1% “Old Navy Global: positive 5 percent versus flat last year, Gap Global: negative 1 percent versus negative 3 percent last year, Banana Republic Global: negative 5 percent versus negative 9 percent last year.” Press release

 

…CNBC: Gap soars after better-than-expected profit forecast Read more

 

Ross Stores Q2 Comp Sales +4% “Net earnings grew to $317 million, compared to $282 million in the prior year. Sales rose 8% to $3.432 billion.” Press release

 

Sportsman’s Warehouse Q2 Comp Sales -9.0% “The Company opened four new stores in the second quarter of fiscal 2017 and ended the quarter with 83 stores in 22 states.” Press release

 

Hibbett Sports Q2 Comp Sales -11.7% “Gross margin was 28.9% of net sales…compared with 33.0% for the 13-week period ended July 30, 2016. The decrease was mainly due to promotions and markdowns taken to liquidate excess and aged inventory.” Press release

 

New York & Co. Q2 Comp Sales -1.1% Press release

 

Foot Locker shares tumble 15% after profit and sales fall short of estimates at Fox Business. “Same-store sales fell 6%, compared with a FactSet consensus of a gain of 0.8%.” Read more

 

Halloween Survey: 78% will buy candy/treats from Walmart by Field Agent. “Field Agent surveyed 1,501 Halloween households across the country. About 4-in-10 households said they’ll purchase costumes or costume accessories online this year.” Read more

 

Creditor group wants to sue Sears Canada executives, board for negligence by Hollie Shaw at Financial Post. “A group of aggrieved creditors wants to sue the executive officers and directors of Sears Canada for negligence and intends to ask an Ontario judge Friday to schedule a hearing for their motion on whether they can proceed with their claim.” Read more

 

50 Rooftop Solar Farms: Home Depot Finds New Use for Store Roofs “In partnership with Current, a subsidiary of GE, and Tesla, the company is utilizing Power Purchase Agreements to lease its roof space and generate solar energy in five states, including California, Connecticut, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, and the District of Colombia.” Read more

 

**A message from Hot Shot – There’s no place like home. And when you rule the roost, you do it all… keep the peace, dry the tears, mop up the messes – even squash the spiders. When bugs cross your threshold, count on Hot Shot® brand for practical, easy-to-use, effective home insect solutions that take care of the creepy-crawlies for you – without breaking the bank. Save the Day. Facebook page

 

Jack Ma Is Ahead of Jeff Bezos in Grocery Store Ambitions by Selina Wang at Bloomberg. “Alibaba had been quietly incubating its Hema grocery store concept for two years. It rolled out three new locations last month, bringing the total to 13, the bulk in Shanghai and Beijing. The sprawling, bright supermarkets combine online and offline shopping, where customers who have downloaded Hema’s app scan barcodes on products and pay with their Alipay digital wallet.” Read more

 

US online retail posts its largest gain in five years by Stefany Zaroban at Internet Retailer. “U.S. e-commerce sales grew 16.3% during the second quarter…Amazon was responsible for nearly half of that growth.” Read more

 

Costco puts the hurt on Iceland toilet paper company by BBC News. “Costco opened a new shopping warehouse in Iceland’s Reykjavik earlier this year and was initially met with enthusiasm. However, this excitement has not been matched at the offices of toilet paper company Papco, which says its sales have plummeted by up to 30%.” Read more

 

…Costco Partly Responsible For 40% Increase In Icelandair Cargo Flights at Iceland Review. Read more

 

Hudson’s Bay names J.C. Penney’s Edward Record as new CFO at Globe and Mail. “Last month, U.S. activist investor Jonathan Litt ratcheted up pressure on Hudson’s Bay by threatening it would consider a push to remove some directors at the company unless drastic steps were taken to make more money off its assets.” Read more | Press release

 

Bunnings hits a snag in British expansion plans by Patrick Hatch at Sydney Morning Herald. “Bunnings UK and Ireland swung to a $89 million loss in its first full financial year under Wesfarmers’ ownership and would take longer than expected to turn a profit. Bunnings Group managing director Michael Schneider said sales had been hurt as it moved Homebase’s 251 stores away from kitchen and bathroom products and towards Bunnings’ staples of garden and home improvement products.” Read more

