Archive for month: April, 2026

 

U.S. economy grew 2% from January-March at AP. “Growth in consumer spending, which accounts for 70% of U.S. economic activity, slowed to 1.6% in the first quarter from 1.9% at the end of 2025. But business investment, likely driven by investments in artificial intelligence, rose at an 8.7% pace.” Read more

 

eBay Inc. Q1 revenue +19% Press release

 

Amazon earnings beat expectations at CNBC. “Revenue in its online stores segment…grew 12% in the first quarter to $64.3 billion, higher than analysts’ estimated $62.7 billion…announced this year’s Prime Day discount bonanza will be held in June, a month earlier than its typical time frame…Advertising revenue jumped 24% year over year to $17.24 billion, above Wall Street’s expectations for growth of 21.2%.” Read more

 

Wayfair Q1 total net revenue +7.4% / Active customers +1.4% Press release

 

Two NJ Malls Separated by Just Four Miles — and Very Different Fates at Bloomberg. “The Livingston Mall is all but dead. The Mall at Short Hills is thriving. It’s a lesson in the cruel economics of consumerism.” Bloomberg subs. 

 

Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. Q1 comp sales -1.7% Press release

 

Amazon Discusses ‘Apprentice’ Reboot—With Don Jr. as a Potential Host at WSJ. “Discussions are still in the early stages and Amazon hasn’t approached the Trump family, but if the show gets made, it would appear on Amazon’s Prime Video service.” WSJ subs.

 

Walmart Opens Third Owned and Operated Milk Processing Facility in Robinson, Texas Press release

 

Target opens its first-ever ‘receive center’ at Chain Store Age. “…located in Houston. The $265 million facility intakes products directly from its global vendors and holds the product until it’s needed elsewhere, replenishing inventory in response to store and customer demand.” Read more

 

Amazon and Meta are among the big companies set to lobby India’s payments body over the dominance of Walmart-owned PhonePe and Google Pay at TechCrunch

 

Maryland Bans Surveillance-Based Grocery Pricing at The Shelby Report. “HB 895 targets a specific practice – using personal data and surveillance to set individualized prices.” Read more

 

Amazon launches an AI-powered audio Q&A experience on product pages at TechCrunch. “For example, shoppers can ask questions like whether a coffee maker is suited for beginners or whether a sweater feels itchy based on customer reviews. