Tipsheet: Amazon Wants to Depose Trump | Ex-Target Execs Boutique

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Amazon wants to depose Trump, accuses him of ‘bias’ after losing $10 billion Pentagon cloud contract at CNBC. “Amazon Web Services told CNBC in a statement: “President Trump has repeatedly demonstrated his willingness to use his position as President and Commander in Chief to interfere with government functions – including federal procurements – to advance his personal agenda…” Read more

 

Simon Property Group to acquire Taubman Centers for $52.50 a share in cash at CNBC. “The news sent Taubman’s stock soaring up 52% after it resumed trading following a halt for the announcement.” Read more

 

Mattel closing factories with plan to outsource at Fox Business. “…its Mega Bloks factory in Montreal, Canada, will shutter in 2021 after opening in 2014. Before that, the company said it would consolidate two factories in Mexico (meaning one factory would close)…” Read more

 

‘Jeff Bezos is so rich … ‘: Amazon CEO called out in multiple jokes during opening of Oscars at CNBC. “Jeff Bezos is so rich, he got divorced and he’s still the richest man in the world!” (Chris) Rock said. “He saw ‘Marriage Story’ and thought it was a comedy,” he added, about the Oscar-nominated movie starring Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson.” Read more

 

Oscars 2020: The Complete Winners List at Variety. List

 

L Brands nears sale of Victoria’s Secret to Sycamore Partners at CNBC. “The private equity firm is one of the few to continue to invest in retail…Sycamore financed its $6.9 billion acquisition of beleaguered office retailer Staples in a way that allowed it the flexibility to wind down its retail business while retaining its stronger business-to-business segment.” Read more

 

Zulily is searching for a new PR agency by Thomas Moore at PR Week. “The brand is looking for a consumer PR firm to handle media relations and media strategy…Next Fifteen subsidiary M Booth is the incumbent on the account.” Tiered subs.

 

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Amazon drops out of major European tech show over virus at AP. “…it’s scrapping its appearance at Mobile World Congress, the world’s biggest mobile industry trade fair, in Barcelona, Spain, this month.” Read more

 

In Amazon’s Bookstore, No Second Chances for the Third Reich by David Streitfeld at NY Times. “…the increasing number of banished titles has set off concern among some of the third-party booksellers…Amazon, they said, seems to operate under vague or nonexistent rules. “Amazon reserves the right to determine whether content provides an acceptable experience,” said one recent removal notice that the company sent to a bookseller.” Tiered subs.

 

Microsoft, Twitter and Walmart want to help you get a job in tech — without racking up student loans at CNBC. Read more

 

Target veterans put their personal style and retail know-how on display in Edina boutique by Kavita Kumar at Star Tribune. “As he walked around the store on a recent day, Casey Carl, Target’s former chief innovation and strategy officer, had a story to share or a recommendation about nearly every item, from the casual lifestyle brand Sol Angeles he has worn for years to an infused alcohol kit that he was thrilled to discover after several failed attempts of trying to do it on his own…” Tiered subs.

 

Amazon challenges India antitrust probe in court: filing at Reuters. “Amazon.com Inc has begun legal action in India to quash an antitrust investigation against the company, saying it could cause “irreparable” loss and damage to its reputation, according to its court filing seen by Reuters.” Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra

Food prices are soaring in China

SmileDirectClub lands in 3,800 Walmart stores

Valentine’s Day: Zoo will name a rat after your ex before feeding it to a snake

Dangerous Domain Corp.com Goes Up for Sale

Dunkin’ Brands to Shutter 450 Speedway Locations

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Tipsheet: Bellevue HQ2 | HEB Sues H.Depot | Bezos Likes Art

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US employers add a strong 225K jobs; unemployment up to 3.6% at AP. “The public’s confidence that jobs are plentiful is helping persuade more people without jobs to begin looking for one. Last month, 61.2% of American adults had jobs, the highest proportion since November 2008.” Read more

 

Lifeblood of Amazon merchants threatened as coronavirus infects Chinese workers at Reuters. “Running out of product on Amazon can wipe out a small business. Amazon’s algorithm gives top billing to sellers with the briskest and most recent sales. That prominent placement helps drive even more sales. “Going out of stock is the best way to kill that,” Plugable’s Thompson said.” Read more

 

Trump adviser, Bezos escalate feud at The Hill. “Navarro brushed off any connection between his frustration with Bezos and the president’s vendetta: “This is not about that. Period. Full stop.” He derided Bezos’s Instagram post as a “wonderfully banal passive aggressive post from the would-be author of ‘Zen and the Art of Counterfeit Trafficking.'” Read more

 

Coronavirus Cuts Chinese Tourism, and Luxury Retailers Suffer at Wall Street Journal. “If you think you see a Chinese shopper these days, it’s probably a mirage,” said Giovanni Cammaroto, who works in a Fendi store on the Italian city’s most upscale shopping street. “Until a week ago, we still had large groups of Chinese coming through, but in the last few days it’s been maybe one or two here and there.” WSJ subs.