 

Whole Foods’ John Mackey to Headline SNAC International Executive Leadership Forum in September Read more

 

Estee Lauder Q4 Net Sales +9% Press release

 

SNAP – BJ’s Brawl Features Canes and Snapped Fingers by Alexandra Seltzer at Palm Beach Post. “She raised her cane. I pushed the cart into her…”I couldn’t believe that one elderly lady rammed another elderly woman with a shopping cart,” Hanifin said Thursday…“My fingers were in (the cart), they snapped. I broke one finger and dislocated the other. I’m in a cast now. My knee is badly injured” Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra Stories

‘Star Wars’ Obi-Wan Kenobi Film in the Works

Hollywood, Apple Are Said to Mull Rental Plan, Defying Theaters

Amazon will put 1,600 Echo Dots in Arizona State University’s engineering student dorms

Millennials are financing everything from bed sheets to concert tickets

Avocado shortage hits California sending Millennials into panic

India threatens Philip Morris with ‘punitive action’ over alleged violations

The Real Reason Jeff Bezos Grinds Trump’s Gears

Read Tipsheet Extra Stories

 

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Heard on the Call:

Walmart Q2 Earnings Call Highlights

 

Doug McMillon

Walmart U.S. grew comp sales 1.8% and comp traffic 1.3%

Sam’s Club delivered comp traffic growth of more than 2%

International: nine of 11 markets posted positive comp sales and five of these markets grew comps by more than 5%

By the end of the year, we’ll have approximately 100 automated pickup towers in stores across the U.S.

67 million SKUs on walmart.com

Food categories delivered the strongest quarterly comp sales performance in five years

Sam’s Club had comp sales growth without fuel of 1.2% led by 2.1% comp traffic growth and e-commerce GMV increased 23%

Member’s Mark: more than a $10 billion brand and growing

 

Brett Biggs

Walmex: Total sales increased 9.2%, excluding Suburbia, and comp sales grew 7.2%

Mexico: comp sales increased more than 15% on a two-year stacked basis

Canada: net sales increased 3.4%, and comp sales increased 2.5%

UK: net sales increased 3.9%, and comp sales increased 1.8%

China: net sales increased 2.5%, and comp sales increased 0.6%

Earnings call transcript via Seeking Alpha

 

Target Q2 Comp Sales +1.3% “Driven by traffic growth of 2.1 percent. Comparable digital channel sales increased 32 percent, on top of 16 percent growth in second quarter 2016.” Press release

 

…Fox Business: Target’s profit, comp sales beat on higher customer visits “Target’s shares rose as much as 5% to $57.01 before the bell on Wednesday after the retailer also said it would double the number of its small-format stores.” Read more

 

…Star Tribune: Target pulls out of yearlong sales slump with higher store traffic, online purchases by Kavita Kumar. “Target also said Wednesday that it is going to pick up the pace of its store remodels. It’s on track to refresh 110 stores this year and plans to now give 300 stores makeovers in 2018, instead of 250. In total, the retailer is planning to overhaul more than a third of its 1,800 stores in the next few years.” Read more

 

Trump rips Amazon, says it causes ‘great damage to tax paying retailers’; shares drop by Tae Kim at CNBC. “Trump: Amazon is doing great damage to tax paying retailers. Towns, cities and states throughout the U.S. are being hurt – many jobs being lost!” Read more

 

Walmart CEO Slams Trump Over Charlottesville Response, But Remains In Advisory Role by Alexander C. Kaufman at HuffPo. “As we watched the events and the response from President Trump over the weekend, we too felt that he missed a critical opportunity to help bring our country together by unequivocally rejecting the appalling actions of white supremacists,” McMillon wrote.” Read more | McMillon’s statement

 

…Trump, in a somewhat dismissive tone, said McMillon was playing politics at Talk Business. “The head of Wal-Mart, who I know, he is a very nice guy, was making a political statement,” Trump said during a press conference from Trump Tower in New York City.” Read more

 

Retail is in ‘panic mode,’ says Dick’s Sporting Goods CEO by Lauren Thomas at CNBC. “There’s a lot of people right now … in retail and in this industry in panic mode,” Stack added. “They seem to be in panic mode with how they’re pricing, and we think it’s going to continue to be promotional, and at times irrational, going forward.” Read more

