Tipsheet: Bank Sues Lowe’s | F.Locker Sneaker Fights | Costco Tax Help | Kohl’s +7%

 

Kohl’s boosts full-year outlook on strong holiday sales, shares soar at CNBC. “Kohl’s on Monday reported same-store sales during the holidays climbed nearly 7 percent from 2016. Recent initiatives including partnering with Amazon and bringing in more items from popular athletic apparel brands Under Armour, Nikeand Adidas are paying off for Kohl’s, which said more people have been shopping its stores.” Read more

 

Raymond James sues Lowe’s over investment banking deal by Margie Manning at Tampa Bay Business Journal. “Lowe’s agreed to pay Raymond James $200,000 for any deal that closed…In November 2015, Lowe’s notified Raymond James that it was having direct discussions with Maintenance Supply, and in September 2016, Lowe’s told Raymond James that it would not engage Raymond James to serve as investment banking advisor in connection with that deal, although it was still willing to pay Raymond James the $200,000 transaction fee.” Read more

 

Fights break out at Foot Locker pop-up store – closes just an hour after it opens by Jordan Graham at Boston Herald. “There was a line to the end of the block, a very orderly line,” said Mike Cutty, who came from Providence. “Everyone gets excited and worked up because they see people cutting, the security isn’t doing their job and keeping order. Once security blows that, it’s a wrap.” Read more

 

…Lucky man bought a pair of Kyrie 3 Rayguns for $120 – sold them from the trunk of a car for $1,000

 

Amazon captured 89 percent of online spending among dominant holiday retailers in the five-week period beginning on Thanksgiving by Spencer Soper at Bloomberg. Read more

 

Whole Foods places new limits on suppliers, upsetting some small vendors by Abha Bhattarai at The Washington Post via Post Dispatch. “…under the new rules, Whole Foods is requiring suppliers to work exclusively with Daymon, a Stamford, Conn.-based retail strategy firm, and its subsidiary, SAS Retail Services, to schedule in-store tastings, check inventory on shelves and create displays on their behalf.” Read more

 

Target will wind down Instacart partnership as focuses on Shipt acquisition by Kavita Kumar at Star Tribune. “…there is no timeline yet for when delivery via Instacart from Target stores in the three markets where it offered the service — the Twin Cities, Chicago, and San Francisco — will end.” Read more (tiered subs.)

 

**A message from Kidibul – The festive, bubbly beverage made for kids’ parties! Wildly popular European beverage now available in the US for the first time. 100% natural & sparkling juice in a champagne type bottle with natural cork & wire to pop. Great for birthdays, New Year, Christmas, etc. Kids love the bubbles! Website | PowerPoint | Samples: info@eyeonretail.net

 

Robomart is the latest startup to try and unseat the local c-store by Jonathan Shieber at TechCrunch. “Customers would license the platform, vehicle and all, on a 24 month lease. “It’s significantly cheaper than setting up a new store,” Ahmed said….Interiors come equipped with either a refrigeration or heating system, and Ahmed says he’s talked to wholesalers about equipping separate trucks to mimic different sections of a grocery aisle — from dairy, to poultry, to meat, to vegetables.” Read/See

 

An early look at Nike’s newest headquarters buildings and art-infused upgrades by Clare Duffy at Portland Business Journal. 24 pics

 

10% of Amazon workforce in Ohio on food stamps at The Alliance Review. “…according to Policy Matters Ohio, a progressive policy group…Amazon likely has about 700 workers receiving food stamps, more than 10 percent of its Ohio workforce.” Read more

 

Logo dispute between HealthPartners and Sam’s Club is quietly settled by Christopher Snowbeck at Star Tribune. “Neither party is commenting on the settlement terms, although both seem to still be using logos that feature three overlapping tilted squares in green, blue and purple.” Read more (tiered subs.)

 

Costco suggests shoppers go to Tukwila to avoid Seattle’s sugary drinks tax by Matt Day at Seattle Times. “A notice, spotted by the Washington Policy Center advocacy group, appears alongside a pack of Gatorade that received a bit of internet fame this week as people passed on the image of the tax markup.” Read more

 

…Tax adds $10.34 to 35-ct case of Gatorade!