 

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Tapestry Q2 net sales +1.0%: Coach Q2 global comp sales +2.0% / Kate Spade Q2 global comp sales -4.0% Press release

 

…Tapestry Leadership Team Appointments:
* Liz Fraser as CEO & Brand President, Kate Spade
* Giorgio Sarné as CEO & Brand President, Stuart Weitzman
* Yann Bozec as President, Tapestry Asia Pacific

Press release

 

Speculation about Jeff Bezos excites art world at Bloomberg via Seattle Times. “Bezos, 56, bought two significant works during New York’s November auctions, according to art dealer Josh Baer…One piece, “Hurting the Word Radio #2” by Ed Ruscha, fetched $52.5 million at Christie’s, setting a record for the Los Angeles artist. The second, “Vignette 19” by Kerry James Marshall, sold for $18.5 million at Sotheby’s, more than doubling its high estimate.” Tiered subs.

 

…Jeff Bezos sells off another $1.6B in stock; he’s sold $3.4B over the past week at GeekWire. Read more

 

The Buckle January comp sales +7.4% Press release

 

Looking to cut emissions, Europe eyes a ‘sustainability’ tax on meat at Fortune. “The hope is to drive meat consumption down by two-thirds—essentially by driving prices at the butcher up by around 40% to reflect the environmental cost of meat production—in a novel new effort to combat climate change.” Read more

 

Sally Beauty Q1 comp sales -0.3% Press release

 

Yes, Virginia, there is an Amazon HQ2, but it’s actually 10 miles outside of Seattle by Monica Nickelsburg at GeekWire. “Amazon announced Thursday morning that it will expand to 15,000 employees in Bellevue in the next few years…The company’s employee base in Bellevue has grown from almost nothing to 2,000 employees in a little more than two years.” Read more

 

Walmart shooting suspect charged with federal hate crimes at AP. “Patrick Crusius, 21, has been charged with 90 counts under federal hate crime and firearms laws for his role in the Aug. 3 shooting that authorities said was aimed at scaring Hispanics into leaving the United States, according to an indictment unsealed Thursday.” Read more

 

College grads, baby boomers big winners in Trump’s economy at Reuters. “On average, Americans have seen a 17% jump in household wealth since Trump’s election, while wealth at the bottom half has increased 54%.” Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra

H-E-B Suing Home Depot, Others Over Cooler Tech

Apple’s contract for indie repair shops is so invasive that some refuse to sign it

Plastic ban coming to Canada in 2021

Satellites: The Night Sky Will Never Be the Same

This compostable packaging can tell you when your food is going bad

Wawa Alerts Customers of Criminal Attempts to Sell Breached Data

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Tipsheet: Costco +6.6% | Bezos Stiffs Navarro |

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US productivity up 1.7% in 2019, best gain in 9 years at AP. “The Commerce Department said Thursday that productivity grew at an annual rate of 1.4% in the October-December quarter, a significant improvement from a 0.2% drop in productivity in the third quarter.” Read more

 

Costco January comp sales +6.6% “For the twenty-two weeks ended February 2, 2020, the Company reported net sales of $68.56 billion, an increase of 7.6 percent from $63.70 billion during the similar period last year.” Read more

 

China to halve retaliatory tariffs on hundreds of US goods worth about $75 billion at CNBC. “After the cut, duties on U.S. crude will be reduced to 2.5%, from 5%, and the tariff on soybeans will be trimmed by 2.5%…China said that the next adjustment will depend on how Sino-U.S. trade ties evolve.” Read more

 

Walmart U.S. restructures central operations division by Kim Souza at Talk Business. “John Furner said he plans to shift some of the duties from central operations to a newly created product team that will report to Chief Customer Officer Janey Whiteside. ‘We are standing up this product team – to be led by Meng Chee, EVP and Chief Product Officer – to design great technology products and customer and associate experiences with the end-user in mind.'” Read more

 

White House trade adviser claims Bezos won’t meet with him about online counterfeits by Emily Birnbaum at The Hill. “Navarro said Bezos in January agreed to meet with the White House about the scourge of fake products on his platform, but about a month later the company has only offered up senior executives for a sit-down rather than the Amazon founder himself.” Read more

 

Global shipping has been hit by the coronavirus. Now goods are getting stranded at CNN. “Still more vessels are idling in “floating quarantined zones,” as countries such as Australia and Singapore refuse to allow ships that have called at Chinese ports to enter their own until the crew has been declared virus-free, added Sand. Platten said he knew of at least one crew that is running low on food because their ship has been idled for so long.” Read more

 

Walgreens Boots Alliance Appoints Richard Ashworth President of Walgreens Press release

 

94% of Americans surveyed read online ratings and reviews prior to making purchases at Field Agent. “Online R&R activity is high for electronics and even health/beauty supplies, while relatively lower for groceries and household consumables (e.g., cleaning supplies, toilet paper).” Read more

 

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7-Eleven Tests Cashierless Store At North Texas Headquarters at CBS DFW. Read more

 

JC Penney revamps women’s clothing brand, focusing on denim in bid to boost sales at CNBC. “We have been spending a lot of time with customers,” said Michelle Wlazlo, executive vice president and chief merchant. “One thing that came out loud and clear was … they didn’t look at us as a place to buy casual.” Read more

 

Amazon paid a 1.2% tax rate on $13,285,000,000 in profit for 2019 by Kristin Myers at Yahoo Finance. Read more

 

The Apple Watch is killing the Swiss watch industry at Fast Company. “Apple shipped a total of 30.7 million Apple Watch units in 2019, while the entire Swiss watch industry only shipped a total of 21.1 million units worldwide last year. What’s more is that Apple Watch shipments grew an astounding 36% from the previous year, while Swiss watch shipments shrank 13%.” Read more

 

Pictures from inside the most popular Costco store in South Korea by Kate Taylor at Business Insider. Pics/Read more

 

Coty Q2 net revenue decreased 6.6% Press release

 

‘The classics in blackface’: Barnes & Noble suspends reissues of classics via USA Today. “Barnes & Noble is withdrawing a planned line of famous literature reissued with multicultural cover images that has been met with widespread criticism on social media…The author Adriana Herrera had called the books, scheduled to be launched this week, “the classics in blackface.” Read more

 

Barneys wins bankruptcy court approval of its Chapter 11 plan at Bloomberg Law. Tiered subs.

 

…My family founded Barneys. Now the great department store is closing. by Maris Kreizman at Vox. “Early in his career, my great-great-uncle was known as the “Cut-Rate Clothing King,”…Barneys initially made its fortune by selling brand-name men’s clothing at heavily discounted prices and focusing on innovative advertising…” Read more

 

Struggling Subway lays off over 300 at its headquarters by Josh Kosman at NY Post. “The cuts, which sources say represent about a quarter of Subway’s staff, are so steep the Milford police were on hand to provide security at the company’s offices on Wednesday, a local TV station reported.” Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra

Prada reaches settlement with NYC over ‘racist iconography’ in window display

New High of 90% of Americans Satisfied With Personal Life

AT&T’s low-band 5G now live in 13 more cities

Cornell study says adding more grocery stores will reduce food waste

Man gains remote, online access to his old car four years after his lease ended

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Tipsheet: Macy’s HQ to Close | Smart Speaker Shopping Slow | New Luggage @ Target

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Private payrolls soar in January, the best monthly gain in nearly 5 years at CNBC. “…adding 291,000 in private payrolls for the best monthly gain since May 2015, according to a report Wednesday from ADP and Moody’s Analytics. That was well above the 150,000 estimate from economists surveyed by Dow Jones…” Read more

 

Macy’s to shutter Cincinnati HQ & 125 stores at The Enquirer. “The company said it will shift an unspecified number of jobs to Springdale, where it has about 480 employees. That number will grow to 950 after the Downtown headquarters closes…The moves are all part of a broader blood-letting by Macy’s, which said Tuesday it would cut 2,000 corporate jobs and 125 stores over the next three years.” Tiered subs.

