The Addiction to Discounting at Michael Kors Is Exposed in Court at WSJ. "Michael Kors and the executives who ran his fashion label knew they had a serious problem: Many of the handbags were selling for less than $100, far from the regular price of $450. The designer complained in emails that were revealed in a recent court hearing that the once-hot brand was chasing down-market and unfashionable customers. In one message, Kors wrote the brand was pursuing an old-fashioned customer who wasn’t sleek and definitely not jet set." WSJ subs.   The looming dockworkers strike is mostly up to [...]

  The looming dockworkers strike is mostly up to 1 fiery union leader at Politico. "The decision to strike is largely in the hands of the mercurial and tough-as-nails head of the dockworkers union, Harold Daggett, a native New Yorker who’s been accused of having mob ties...The union’s constitution allows Daggett to call a strike without a vote of his members." Read more   ...Shippers scramble for workarounds ahead of looming US East Coast port strike at Reuters. "Ronnie Robinson, chief supply chain officer at DSW parent company Designer Brands, normally routes about 20% of the company's shoe imports through [...]

  DOJ poised to sue Visa for antitrust violations at Politico. "The DOJ plans to accuse Visa of using its dominant position in the debit card business to muscle out rivals with merchants and consumers, according to two of the people, who were granted anonymity to discuss a confidential matter." Read more   US Labor department reaches out to employer group amid possible port strike at Reuters. "The Department of Labor's involvement suggests that President Joe Biden's administration is willing to help hammer out a deal before the existing contract covering 45,000 workers at three dozen ports expires at midnight [...]

  Target names former PepsiCo exec Jim Lee as new chief financial officer at CBS News. "Lee has over 25 years of experience at PepsiCo, where he was most recently the company's deputy chief financial officer. He will succeed Michael Fiddelke, Target's chief operating officer." Read more   ...Get to Know Jim Lee, Target’s New CFO "Lee: 'I have three kids ranging in age from 12 to 17. All of them, along with my wife, are accomplished classical musicians. So, much of my free time is spent with them, driving them to different commitments related to their music. Outside of [...]

  August retail sales rose 0.1% vs. economists’ estimates for a 0.2% decline, according to Dow Jones. Excluding autos, the number also came in at a 0.1% increase, which slightly missed the 0.2% consensus forecast at CNBC   US retailer holiday hiring set to be lower than last year at Reuters. "Retailers are expected to add 520,000 new jobs in the final quarter of 2024 compared to 564,200 in 2023, according to the firm's analysis of non-seasonally adjusted data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics." Read more   Holiday shopping time:   ...Amazon to host its Prime Big Deals Day [...]

  Fortune Best Workplaces in Retail 2024 (Wegmans #1, Sheetz #2, Target #3) Top 20 list   US holiday sales to grow at slowest pace since 2018, report says at Reuters. "U.S. holiday sales are expected to grow at their slowest pace in six years, data from Deloitte showed on Thursday as persistent inflation and dried up savings turn shoppers more frugal for the all-important shopping period. Holiday retail sales are likely to rise between 2.3% and 3.3% in the November 2024-January 2025 period, totaling up to $1.59 trillion, data report said, from a 4.3% growth to $1.54 trillion last [...]

  Academy Sports Q2 comp sales down 6.9% "Sales for the second quarter were more challenging than expected, impacted by a tough economy, a temporary distribution center backlog...and by a very active storm season...we are revising our full year guidance, while maintaining our gross margin rate range," said Carl Ford, CFO." Press release   Amazon Fresh introduces new grocery savings for Prime members "Up to 50% off eight to 15 grocery favorites that rotate each week, including fresh produce, protein, and pantry staples...More than 1,200 rotating Prime-exclusive grocery items and household favorites from top brands 25% off." Press release   [...]

  PayPal pushes into in-person payments with cashback rewards, Apple integration at Reuters. "PayPal is expanding into U.S. point-of-sale payments by integrating its debit card with Apple's mobile wallet and offering 5% cashback rewards, as the global online payments giant seeks direct competition with tech companies and banks." Read more   Target slows store theft, but at a cost to shopping experience at Minneapolis Star Tribune. "They’ve locked up a lot,” said Joey Mueller, 31, about his local Target store in northeast Minneapolis. “It’s toothpaste, deodorant, laundry detergent. … Out of principle, if it’s locked up, I don’t buy it.” [...]