 

…Dick’s Sporting Goods expects 43 new store openings in 2017 by Paul J. Gough at Pittsburgh Business Times. Read more

 

“AMAZON IS A DARK STAR” – Retired Home Depot CEO Frank Blake: ‘I really don’t like Amazon’ by Maria Saporta at Atlanta Business Chronicle. “Blake was especially critical of “Alexa” – Amazon’s gadget that responds to customers’ questions and commands, and also is available to fulfill orders for products delivered through the Amazon system. Half-jokingly, Blake described Alexa as Amazon’s way of spying on customers.” Read more

 

**A message from Fabe – 100% Made in Italy pillow prevents neck and back pain. Fabe’s Ergo Praxis pillow supports and aligns the head and neck to prevent cervical pain. Created in cooperation with Ludes University in Switzerland – it gets the body in the right position for a good night’s sleep. Details | Fabe Website | Retailers request samples at info@shiftmarketinggroup.net. Italy-America product connection

 

Walmart’s Vudu video streaming service is coming to Apple TV on August 22nd by Dani Deahl at The Verge. “Currently, Vudu users have to use AirPlay from an iPhone or iPad to watch movies and shows on Apple’s set-top box.” Read more

 

Amazon faces a tax fight in South Carolina that could change how online sellers do business by Eugene Kim at CNBC. “Going after the online marketplace facilitator is certainly a recent door that’s been opened,” said Jeff Glickman, a tax expert and lawyer at business advisory firm Aprio. “I certainly do expect more states to follow suit.” Read more

 

Urban Outfitters beats on top and bottom lines, but same-store sales sink at CNBC. “Revenue: $873 million, vs. $861 million estimated, Thomson Reuters said. Same-store sales: a decrease of 4.9 percent, vs. 6.9 percent drop expected.” Read more

 

Apple Readies $1 Billion War Chest for Hollywood Programming by Tripp Mickle at Wall Street Journal. “The figure is about half whatTime Warner Inc.’s HBO spent on content last year and on par with estimates of what Amazon spent in 2013, the year after it announced its move into original programming.” Read more (subs.)

 

Sears Canada to make fund for former employees denied severance at Toronto Star. “The $500,000 for the fund will come from money set aside to pay bonuses under a key employee retention plan at the retailer, which is restructuring under court protection from creditors.” Read more

 

Metro battles rising competition and minimum wage increases with e-commerce push by Hollie Shaw at Financial Post. “In the quarter ended June 17, same-store sales at Loblaw rose 1.2 per cent, but the country’s largest grocer said its own food prices fell lower than average national food price deflation of 1.4 per cent in the quarter.” Read more

 

SHIPPING CONTAINER RATES UP – The World’s Shipping Companies Are Going Super-Sized by Kyunghee Park at Bloomberg.”These super-sized shipping companies wield much more pricing power over manufacturers and retailers like Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Target Corp. The five biggest container lines control about 60 percent of the global market, according to data provider Alphaliner. Shipping rates are climbing, and an index tracking cargo rates on major routes from Asia is about 22 percent higher than it was a year earlier.” Read more

 

Americans Love Ordering Pizza on Facebook and Amazon by Taylor Cromwell at Bloomberg. “Last month, TGI Fridays began letting customers foot the bill using their Amazon accounts. And pizza chains are locked in an escalating battle to adopt new ordering methods — a contest that involves chat bots, voice-activated devices and social networks. Papa John’s International Inc. went so far as to declare itself an “e-commerce company” this month after delivering surprisingly strong results.” Read more

 

Amazon’s new ‘Instant Pickup’ service promises items in two minutes or less by Todd Bishop at GeekWire. “Instant Pickup is rolling out starting (yesterday) in Los Angeles (UCLA), Atlanta (Georgia Tech), Berkeley, Calif. (UC Berkeley), Columbus, Ohio (Ohio State) and College Park, Md. (University of Maryland).” Read more

 

AMC Theatres Wants to Block MoviePass Subscription Service After Price Cut by Paul Bond at The Hollywood Reporter. “MoviePass has been in existence for several years, but its service took off on Tuesday when it announced it would drop its price from $50 per month to $9.95.” Read more