 

…Off-Price Expansion: Macy’s will continue to expand Macy’s Backstage over the next three years. In 2020, the company plans to open an additional 50 Backstage store-within-store locations and 7 additional freestanding, off-mall Backstage stores. Press release

 

…Macy’s to shut San Francisco tech offices, cut some jobs at CNBC. “Macy’s said its operations in these offices, which include product and digital revenue segments as well as its online and technology groups, are moving to New York City and Atlanta.” Read more

 

Supplies are running low for firms that depend on China imports at Fortune. “In order to meet deadlines for summer goods, retail experts say that Chinese factories would need to start ramping up production by March 15. If Chinese factories were instead to remain idle through May 1, it would likely cripple retailers’ crucial back-to-school and fall seasons.” Read more

 

Best Buy board stands by CEO following investigation Press release

 

Target takes on startups like Away with new luggage brand by Kavita Kumar at Star Tribune. “Target’s designers and engineers spent about 14 months developing Open Story, researching not only the features offered by premium luggage brands, but also talking to consumers about what they’re looking for in luggage and where they’d like to see improvements. They went through several prototypes and stress tested them on trips and on cobblestone streets. “It’s going to blow all other luggage offerings out of the water,” Guggemos said.” Tiered subs.

 

Boot Barn Q3 comp sales +6.7% Press release

 

The owner of the New York Stock Exchange says it explored deal with eBay at Reuters. “ICE said in its statement that “eBay has not engaged in a meaningful way”, and as a result, it was not in negotiations regarding the sale of all or part of eBay.” Read more

 

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The Container Store Group Q3 comp sales +3.0% “…with Custom Closets up 10.2%…and all other product categories were down 2.0%.” Press release

 

Shopping via smart speakers is not taking off, report suggests by Sarah Perez at TechCrunch. “Still, it’s important to point out that the overall number of people making purchases via a smart speaker is growing. It will even pass a milestone this year, when 10.8% of all digital buyers in the U.S. will have made a purchase using their smart speaker.” Read more

 

Sephora to open 100 stores in 2020, in bid to grow outside of the mall at CNBC. “Sephora will also be looking to grow in cities like Charlotte, North Carolina, and Nashville, Tennessee — not necessarily urban markets like New York and Los Angeles.” Read more

 

Instacart workers in Skokie, IL vote to unionize at The Verge. “The union vote is a landmark victory for gig worker activism, as it represents the first time employees of tech companies that rely predominantly on contract labor have formed a union to collectively bargain for better wages, benefits, and working conditions.” Read more

 

$9 Cabbages, Emergency Pork: Coronavirus Tests China on Food by Raymond Zhong at NY Times. “As if one dangerous disease was not enough for China right now, the national government over the weekend reported a “highly pathogenic” outbreak of bird flu at a chicken farm in Hunan Province. Some 4,500 chickens had died, and 17,000 were culled pre-emptively.” Tiered subs.

 

Nearly $40 million worth of legal weed sold across Illinois in January at Chicago Sun-Times. Read more

 

Tiffany Stockholders Approve Merger With LVMH Press release

 

Justice Department Ramps Up Google Probe, With Heavy Focus on Ad Tools at Wall Street Journal. “In recent months, the department has been posing increasingly detailed questions—to Google’s rivals and executives inside the company itself—about how Google’s third-party advertising business interacts with publishers and advertisers, the people say.” WSJ subs.

 

Climate protests shut BP’s London headquarters on CEO’s first day at Reuters. Read more

 

Jeff Bezos sells more than $1.8B in stock, new regulatory filings show at GeekWire. Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra

Jeff Bezos racked up $16,800 in parking tickets during renovation to his DC mansion

The woman who wants to reinvent recycling

Walmart gift card scam ring allegedly steals $600K from Utah seniors

David Glass’ leadership path did not include shortcuts

Man walks into Walmart store with ‘I have the coronavirus’ sign

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Tipsheet: JCP Delisted? | Avocado Crime Soars | HQ2 Musk Envy

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Behind Amazon’s HQ2 Fiasco: Jeff Bezos Was Jealous of Elon Musk at Bloomberg. “When Elon Musk secured $1.3 billion from Nevada in 2014 to open a gigantic battery plant, Jeff Bezos noticed. In meetings, the Amazon.com Inc. chief expressed envy for how Musk had pitted five Western states against one another in a bidding war for thousands of manufacturing jobs; he wondered why Amazon was okay with accepting comparatively trifling incentives. It was a theme Bezos returned to often, according to four people privy to his thinking.” Tiered subs.