 

Famed Seattle restaurateur Tom Douglas is partnering with Nordstrom on his first Eastside restaurant, Department Bento at Eater Seattle. Read more

 

Venezuela supermarkets besieged after government forces price cuts at AP via Yahoo. “Authorities on Friday ordered supermarkets to cut prices to levels they were a month ago, a drastic reduction given Venezuela’s hyperinflation. At one supermarket in a high-end district of Caracas, hundreds of people including babies, pensioners and children with disabilities gathered in chaotic scenes. “We’re hungry! We want food!” they screamed.” Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra Stories

H&M slammed for racism after showing black boy in ‘coolest monkey in the jungle’ hoodie

The Country’s best sandwiches are made by this grocery chain

J. Crew chairman buys Miami Beach lot from former MTV CEO

Crook uses illusion trick to steal hundreds of dollars from Walmart

Judge sentences former grocery exec to 10 years in child porn case

These Are the U.S. Cities With the Worst Bed Bug Infestations

Woman avoids jail after locking kids in trunk to shop at Walmart

Read Tipsheet Extra Stories

 

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Eye on Retail Tipsheet is must-read material for 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

Tipsheet: Katz Out | Ellison Warns | Ex-WM.com CEO Iview | Amazon Diet

Neiman Marcus CEO Karen Katz Will Step Aside, Succeeded by Former Ralph Lauren Executive by Suzanne Kapner & Joann S. Lublin at Wall Street Journal. “Karen Katz, a Neiman lifer who has served as CEO and president since 2010, is stepping aside and will be succeeded by former Ralph Lauren executive Geoffroy van Raemdonck, the people said. Ms. Katz, 60 years old, plans to retire from her executive duties but will retain her board seat, the people said.” Read more (subs.) | CNBC article

 

Apple Says All Macs, iPhones and iPads Exposed to Chip Security Flaws by Mark Gurman at Bloomberg. Read more

 

Amazon grabbed 4 percent of all US retail sales in 2017 at CNBC. “One Click Retail found the fastest-growing product groups on Amazon.com in 2017 were luxury beauty (up 47 percent from a year ago), pantry items (up 38 percent), grocery (up 33 percent) and furniture (up 33 percent).” Read more

 

Macy’s Nov/Dec Comp Sales +1.0% Press release

 

…Macy’s announces 5,000 job cuts, 7 new store closures by Nathan Bomey at USA Today. “The moves are part of a plan announced in August 2016 to close 100 stores. Altogether, the company has now revealed 81 of the 100 locations.” Read more

 

Sears closing 64 Kmart stores and 39 Sears stores, all of which are expected to shut between early March and April at CNBC. Read more

 

…J.C. Penney CEO Warns Sears: We’re Coming for Your Appliance Business by Phil Wahba at Fortune. “We’re going after Sears and we’re going after market share that we think is going to be available not only now but as they continue to contract” Ellison said.” Read more

 

Baltimore Retailers Forced to Hire Security Guards During Holiday Season Due To Uptick In Crime at CBS Baltimore. “The money came from business owners and retailers who paid for more than a dozen private officers, who roamed downtown Baltimore for about two weeks, including the Inner Harbor for the New Year’s fireworks show.” Video/Read more

 

Apple’s Angela Ahrendts says it took years to figure out the key to success by Mark Matousek at Business Insider. “…in a 2010  commencement address  she gave at her alma mater, Ball State University, she said she hadn’t discovered the secret to her success until she was asked to give the speech. “This speech-writing journey forced me to stop and reflect, in a way I haven’t done in years,” she said.” Read more

 

List of 69 Gander Outdoors Retail Store Locations Scheduled to Open in 2018 Press release

 

**A message from deVaca – Give decaf coffee drinkers the natural product they’re looking for. Great tasting – caffeine free – non-GMO coffee substitute. Grown & roasted in Colorado. Fill the natural caffeine free gap in your coffee assortment. Sell sheet | Sample: info@shiftmarketinggroup.net

 

Prediction: Facebook emerges as a real challenger to Craigslist by Jason Del Rey at Recode. “Facebook’s Marketplace had a rough start when it launched in late 2016. But a year later, the site has morphed into a thriving bazaar of used goods with a surprisingly healthy amount of both buyers and sellers.” Read more predictions

 

Ex-Walmart.com CEO Carter Cast says Walmart store closures are a good sign for e-commerce at CNBC. 3:40 video/Read more

 

Cash-Strapped Venezuela Offers to Pay for Medicines With Diamonds by Kejal Vyas at Wall Street Journal. “Bartering is also creeping into daily street transactions for staples, partly because the government is too broke to print enough currency. The so-called Strong Bolivar, which the government created in 2008 by lopping three zeros off its previous currency, lost 97% of its value in 2017 alone.” Read more (subs.)