 

Images purport to show Apple’s 60-inch OLED TV in secret testing laboratory at Fast Company. Read more/Pics

 

Amazon Enlists Bond Market in Its Quest for Grocery Dominance by Molly Smith at Bloomberg. “And in a sign of market interest, the longest portion of the offering, a 40-year security, was sold at a yield of 1.45 percentage points above Treasuries, down from initial talk of 1.6 percentage points to 1.65 percentage points, according to a person with knowledge of the matter.” Read more

 

TJX’s new store concept, HomeSense, is set to open in the U.S. for the first time this week at CNBC. Read more

 

Consumers are 270% more likely to purchase a product with five reviews than one with zero reviews by April Berthene at Internet Retailer. Read more

 

Creditors file over a thousand claims for payment from Gordmans by Russell Hubbard at Omaha World-Herald. “And there are a lot of creditors to which Gordmans owes money that don’t hold collateral — about $90 million in so-called unsecured claims have been filed, according to last week’s court documents.” Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra Stories

Actor Asks ‘Game of Thrones’ Fans to Stop Buying Huskies Because They Resemble Direwolves

Amazon patents accordion-like drone chute to deliver packages (Pics)

Build-A-Bear Workshop Selects FleishmanHillard

Amazon’s War on Fake Eclipse Glasses Trips Up Newbie Merchant

Gorilla Glue to weed grower: Dude, quit using our name

Traveling to St. Paul, band accidentally leaves drummer at North Dakota Walmart

Facebook adds eBay’s Daily Deals to its Marketplace on mobile

Read Tipsheet Extra Stories

 

Heard on the Call:

Home Depot Q2 Earnings Call Highlights

Craig Menear

Achieved a milestone of the highest quarterly sales and net earnings results in the company history.

In the U.S. all three of our divisions posted positive comps in the second quarter as did all of our 19 regions and top 40 markets.

All of our merchandising departments posted positive comps.

Our dot.com business represented 6.4% of sales and grew approximately 23% in the quarter.

There is 4.3 [ph] months of supply in the market of house and availability against a historical norm of six.

On share gain in quarter: We’re up 20 basis points.

Value is defined by what the customer is willing to pay for it.

 

Ted Decker

Lumber, Electrical, Tools and Flooring had double-digit comps in the quarter.

Total comp transactions grew by 2.6% and comp average ticket increased 3.6%.

Transactions over $900, which represent approximately 22% of our U.S. sales, were up 12.4%.

Transactions for tickets under $50 which now make up approximately 16% of our U.S. sales grew by 1.5%.

Pro sales outpaced the company average driven by both our high spend and low spend pros.

This quarter we are introducing PPG Timeless Paint. This new product is one coat coverage.

 

Carol Tome

Total company comps up 5.8% in May, 5.9% in June and 7.2% in July.

U.S. comps up 6.6% in May, 6.2% in June and 7% in July.

In the first six months of the year, we opened four new stores, including three in the U.S. and one in Mexico.

43% of our online transactions are picked up inside of a store.

Pro’s grew twice as fast than the DIY, actually expanded that gap a bit in the second quarter.

We spend more on digital on the second quarter than we did TV and radio combined.

Q2: The highest number of first-time homebuyers since 2005. About 424,000 first-time homebuyers making up 38% of all homebuyers and up 11% year-on-year.

Earnings Transcript via Seeking Alpha

 

Dick’s Sporting Goods Q2 Call Highlights

Ed Stack

Vendor distribution strategies have changed, and pricing in the marketplace has become unpredictable and at times irrational.

We will engage to protect and strengthen our leadership position.

We are intentionally joining this battle, and we will aggressively be promoting our business to drive market share to our stores and online.

We’ve conducted extensive consumer research, and the customers have told us they feel our prices are not competitive in today’s environment.

CALIA a brand we build in-house is now our third largest athletic women’s brand.

There’s a lot of people right now, I think in retail and in this industry in panic mode.

We are not going to sit back and just watch this happen. We’ve got the financial strength and muscle to withstand the storm, and we are going to be very aggressive.

But if we are going to get into a price war, we are going to get into a price war.

The golf business is rebounding, and the golf business is terrific.

 

Lee Belitsky

2.1% increase in ticket and a 2% decrease in transactions.

Our e-commerce business grew 19%.

Four areas that we were under sales pressure were hunting, licensed, athletic apparel, and electronics.

We now expect consolidated same-store sales to be flat to low single-digit negative for the year, compared to our previous guidance of positive 1% to 3%.

Earnings Transcript via Seeking Alpha

 

***

Eye on Retail Tipsheet is must-read material for 20,000+ retail execs every weekday morning. Tipsheet stories are carefully curated bright and early every morning to ensure fresh and unique content.

 

Subscribe to Eye on Retail Tipsheet here

 

Contact us: Send story tips, press releases and advertising inquiries to info@eyeonretail.net

 

Website: www.eyeonretail.net

 

 

Wal-Mart is quietly growing its online advertising business, analyst says by Eugene Kim at CNBC. “According to KeyBanc’s Ed Yruma, Wal-Mart’s website has started to show banner ads by third-party sellers more frequently…On top of that, Wal-Mart has recently started linking its in-store and online shopping data, giving more in-depth data that advertisers could play with, he said.” Read more

 

Target refreshes brands to stay chic and relevant, phasing out Merona and Mossimo at Star Tribune. “Over the next 18 months, Target will launch more than a dozen new brands, four of which begin hitting stores in coming weeks. They will be accompanied by a “More in Store” marketing campaign that will feature TV and print ads, a big direct mail piece and an increased digital investment that includes tapping into social media.” Read more

 

…Target’s Chief Merchandising Officer Mark Tritton Q&A by Tonya Garcia at Wall Street Journal. “WSJ: What is challenging for the company when it comes to introducing change while also meeting customers’ expectations? MR. TRITTON: We don’t want to rip off the bedspread and confuse the guests. It’s more about pace and cadence and being relevant at all times in the existing brands and the new brands.” Read more (subs.)

 

Aldi enters grocery delivery in partnership with Instacart by Nandita Bose at Reuters. “Aldi will launch a pilot starting the end of this month in Los Angeles, Atlanta and Dallas with the potential of expanding to more cities in the future.” Read more

 

Walmart: Back-to-school-themed gun display was a prank by Sean Rossman at USA Today. “Crowson didn’t specify what aspect of the incident was a prank, including whether someone doctored the photo or tampered with the display. He said the company had “several people” working on the investigation, which concluded Friday evening. “I really don’t think any retailer is immune from things like this popping up through social media,” he said. “When we’re faced with it, we do take the claim seriously.” Read more

 

Office Depot buys Boca Raton HQ for $132M by Brian Bandell at South Florida Business Journal. “It last traded for $171 million in 2011, so Office Depot bought it at a discount. It was constructed on the 28.9-acre campus in 2008. The purchase comes as a surprise as the company has been cutting expenses by closing dozens of stores across the nation.” Read more

 

2017 National Most Trustworthy Brands (Retail: Amazon #1, Costco #2, Target #3) at The Values Institute. Full list

 

ODORS AND FLIES – eBay’s founder has a new idea: build a dairy in Hawaii (but group works to block project) by Stephanie Strom at NY Times. Read article

 

Regional Grocery Stores Feel the Squeeze by Heather Haddon & Lillian Rizzo at Wall Street Journal. “There were 25,380 stores offering a full-range of groceries with at least $2 million in annual sales last year, down 6% from 2015, Inmar Willard Bishop found. The number of stores is expected to drop to roughly 19,000 by 2021, the firm says.” Read more (subs.)

 

LOOK AWAY – Amazon Is Issuing Refunds for Knockoff (and Safe) Solar Eclipse Glasses by Kevin Lui at Fortune. “Amazon has not disclosed how many glasses it has recalled. According to KGW, some vendors have reported their glasses being recalled despite being verified as safe.” Read more

 

JC Penney is about to step up its apparel game, but it could be too late by Lauren Thomas at CNBC. “It is very late in the game, and it is the most difficult part of the retail market,” GlobalData Retail managing director Neil Saunders told CNBC in an interview. “They are going to have to work incredibly hard to make it work and to be different.” Read more

 

Guam Home Depot is business as usual at USA Today. “Typically you’d expect to see water, generators, batteries, tarps and plastic go out,” he said, “but we’re pretty well stocked and I haven’t seen any spikes in those categories as of yet.” Read more

 

Five food innovators win H-E-B’s get-on-shelf competition & $90,000 in cash by Kelci Johnston at Click 2 Houston. “Grand Prize Winner ($25,000 and featured placement as a Texas Best Primo Pick): Skull & Cakebones — Mocha Marmalade.” List of winners

 

Finance Chiefs Are Staying on the Job Longer by Joann S. Lublin at Wall Street Journal. “At Home Depot Inc., 60-year-old Carol Tomé has worked for three chief executives since her 2001 promotion to CFO. She lost its CEO succession race to colleague Craig Menear in 2014. He asked her to stay. “I did a lot of soul searching,’’ Ms. Tomé said. She considered retiring, running for office or switching employers. She decided she would leave only if she landed a CEO spot elsewhere.” Read more (subs.)

 

Celebrity hair stylist launches salon with Saks Fifth Avenue by Jennifer Gould Kell at NY Post. “Joel Warren, co-founder of celebrity hair salon chain Warren-Tricomi, is launching a new salon concept with Saks Fifth Avenue. The partnership comes after Saks split with former salon partner John Barrett, Hillary Clinton’s personal hairdresser, and filed an $11 million lawsuit against Barrett that has since been settled.” Read more

 

Man reportedly causes $129K in damage at Wal-Mart liquor store at NBC 7 WJHG. “According to his arrest report, when Jones allegedly aimed the forklift toward Crestview Police officers, he was stopped at gunpoint and detained. The report said he “stated his name was Alice Wonderland and he was told to commit the offenses by a hookah-smoking caterpillar.” Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra Stories

Exclusive! The inside story of Comic-Con’s most coveted collectibles

Ex-Walmart merch exec to lead Greater Bentonville chamber on interim basis

44% of Millennials See Their Pets as Starter Children

Houston police nix use of Whataburger numbers at crime scenes

Inside the Elizabeth Warren merchandising empire (coloring books, action figures, tattoos..)

Man accused of “dumbing down running” now has 110 stores

TIKI Torch maker distances itself from Charlottesville protests

Ex-Microsoft exec, explains why Amazon’s Alexa took the industry by surprise

Costco banking on Aussies jumping on discount coupons

Man seeks $50 million from Home Depot, claims customers get shorted on paint

Read Tipsheet Extra Stories

 

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Eye on Retail Tipsheet is must-read material for 20,000+ retail execs every weekday morning. Tipsheet stories are carefully curated bright and early every morning to ensure fresh and unique content.

 

Subscribe to Eye on Retail Tipsheet here

 

Contact us: Send story tips, press releases and advertising inquiries to info@eyeonretail.net

 

Website: www.eyeonretail.net

 

 

 

BEAT 1 – Macy’s Q2 Comp Sales Beat Estimates, -2.5% vs. estimated -3.0% at Fox Business. Read more | Press release

 

BEAT 2 – Kohl’s Q2 comp sales +0.4% as foot traffic ‘accelerated’ at The Street. “Kohl’s stock surged over 3% premarket after the retailer announced Q2 earnings of $1.24 per share, beating the FactSet analyst consensus of $1.19 per share and jumping 60% from the same period last year.” Read more | Press release

 

BEAT 3 – Canadian Tire Q2 Comp Sales +1.8% by Hollie Shaw at Financial Post. “…earnings surging 9%. Revenue in the period ended July 1 rose two per cent to $3.4 billion from $3.3 billion in the same period a year ago.” Read more

 

Walmart apologizes for sign marketing guns as back-to-school items by Jackie Wattles at CNN Money. “A photo of a sign reading “Own the school year like a hero” was placed directly above a glass case filled with guns. Photos of it spread like wildfire on social media. People cried foul on Twitter and demanded an explanation from Walmart. One person asked: “What are you suggesting?” Walmart responded to some of the comments by calling the display “truly awful” and “horrible.”” Read more/Pic

 

Birchbox has held acquisition talks with several retailers, including Walmart by Jason Del Rey at Recode. “…with conversations taking place between Walmart’s U.S. e-commerce chief Marc Lore and Birchbox co-founder and CEO Katia Beauchamp.It’s not clear how far along any of the talks are…” Read more

 

Dillard’s Shares Fall After Earnings Miss by Tonya Garcia at Fox Business. “Same-store sales fell 1% for the quarter. Sales of women’s clothing rose slightly, but shoes were below trend, the company said.” Read more

 

Target continues online retail partnership trend with BarkBox company agreement by Dan DeBaun at Minneapolis/St.Paul Business Journal. “This is the first time Bark products will be sold at retail stores. Its products are already being sold on Target’s website. Since launching in 2012, the company has shipped over 50 million toys and treats.” Read more

 

Forbes: America’s Largest Private Companies (Albertsons #3, Publix #7, Wawa #34) Top 50 list

 

Walgreens Balance Reward points to expire after 1 year instead of 3 by Ally Marotti at Chicago Tribune via St.Louis Post-Dispatch. “Walgreens spokeswoman Emily Hartwig-Mekstan said in an email that company officials believe the new policy will encourage customers “to redeem their points more frequently and lead to more engagement with the program.” Read more

 

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Office Depot Admits Amazon Is Stealing Its Business and Shares Slide 25% by Phil Wahba at Fortune. “The company’s executives, including CEO Gerry Smith, suggested that Office Depot’s business services pipeline had fallen to “basically zero,” during the time it was waiting for the government’s approval of the Staples deal.” Read more

 

Payless emerges as rare bankruptcy survivor via CNBC. “Payless has closed roughly 700 mostly mall-based U.S. stores in bankruptcy, court papers show, but is opening four mega stores here to add to some 3,200 post-bankruptcy locations in the U.S. and abroad.” Read more

 

Vitamin Shoppe Q2 Comp Sales -8.3% Press release

 

Ban-the-box laws backfire, can hurt black job applicants, study finds by Gina Hall at New York Business Journal. “Before ban-the-box, white applicants received about 7 percent more callbacks than similar black applicants. After a ban-the-box policy went into effect, white applicants were 45 percent more likely to get called into an interview than a black applicant.” Read more

 

If you’re looking for Mayweather-McGregor tickets, Costco may be able to help by Kevin Iole at Yahoo Sports. “CostcoTickets.com sent an email Wednesday touting it has tickets available for the showdown between the unbeaten Mayweather and McGregor, the UFC lightweight champion. And sure enough, a check of the site shows plenty of high-end tickets available.” Read more

 

Toys”R”Us Names Former USMC Veteran As Executive Officer, U.S. Marketplace Operations Press release

 

American are drinking more…especially women by John Tozzi at Bloomberg. “The rise is “startling,” said Bridget Grant, a researcher at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and lead author of the paper. “We haven’t seen these increases for three or four decades.”” Read more

 

CVS Health CEO Doubts Amazon Entry Into Pharmacy Business by Bruce Japsen at Forbes. “Most people are thinking about pharmacy as another distribution point, but pharmacy is also about the clinical outcomes that are provided,” Merlo said. “In an environment where there’s a migration to more value-based care, those clinical capabilities are going to continue to grow in importance. It’s highly regulated, so the barriers to entry are high.” Read more

 

As Blue Apron shares sink, rival Chef’d reels in $35 million from Smithfield and Campbell Soup by Ari Levy at CNBC. Read more

 

People trust Apple with their health data a lot more than Amazon (41% vs. 8%) at CNBC. Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra Stories

Consumer Reports pulls Microsoft laptop recommendation

Wegmans goes underground in Washington, DC

Trump eyes duties up to 81% on Chinese aluminum foil

This strange app lets you rent a swimming pool

Conan O’Brien Gave Amazon’s New Audiobooks for Dogs a Test Run

Macy’s corporate attorney joins Cincinnati’s largest law firm

Man, transgender wife sue Amazon for workplace bias

Read Tipsheet Extra Stories

 

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Eye on Retail Tipsheet is must-read material for 20,000+ retail execs every weekday morning. Tipsheet stories are carefully curated bright and early every morning to ensure fresh and unique content.

 

Subscribe to Eye on Retail Tipsheet here

 

Contact us: Send story tips, press releases and advertising inquiries to info@eyeonretail.net

 

Website: www.eyeonretail.net