 

US manufacturing activity rebounds in January at CNBC. “U.S. factory activity unexpectedly rebounded in January after contracting for five straight months amid a surge in new orders…The improvement in the ISM data likely reflects ebbing trade tensions between the United States and China.” Read more

 

US construction spending dips 0.2% in December at AP. “The Commerce Department said Monday that the decline was the first monthly drop since a 0.9% fall in June…The fall-off reflects weakness in nonresidential construction, which fell 1.8%…Home building rose a solid 1.4%.” Read more

 

Forever 21 enters deal to sell for $81 million at CNN. “As part of the deal, the struggling fast-fashion retailer would be sold to a consortium made up of mall operators Simon Property Group and Brookfield Properties and brand management firm Authentic Brands Group…Other potential buyers have until February 7 to place bids for the company.” Read more

 

J.C. Penney in danger of being booted from New York Stock Exchange at Fox Business. “…it’s no longer in compliance with (NYSE) listing criteria. Shares are required to maintain an average closing price of at least $1 over a 30-trading day period. The company has six months to regain compliance…J.C. Penney shares have plunged more than 93 percent since March 2016.” Read more

 

Target and Walmart gain (a little) ground in the e-commerce war with Amazon at Fortune. “To better understand who is winning and losing in the e-commerce war, Fortune-SurveyMonkey polled* almost 2,600 Americans between January 4-7…The good news for Walmart and Target is that Amazon Prime members actually bought from them online at a higher rate than people who aren’t Prime members during the 2019 holiday shopping season.” Read more

 

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Amazon now has 798,000 employees, up 23% from last year at GeekWire. “Amazon added 48,000 employees over the last three months alone…Amazon is the second-largest employer in the U.S., behind only Walmart.” Read more

 

Payments giant Worldline to buy rival Ingenico in $8.6 billion deal at CNBC. Read more

 

Apple Offering Onsite Device Repairs in Select Cities at MacRumors. “Onsite repairs from Go Tech Services appear to be available in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Houston, and Dallas.” Read more

 

Amazon’s Echo Show can now scan barcodes to flesh out your shopping list at The Verge. Read more

 

Target looks like it could be loser in Casper IPO at CNBC. “At the midpoint of its $17–$19 initial public offering range, the pricing would represent a 37% decline from Casper’s share price at the time Target became an investor in the start-up’s Series C fundraising in 2017. Target also holds $80 million in equity.” Read more

 

Walmart worker takes the temperature of a customer at the entrance of a store in Wuhan at AP. Pic

 

Apple temporarily closes all 42 stores in China until February 9th as coronavirus spreads at CNN. Read more

 

Avocado crime soars as Mexican gangs hijack truckloads of ‘green gold’ heading north at Financial Times via Financial Post. “The rise in avocado-related crime has turned parts of the state into no-go areas even for the police. “We’ve tried to work with the government [to combat crime] but even they are afraid in some areas and don’t dare go in,” said Juan, whose family has two farms near Uruapan, the city at the centre of the state’s avocado production.” Read more

 

Jeff Bezos sued by girlfriend’s brother for defamation at Fox Business. Read more

 

Jeep, Bill Murray win USA TODAY’s Ad Meter with ‘Groundhog Day’ commercial “Part of the mystique of Bill Murray is the fact that he is nearly impossible to contact…”He doesn’t have a phone, doesn’t have an agent, doesn’t have an email,” Fiat Chrysler Automobiles chief marketing officer Olivier Francois told USA TODAY Sports…”He allegedly has an 800 number. You leave a message and maybe he’ll call you back.” Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra

Amazon quietly publishes its latest transparency report

How HBO’s ‘McMillions’ got the story of McDonald’s Monopoly game conspiracy

This new H&M dress is made from wood and recycled jeans

Shaq covers family’s Best Buy purchase after they express Kobe condolences

Walmart’s Super Bowl ad ironically highlights the biggest trends retailers missed

Jeff Bezos cozies up to Lizzo at Super Bowl

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Tipsheet: T.Supply +0.1% | US Econ +2.1% | CVS No-Pay Insulin

/in

 

