Amazon’s ‘1-Click’ patent expires today by Monica Nickelsburg at GeekWire. "Amazon won the patent back in 1997 when the nascent company was still just an online book retailer." Read more   Home-Improvement Retailers Scramble to Restock in Florida by Sarah Nassauer at Wall Street Journal."Lowe’s is deemed part of “restoration and recovery” in most U.S. states, a classification that lets its trucks drive into storm-struck areas before citizens, said Rick Neudorff, emergency command center operations manager for the Mooresville, N.C., retailer. “A good portion of my responsibility outside of storm response, when it’s slow, is to build a relationship [...]

  Wal-Mart pledges up to $30 million in hurricane relief efforts by Lauren Thomas at CNBC. "During the run of this campaign, customers can donate to the American Red Cross within Wal-Mart and Sam's Clubs stores, or online. For every $1 given, Wal-Mart will contribute $2, or product of equal value, the company said. Donations will be accepted through Sept. 16." Read more   Nordstrom Tries On a New Look: Stores Without Merchandise by Suzanne Kapner at Wall Street Journal. "Nordstrom Local, scheduled to open Oct. 3 in West Hollywood, Calif., will span 3,000 square feet, far less than the [...]

  Kroger Q2 comp sales (no fuel) +0.7% "Total sales increased 3.9% to $27.6 billion in the second quarter compared to $26.6 billion for the same period last year. Total sales, excluding fuel, increased 3.8% in the second quarter compared to the same period last year." Press release   How Rosalind Brewer, Starbucks’ First Woman COO, Got the Job by Beth Kowitt at Fortune. "It was the end of 2016 and she was running Sam’s Club, Walmart’s warehouse club division. Starbucks’ chief executive Howard Schultz was visiting the retailing giant’s Bentonville headquarters for a panel discussion with Walmart CEO Doug McMillon. [...]

  Amazon to build second HQ in North America, seeks proposals from cities for $5B campus with up to 50K jobs, ‘full equal’ to Seattle operations by Todd Bishop at GeekWire. "The company just announced the plan for what it’s calling “HQ2” inviting states and local governments to pitch the company on bringing the new headquarters to their community." Read more | Press release   Home Depot Taps Up Google Home for Voice Ordering by Phil Wahba at Fortune. "Last month, Walmart made a similar announcement, hoping to catch up to Amazon's Alexa capability on its Echo devices and offer a service many competitors [...]

  HD Supply Q2 net sales +5.4% "Preliminary Net sales in August were approximately $435 million, which represents year-over-year average daily sales growth of approximately 6.7 percent." Press release   Fred's Q2 comp sales -0.3% "Net sales for the second quarter were $507.8 million, down 4.1% from $529.5 million in the same period last year." Press release   At Home Group Q2 comp sales +7.8% "Net sales increased 23.2% to $232.1 million from $188.4 million in the quarter ended July 30, 2016 driven by the net addition of 21 stores since the second quarter of fiscal 2017." Press release   Casey's Q2 grocery/merchandise comp sales +3.1% "Fiscal [...]

  South Florida stores order drinking water, hurricane supplies as jittery locals empty shelves at Miami Herald. "Monday, shoppers said they were hitting stores early to beat last-minute crowds that generally flood stores just before a storm is expected. Some stores were able to keep pace with the surge of early birds. At a Publix in Miami’s Morningside neighborhood, shelves still held ample supplies of bottled water at midafternoon, and workers were refilling them through the day." Read more   Fear of Amazon Pushes Blackstone to Call Off Major Shopping Mall Sale via Fortune. "Blackstone Group has called off the [...]

  Ocean Beach residents rally against proposed Target Express by Abbey Gibb at Fox 5. "A few dozen protesters marched down Newport Avenue holding signs that read "No Target in OB." "It would ruin the OB vibe and bring corporate greed into the town we love," one protester said. "Although there's not much we can do to stop them, we don't have to like it." Video/Read more   Lululemon Soars After Shrugging Off Athletic-Industry Woes by Lindsey Rupp at Bloomberg. "Total comparable sales grew 7 percent in second quarter. Company on track for $4 billion in revenue by 2020, CEO says." Read [...]

  Costco August comp sales +7.3% "Costco reported net sales of $9.8 billion for the month of August, the four weeks ended August 27, 2017, an increase of 10.0 percent from $8.9 billion during the similar period last year." Press release   Dollar General Q2 comp sales +2.6% "Net sales increased 8.1 percent to $5.83 billion in the 2017 second quarter compared to $5.39 billion in the 2016 second quarter...Same-store sales increases were driven by positive results in the consumables and seasonal categories, partially offset by negative results in the home products and apparel categories." Press release   Five Below Q2 comp sales +9.3% "Net [...]