 

Walgreens said Thursday that it expects to close its acquisition of 1,932 Rite Aid stores in the spring by Nathan Bomey at USA Today. Read more

 

Claire’s says lab results rebut Asbestos claims at CNBC. “We also confirmed that the talc ingredient that is used in the cosmetics was sourced from Merck KGaA and is asbestos free. Any report that suggests that the products are not safe is totally false.” Read more

 

Avoid Romaine Lettuce for Now, Consumer Reports Says Read more

 

Panera’s pay-what-you-want restaurant to close via KMOV 4. “Customers paid, on average, about 85 percent of the suggested price. (Exec Chairman) Shaich says that proves people are “fundamentally good.” Read more

 

Amazon’s search for studio head is “a better show than anything Amazon has on the air right now” according to one industryite by Cynthia Littleton at Variety. Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra Stories

This Is The Man To Blame For The Term ‘Bomb Cyclone’

How to lose over 50 pounds – work in an Amazon warehouse

Online Retailer JD Follows Alibaba Into the Supermarket Game

Casey’s planning $35 million HQ expansion

Tech giant is rolling out new robots to replace workers in supermarkets

Marijuana Crackdown by Sessions Leaves GOP Fearing 2018 Backlash

Whole Foods’ Walter Robb to Keynote SFA 2018 Leadership Awards

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Eye on Retail Tipsheet is must-read material for 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

Tipsheet: Costco +8.8% | JCP +3.0% | Target Fast App

 

Walgreens Q1: Retail pharmacy US comp sales +4.7% / US comp retail sales -0.9% “Fiscal 2018 first quarter net earnings attributable to Walgreens Boots Alliance…22.1 percent to $821 million compared with the same quarter a year ago…The decreases in GAAP net earnings…were mainly due to impairment of the company’s equity method investment in Guangzhou Pharmaceuticals.” Press release

 

Costco December Comp Sales +8.8% (ex-gas & F/X) “The (one additional shopping day) positively impacted total and comparable sales by approximately +2.5% for the five-week December retail month.” Press release

 

Rite Aid Q3: Revenue -5.6% / Retail pharmacy revenue -3.0% / Comp sales -2.5% (-3.5% in pharmacy comp & -0.5% in front-end comp) Press release

 

JC Penney’s same-store sales jump 3% during holiday season; shares soar at CNBC. “We are very encouraged with our overall comp sales performance during the holiday season, which was led by home, beauty and fine jewelry,” CEO Marvin Ellison said in a statement. The company added that its e-commerce business posted double-digit sales growth during the holiday season.” Read more

 

Target’s app wins on speed over a holiday shopping weekend by April Berthene at Internet Retailer. “Target’s app loaded the fastest at 2.1 seconds on average during the Dec. 15-17 period, followed by Kohl’s in 2.5 seconds and Walmart in 4.7 seconds. Target also has the smallest average asset size, meaning images that have to load, at 15 kilobytes, compared with 17 kilobytes for Kohl’s and 29 for Walmart.” Read more

 

Dick’s Sporting Goods could be a ‘survivor’ like Best Buy: Wells Fargo at CNBC. “Wells Fargo analyst Ike Boruchow wrote in a note to clients that the outlook for the sporting goods retailer is only “improving” from here, as industry trends from a higher level appear to be “stabilizing” after a rough few months.” Read more

 

Macy’s is about to close more stores at CNBC. “Little by little, Macy’s is beginning to close some of the roughly 30 stores it previously announced were on the chopping block. So far, 11 stores have been identified for closure, and four of those stores’ teams have been notified.” Read more

 

**A message from Kidibul – The festive, bubbly beverage made for kids’ parties! Wildly popular European beverage now available in the US for the first time. 100% natural & sparkling juice in a champagne type bottle with natural cork & wire to pop. Great for birthdays, New Year, Christmas, etc. Kids love the bubbles! Website | PowerPoint | Samples: info@eyeonretail.net

 

US shoppers who own an Echo device spend significantly more on Amazon by Matt Linder at Internet Retailer. “The average of $1,700 spent by Echo owners is about 30% higher than what Amazon Prime members spend on average ($1,300) per year.” Read more

 

Rotisserie Chickens: The Nineties’ Gift to Supermarkets That Keeps on Giving by Annie Gasparro at Wall Street Journal. “Americans bought 625 million rotisserie chickens at supermarkets in 2017, according to market-research firm Nielsen… Costco sold 87 million in its 2017 fiscal year, compared with 51 million in fiscal 2010…“We are relentlessly focused on keeping that price point,” said Russ Richardson, vice president of deli and bakery for Kroger Co. , the second-largest U.S. food retailer.” Read more (subs.)