The U.S. economy grew 2.1% in the fourth quarter, matching estimates at CNBC. “For the full year, the economy grew 2.3%, below the 2.9% increase from 2018 and the 2.4% gain in 2017.” Read more

 

CVS is launching a prescription drug coverage plan in which patients have no out-of-pocket costs for insulin and other expensive diabetes treatments at Fox News. Read more

 

Nordstrom enters burgeoning used-clothes business by Abha Bhattarai at Washington Post via The Spokesman-Review. “Starting Friday, racks of secondhand clothing will fill a space formerly occupied by Burberry in the company’s Manhattan store. Nordstrom will also begin allowing customers to drop off used clothing, handbags, shoes, jewelry and watches there in exchange for gift cards. Those items will be cleaned and repaired as necessary before being resold.” Read more

 

Tractor Supply Q4 comp sales +0.1% Press release

 

Waymo will start delivering parcels for UPS using its self-driving Chrysler Pacifica minivans in Phoenix  at TechCrunch. “The minivans will take packages from UPS store locations to a local UPS sorting facility for processing. The pilot won’t involve package delivery to consumers.” Read more

 

Washington state residents who receive SNAP payments can use the benefit to buy groceries online at Seattle Times. “The pilot program, begun last April in New York, is expected to expand to all of Washington in the coming weeks. If it’s successful, the U.S. Department of Agriculture will consider testing the program in additional states.” Tiered subs.

 

Independent grocery stores and regional supermarket chains worried about losing out on a valuable source of sales: food stamp recipients by Nathaniel Meyersohn at CNN. “Around one-third of sales at Patel’s store come from SNAP…In 2018, food stamps accounted for 5% of sales at grocery stores that were authorized by the Agriculture Department to accept them.” Read more

 

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H&M CEO & chairman step down in unexpected board reshuffle at MarketWatch. “Karl-Johan Persson had headed the company founded by his grandfather for just over 10 years but has stepped down from his role as CEO with immediate effect to take over as chairman, after his father Stefan said he would relinquish that role…Helena Helmersson, who had been chief operating officer, has been appointed CEO.” Read more

 

Supervalu CEO Michael Wright dies at 81 at Seattle Times. “Wright remained CEO until 2000 and acquired a number of companies that grew Supervalu to $20 billion in annual revenue.” Tiered subs.

 

E-commerce’s Surprise Winner: Little-Known Crown Equipment Supplies Forklifts To Amazon, Target, Home Depot by Carter Coudriet at Forbes. “This family-owned business—run from the tiny town of New Bremen, Ohio (population 2,980)—has become an essential cog in some of the largest supply chains in the world. As commerce shifted from mom-and-pops to big box retailers, Crown was there with forklifts and pallet movers to power their warehouses.” Read more

 

Walmart is laying off 29 of 56 employees at a New York City office where its Allswell mattress brand and other e-commerce functions are based by Hayley Peterson at Business Insider. Read more

 

Some longtime Lowe’s employees will see thousands of dollars docked from their annual pay starting on Saturday by Aine Cain at Business Insider. “Lowe’s is doing away with its “allowances,” a fixed amount of cash doled out to a small group of long-term employees who previously earned spiffs, or an immediate sales bonus, and commission on sales before 2012.” Read more

 

Bezos won’t answer senator’s phone hack questions until investigations conclude at Fox News. “Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., asked Bezos last week whether he had reason to believe that a WhatsApp message from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was used to hack his phone. “We appreciate the seriousness of the issues raised in your letter which are currently under ongoing investigations,” Bezos lawyer William A. Isaacson of Boies Schiller Flexner wrote in a letter dated Wednesday.” Read more

 

Homeless camp at Home Depot store to be shut down at Fox News. “California will eliminate a large homeless site outside an Oakland Home Depot next month — roughly six months after the city announced it would shut down the encampment…Residents – estimated to number between 40 and 100 – live in makeshift homes, vehicles and tents at the camp.” Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra

Furious couple says Target employee ‘cut up’ gift cards worth $800

117 new emoji will be rolled out later this year

Grubhub is listing restaurants that didn’t agree to be listed

Study: Men who own Mercedes and BMWs are more likely to be assholes

Jack Ma donates $14M to help develop coronavirus vaccine

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Tipsheet: H.Dep Pro Deliv | Inside Amazon Pop-Ups | WM S.Bowl Debut

/in

 

What Walmart and Target need to do to stay on top in a reshaped retail world by Phil Wahba at Fortune. “Both Walmart and Target have begun to telegraph how they plan to build on their success. The two companies will update investors on their respective plans with analyst days, Walmart next month and Target in early March. Each will likely be rolling out new strategies while building on current strengths.” Read more

 

Fortune’s Blue Ribbon Companies 2019: Amazon, Best Buy, Alibaba, Walgreens, Walmart, Costco, CVS, Home Depot & Publix. List

 

Victoria’s Secret Billionaire in Talks to Step Aside and Sell Brand by Khadeeja Safdar & Corrie Driebusch at Wall Street Journal. “Leslie Wexner, the billionaire behind Victoria’s Secret, is in discussions to step aside as chief executive officer of his retail empire and is exploring strategic alternatives for the lingerie brand, according to people familiar with the matter.” WSJ subs.

 

Home Depot launches a new pro customer delivery system in Dallas by Maria Halkias at Dallas Morning News. Tiered subs.

 

Inside Amazon’s 5 New Pop-Ups at Field Agent. “Field Agent dispatched agents to all five next-wave Amazon Pop-Ups, located in shopping malls as far east as Skokie, IL and as far west as Glendale, CA.” Pics/Read more

 

Nike denies pulling Kobe Bryant merch from website, claims it sold out by Lisa Fickenscher at NY Post. “A source close to Nike told The Post it would take at least several months for Nike to replenish its Kobe Bryant inventory. Instead of keeping the products online indicating they had sold out, Nike decided to take down all images of the products, the source said.” Read more

 

Disposable E-Cigarettes, Sweet and Fruity, Escape FDA Restrictions by Jennifer Maloney at Wall Street Journal. “The Food and Drug Administration’s new e-cigarette limits are set to take some sweet and fruit-flavored products off the U.S. market next week but they won’t restrict sales of disposable e-cigarettes that come in flavors like cherry crush, watermelon and pineapple lemonade.” WSJ subs.

 

Walmart’s Super Bowl Debut Touts Out-of-This-World Convenience by Lisa Lacy at Adweek. Tiered subs.

 

LOBBYING: Lindsay Baringer will be a PAC manager for Amazon at The Hill. “She previously worked at the political fundraising firm Angerholzer Broz Consulting as assistant vice president. Angerholzer Broz focuses on Democratic members of the House.” Read more

 

Metro Q1 Comp Sales: Food +1.4% / Pharmacy +3.6% Press release

 

Target to Pay Up to $7.05 Million in Robocalling Settlement at Bloomberg Law. “Target Corp. will pay up to $7.05 million to a class of consumers who received robocalls seeking repayment of debts they hadn’t incurred, under a settlement approved by the District of Minnesota.” Subs.

 

Interior Department Adopts Restrictions Aimed at Chinese Drones by Katy Stech Ferek at Wall Street Journal. “Interior Department officials plan to formally adopt a no-fly rule aimed at drones made in China or with Chinese parts, but will grant exceptions when drones are needed to help respond to natural disasters and other emergencies.” WSJ subs.

 

Beyond Meat products pulled from Tim Hortons’ Canadian restaurants at Bloomberg via Financial Post. Read more

 

Anthony Hurst Appointed President Of Lowe’s Canada “Hurst most recently served as Lowe’s senior vice president of enterprise and strategy transformation, and also held the position of Lowe’s division president for the West region…Before joining Lowe’s…Hurst served in leadership roles at J.C. Penney.” Press release

 

Amazon Scoops Up More Warehouse Space on Staten Island by Keiko Morris at Wall Street Journal. “The company signed a lease to take 450,000 square feet of warehouse space at Matrix Global Logistics Park, where it already has a massive 855,000-square-foot fulfillment center…The deal is the latest example of retailers ramping up their distribution operations inside New York City…” WSJ subs.

 

Tipsheet Extra

NBC News Has Considered Fifth Hour of ‘Today’

Amazon Studios’ Entry into Italy Could Prompt Quantum Leap

Netflix to Lay Off Employees as It Shifts Marketing Strategy

Teenage Target employee vanishes after leaving his store 2 weeks ago

Former Home Depot Canada CEO joins coaching firm

Huck’s Modernizes Its Brand & Store Design

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.

 

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Tipsheet: Amazon’s Orchestra | B.Buy Exec Denies | Bezos DC Party

/in

 

US core capital goods orders post biggest drop in 8 months at CNBC. “Orders for non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft, a closely watched proxy for business spending plans, fell 0.9% last month, the Commerce Department said.” Read more

 

Nike⁠⁠ (And Some Resellers⁠) Reportedly Suspend Kobe Bryant Merch Sales To Limit Profiteering at Forbes. Read more

 

How Amazon escapes liability for the riskiest products on its site by Colin Lecher at The Verge. “A recent decision from a federal circuit court has thrown the status quo into doubt. In 2014, a woman named Heather Oberdorf lost vision in one eye after a dog leash she’d ordered from an Amazon Marketplace seller broke as she took her dog for a walk…Oberdorf lost the case in a Pennsylvania district court, but the decision was reversed on appeal…” Read more

 

US home prices accelerate amid dwindling supply of homes at AP. “The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller 20-city home price index rose 2.6% in November from a year ago, up from a 2.2% annual gain in October.” Read more

 

Amazon has an orchestra by Chip Cutter at Wall Street Journal. “In the city that birthed grunge and was home to acts such as Nirvana and Jimi Hendrix, the latest musical sensation is the Amazon Symphony Orchestra. With a repertoire ranging from Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 to Disney’s “Frozen,” Amazon’s nearly 100-employee orchestra is one of a number of acts following in the corporate music-tradition of old industry giants like Boeing Co. and Eastman Kodak Co.” WSJ subs.

 

Former colleague accused of affair with Best Buy CEO denies allegations by Kavita Kumar at Star Tribune. “The former colleague Best Buy CEO Corie Barry has been accused of having an inappropriate relationship with has denied the allegation. In a short e-mail to the Star Tribune, Karl Sanft wrote: “The anonymous allegation that I had an affair with Corie Barry is false.” He said he had no further comment.” Tiered subs.

 

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Amazon’s big umbrellas renew a stormy old debate about Seattle culture by Kurt Schlosser at GeekWire. “They cover people and dogs as the dogs — there are so many dogs at Amazon — do their business outside. “The dogs are divas and have to be covered while going to the bathroom,” an Amazon employee said to me while she stood in the rain without an umbrella…The umbrellas, which are big enough to cover at least three people, are available to employees or anyone visiting Amazon HQ.” Read more

 

Amazon asks FCC to give swift approval to Project Kuiper satellite network despite SpaceX opposition by Alan Boyle at GeekWire. Read more

 

Magazine buds from blog over Walmart by Serenah McCay at Arkansas Democrat. “Now social media stars with more than 316,000 Instagram followers, they’re highlighting products they love from (Walmart) in a quarterly magazine. Halford and Jerkins launched whoa, wait. in September with a fall/winter edition, and the spring issue hits Walmart store racks Feb. 2.” Read more

 

Family told to “step away” from Costco sample station due to coronavirus fears at King 5 News. Read more

 

After-party at Jeff Bezos’ D.C. mansion attracts Bill Gates, Ivanka Trump and other notable guests by Kurt Schlosser at DailyMail. “Bezos invited his high-flying friends to his home after they attended the annual, exclusive Alafalfa Club Dinner in DC. Guests arrived in elegant suits and floor-length dresses for the swanky affair Saturday evening, but Bezos and his girlfriend Lauren Sanchez were nowhere to be seen at the entrance to the 11-bedroom, 25-bathroom grand mansion.” Pics/Read more

 

FDA to Purell: Stop claiming your hand sanitizers eliminate Ebola and the flu at CNN. “Federal regulators also took issue with the company saying that Purell products are proven to “reduce student absenteeism by up to 51%.” Read more

 

Leaked Documents Expose the Secretive Market for Your Web Browsing Data by Joseph Cox at Vice. “An Avast antivirus subsidiary sells ‘Every search. Every click. Every buy. On every site.’ Its clients have included Home Depot, Google, Microsoft, Pepsi, and McKinsey.” Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra

A new Pinterest feature allows users to virtually try on products, starting with lipstick

Casper Sleep IPO slipping over fact it doesn’t make its own mattresses

Verizon is the best wireless carrier, report says

Walmart wants court to rehear case on $55M back pay for truck drivers

Joanna and Chip Gaines Launch New Target Furniture Line

Read Tipsheet Extra Stories

 

**

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: Put your product or service in front of the most powerful retail execs in the world, send advertising inquiries to info@eyeonretail.net

 

Website: eyeonretail.net