 

Bon-Ton’s CFO leaving company for Pier 1 Imports; successor named by Melanie Lawder at Milwaukee Business Journal. “Michael Culhane…will take over (Nancy) Walsh’s role. Culhane…has previously held the position of chief financial officer at Hudson’s Bay Company, as well as executive roles with Lord & Taylor and May Department Stores Co.” Read more

 

The Cashless Society Has Arrived— Only It’s in China by Alyssa Abkowitz at Wall Street Journal. “Payment via mobile-phone services such as WeChat is sweeping the country…Behind the trend are internet titans Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Tencent Holdings Ltd., which are elbowing aside banks to take a growing role in daily commerce.” Read more (subs.)

 

The Buckle December comp sales -4.1% Press release

 

Walmart Cashier Class Says Co. Concedes Seating Feasible by Dave Simpson at Law 360. “A class of Walmart cashiers alleging the retail giant violated state law by failing to provide them seats claimed Tuesday in California federal court that by providing seats to cashiers with disabilities, the company has already acknowledged that their work reasonably permits seating.” Read more (subs.)

 

Camping World buying Erehwon Mountain Outfitter “…three Chicagoland area locations and the flagship location in the Milwaukee area.” Press release

 

Ex-Amazon exec takes helm of Wiserg, raises $19.2M for startup that turns food scraps into fertilizer by Clare McGrane at GeekWire. “The company has partnered with grocery stores to recycle food waste using its device, including a deal with Whole Foods…Wiserg then sells the nutrient-rich liquid the machine makes back to the agricultural sector as a fertilizer.” Read more

 

Home Depot orange apron featured in The Smithsonian’s “American Enterprise” exhibit at Built From Scratch. Pics/Read more

 

Flu kills 34 more people, including a 1-year-old, in San Diego by Paul Sisson at San Diego Union-Tribune. “A feverish mob began arriving at local emergency rooms right around the holidays, creating long waits and forcing some facilities to set up tents in their parking lots to relieve pressure on their emergency waiting rooms — just as they did in 2009 when the H1N1 epidemic hit.” Read more

 

Brooks Needs Runners Who Hate to Run by Clare Suddath at Bloomberg. “Brooks is so specific to runners that a few months ago, when employees saw someone wearing a pair at a bar in Texas they interrogated him…Weber wants to change that. Over the next few years, he thinks Brooks can become a $1 billion brand, essentially doubling its revenue.” Read more

 

Charming Charlie unveils restructuring plan by Katherine Blunt at Houston Chronicle.”The plan would allow the Houston-based jewelry and accessories retailer to wipe about $69 million from its balance sheet after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.” Read more

 

Some Oregonians panic about new self-service gas law at Washington Post via Mercury News. “I don’t even know HOW to pump gas and I am 62, native Oregonian . . . I say NO THANKS! I don’t like to smell like gasoline!” one woman wrote.” Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra Stories

Why Walmarts in California couldn’t sell ammo for more than a day

In-N-Out adds first new menu item in more than a decade

A popular sugar additive may have fueled the spread of two superbugs

Dippin’ Dots dips into the cryogenics business

Canada Goose shares rise as ‘bomb cyclone’ approaches

Lululemon’s Chip Wilson-named design school opens in Canada

Should Cincinnati be worried about Macy’s HQ leaving town?

Read Tipsheet Extra Stories

 

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Eye on Retail Tipsheet is must-read material for 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

 

Tipsheet: Wmart CIO’s 2 Main Things | Blank Talks H.Depot | Halo Top Hell | Hot Chocolate

 

Amazon killed their wine website. Now the two founders are back with another. by Jason Del Rey at Recode. “A few days ago, the duo launched a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter for a new wine-selling venture called Casemates, which allows wine producers to sell directly to U.S. consumers online. On Day 1, the campaign surpassed its $50,000 goal; it sat at $104,000 as of Tuesday morning.” Read more

 

Walmart CIO Clay Johnson Q&A by Peter High at Forbes. “We are doing two big things. The first one is that we are moving to a product model and to end-to-end ownership…Once we have end-to-end ownership across the board, the key question becomes about driving efficiencies in the process. Increasingly, we are addressing this with process automation, which is the second big thing.” Q&A

 

The Germans Are Escalating America’s Grocery Price War by Craig Giammona at Bloomberg. “If it’s death by a thousand cuts, Aldi and Lidl are holding the blade,” said Mike Paglia, a grocery analyst at the research firm Kantar Retail. “It looks a lot like a price war, and you’re starting to see those ripple effects.” Read more

 

Internet giants fuel warehouse demand as land prices surge by Lauren Thomas at CNBC. “In surveying 10 U.S. markets, CBRE found the average price for “large industrial parcels” (50 to 100 acres) now sits at more than $100,000 per acre, up from about $50,000 a year ago.” Read more

 

Nordstrom To Begin Hiring Employees For New NYC Men’s Store “Nordstrom will hire 250 employees for its first stand-alone Men’s Store in Manhattan, which will open on Broadway between West 57th and West 58th Streets in April 2018. The company will also open a New York City flagship store in 2019 at the base of Central Park Tower.” Press release

 

…Nordstrom upgraded on key partnerships and ‘differentiated’ assortment by Tonya Garcia at MarketWatch. “Even with e-commerce making up only 15% of the business versus 85% in-store, J.P. Morgan thinks Nordstrom is insulated from online competition thanks to high-quality real estate, omnichannel initiatives, and the off-price Rack and Hautlook concepts.” Read more

 

Outfoxed by Small-Batch Upstarts, Unilever Decides to Imitate Them by Saabira Chaudhuri at Wall Street Journal. “When (Halo Top) became America’s best-selling ice-cream pint last year, executives at Unilever’s premium brand, Ben & Jerry’s, were stunned. “It’s all they talked about,” said a former Ben & Jerry’s executive, referring to former colleagues.” Read more (subs.)

 

Amazon’s advertising push will not threaten Google’s search business, analyst says by Arjun Kharpal at CNBC. “Merkle is seeing very little overlap between Amazon’s ad customers and Google’s. In addition, the use case for Amazon and Google’s search is very different,” Lee wrote in the note.” Read more

 

**A message from ReadyStrainer – Sink full of dirty dishes and need to drain noodles? The ReadyStrainer sits at the side of the sink and directs water into the sink. Dirty dishes are cumbersome to move and can contaminate other food with unhealthy bacteria. Problem solved! Product Overview | Website | Sample: info@shiftmarketinggroup.net

 

Arthur Blank talks with NPR about launching Home Depot via Built from Scratch. “Listen in as Arthur talks about the highlights, the lowlights and the truly unbelievable moments with NPR’s Guy Raz.” 33:11 audio

 

The ‘Shroom Boom: Will Trendy Medicinal Mushrooms Go Mainstream In 2018? by Rina Raphael at Fast Company. “Food Navigator found that year-on-year sales for food products incorporating medicinal mushrooms rose have risen between 200-800%, depending on the variety.” Read more

 

Citigroup: There’s a 40% chance Apple buys Netflix by Jim Edwards at Business Insider. “The firm has too much cash – nearly $250 billion – growing at $50 billion a year. This is a good problem to have,” Suva and Merchant told clients…Apple would need only a third of that cash to buy Netflix, the pair say.” Read more

 

…Variety: Entertainment Predictions for 2018 – Netflix buys a studio. “One potential takeover target: MGM, which oversees a large library of movies and TV shows, with James Bond, “Stargate,” “Rocky” and “RoboCop” among its franchises. MGM also owns premium cable channel Epix, which could give Netflix an intriguing foothold in pay TV.” Read more

 

Rent-A-Center CEO Mark Speese steps down via CNBC. “The rent-to-own furniture retailer has been under pressure from activist hedge funds Engaged Capital and Marcato Capital to sell itself.” Read more

 

Amazon, Google cut speaker prices in market share contest by Stephen Nellis & Paresh Dave at Reuters. “Amazon.com and Google both discounted their virtual assistant speakers so deeply over the holiday shopping season that they likely lost a few dollars per unit.” Read more

 

Holiday Jewelry Sales Grew 5.9 Percent in 2017 Says Study by Emili Veslind at JCK. Read more

 

M&M’s maker says climate change could lead to chocolate shortage by 2050 by Josh Hafner at USA Today. “Rising temperatures from climate change threaten to shrink the slim strip of rainforests around the equator where the cacao trees used to make chocolate thrive…the two West African nations that produce over half of the world’s chocolate — Ghana and Ivory Coast — would feel the heat.” Read more

 

The US government blocks MoneyGram’s $1.2B sale to Alibaba’s Ant Financial by Jon Russell at TechCrunch. Read more

 

Amazon finally wins a patent for 3-D printing on demand, for pickup or delivery by Alan Boyle at GeekWire. “Is it an idea whose time has come, or whose time has passed? Hard to tell: Amazon set up an online store for custom 3-D printing back in 2014, but that part of the website currently offers only 3-D printing hardware and supplies.” Read more

 

2 Chainz says he’s still on the fence over taking Walmart to court for allegedly ripping off his Dabbin’ Santa sweaters Video/Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra Stories

Costco charges woman $201,265.20 for a tank of gas

40% of Millennial Women Say Instagram Is the Best Way for Brands to Reach Them

Why the University of Illinois Is Investing in Farmland

Chip and Joanna Gaines expecting Baby No. 5

Police search for ‘serial puncher’ who attacked two Walmart employees

84-Year-old man gets locked inside Rite Aid on Christmas day

Sports Authority signs at Denver Broncos stadium are finally coming down

Read Tipsheet Extra Stories

 

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Eye on Retail Tipsheet is must-read material for 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

Tipsheet: Amazon Buy Target? | Kroger/Ace Partner? | Poop Toys Hot | Organic Milk Oversupply

 

Amazon Will Buy Target This Year, Loup’s Gene Munster Predicts by Beth Mellor at Bloomberg. “Target is the ideal offline partner for Amazon for two reasons, shared demographic and manageable but comprehensive store count,” Munster wrote…Market-share numbers suggest a deal would be approved by regulators, and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. would still have a larger share than an Amazon-Target combination, Munster said. He estimated a take-out valuation of $41 billion, or a 15 percent premium to Target’s current value.” Read more

 

First recreational marijuana shops open in California by Lisa Krieger at Mercury News. “California is now the sixth state in the nation to allow recreational cannabis sales, joining Colorado, Washington, Oregon, Alaska and Nevada. The marijuana market — the largest cannabis one in the country — is expected to grow to $7 billion annually by 2020.” Read more/Video

 

Kroger is considering a partnership with Ace Hardware by Cathaleen Chen at The Street. “Under the partnership, Ace would have a presence within Kroger stores as a “store-inside-a-store,” according to a source familiar with the discussion. Kroger, which operates 2,800 stores, could not be immediately reached for comment. Ace CEO John Venhuizen declined to comment.” Read more

 

Claire’s pulls makeup popular with girls amid asbestos allegations at CNBC. “A report last Friday from WJAR-TV in Rhode Island cited Kristi Warner, who mailed her daughter’s glitter makeup kit to a lab, which said it contained tremolite asbestos, a toxic, cancer-causing material.” Read more

 

WE’RE NUMBER THREE – QVC parent Liberty Interactive completes $2.1B deal for HSN by Mark Harden at Denver Business Journal. “The acquisition creates the third-largest e-commerce company in the U.S., behind only Amazon.com Inc. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc.” Read more

 

Home Depot, Amazon may go head-to-head over shipping giant XPO by Annie Palmer at The Street. “Both Home Depot and Amazon work with XPO to deliver large appliances and furniture like refrigerators, stoves and couches.” Read more

 

Dairy Producers, Farmers Struggle With Organic-Milk Oversupply by Heather Haddon & Benjamin Parkin at Wall Street Journal. “It’s reached a market saturation,” said Evan Rainwater, senior vice president for manufacturing at supermarket chain Albertsons Cos. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and other big chains made the product available so widely so quickly, that organic milk became less of a specialty item, Mr. Rainwater said.” Read more (subs.)

 

**A message from Real Coconut Water: Experts in coconut water production for 15+ years. Branded & PL supplier to leading grocers. Organic & Natural options available. Consumers love the sweeter taste – you’ll love our price! Sell sheet | Website | Request samples: info@eyeonretail.net

 

Target Pulls Cards Against Humanity Expansion Pack After Controversy by Emily Price at Fortune. “The almost always off-color cards recently went a bit too far for some players with its “Chosen People Pack,” an expansion pack for the original game with some cards that seem to make light of the Holocaust. For instance, one of the cards reads “Torturing Jews until they say they’re not Jews anymore,” Business Insider reports.” Read more

 

More than 5 Billion Items Shipped with Prime in 2017 Press release

 

Restoration Hardware CEO buys back nearly half of the company’s shares by Riley McDermid at San Francisco Business Journal. “They are using their last available dollars to buy back their least valuable security,” David Tawil, president of Maglan Capital, a hedge fund that is betting against RH, told the Journal.” Read more | WSJ article (subs.)

 

Yeti sues Walmart — again — for allegedly selling knockoff products by Will Anderson at Austin Business Journal. “The products include 20- and 30-ounce Rambler cups as well as a Koozie that keeps canned drinks insulated. Go here to download a copy of the suit.” Read more

 

Amazon Can’t Target People Unable To Spell ‘Birkenstock’: Judge via HuffPo. “A German court has ordered Amazon not to lure internet shoppers to its online marketplace when they mistakenly search for “Brikenstock”, “Birkenstok”, “Bierkenstock” and other variations in Google.” Read more

 

Forever 21 confirms credit card breach involving malware by I-Chun Chen via Chicago Business Journal. “Forever 21 said encryption was off and malware was installed on some devices in some U.S. stores at varying times from April 3 to Nov. 18.” Read more

 

Trump: U.S. Postal Service is making Amazon richer, should be charging tech giant ‘MUCH MORE!’ by Todd Bishop at GeekWire. Read more

 

Consumers dropped $200 million on apps on Christmas, up 12 percent from last year by Sarah Perez at TechCrunch. “The revenue generated by the non-game category comes in large part from streaming apps – like Netflix and HBO NOW. Consumers in 2017 spent a whopping 98 percent more on Entertainment apps versus the same time last year, says Sensor Tower.” Read more

 

53 chain drugstore locations — nearly 10 percent of the total — closed in New York City this year by Lisa Fickenscher at NY Post. Read more

 

The Limits of Amazon by Christopher Mims at Wall Street Journal. “There is one major problem with the idea that Amazon will eat the entire universe, however. Amazon is good at identifying commodity products and making those as cheap and available as possible. “Your margin is my opportunity” is one of Chief Executive Jeff Bezos’s best-known bon mots. But this system isn’t very compatible with big-ticket, higher-margin items.” Read more (subs.)

 

REI’s debuts “adventure concierge” service at Copper Mountain by John Meyer at Denver Post. “It is staffed daily from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. by REI personnel who offer information about recreational opportunities in the area…“We have this in a few of our flagship store locations, and it’s meant to be kind of an adventure concierge,” said Jason Lane, who is REI’s outdoor programs manager.” Read more

 

Oriental Trading CEO who turned company into profitable part of Berkshire dies at 56 by Steve Jordon at Omaha World-Herald. Read more

 

Inside the HQ of Instant Pot by Kevin Roose at New York Times via Financial Post. “What I found was a remarkable example of a new breed of 21st-century startup — a homegrown hardware business with only about 50 employees, which raised no venture capital funding, spent almost nothing on advertising, and achieved enormous size primarily through online word-of-mouth.” Read more

 

Shipt won’t move team to Minneapolis as it joins Target at Minneapolis/St.Paul Business Journal. “A lot of big companies can buy smaller startups and break them, and Target’s been very deliberate about making sure we do our thing our way,” says Shipt founder Bill Smith.” Subscription

 

Why poop toys for kids are flying off the shelves by Lisa Fickenscher at NY Post. “I’m calling 2018 the year of the poop collectible,” says Jim Silver, president of TTPM, a toy review website. “There are a lot of very big companies betting on this.” This week, some 36 characters from a two month-old YouTube show called “Poopeez” will be hitting stores. Among them are “Skid Mark,” a skateboarding turd; “Lil’ Squirt,” a diminutive drop of urine; and “Toot Fairy”. Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra Stories

American Apparel revamps brand with first all-female exec team

Carrie Underwood Needed Over 40 Stitches in Her Face After November Fall

Gal Gadot sports workout gear while running errands at Whole Foods

PetSmart Employee Attacked By Pit Bull Mix While Grooming Dog

New Zealanders build island in bid to avoid alcohol ban

Taylor Swift’s ‘Reputation’ tour shaping up to be a disaster

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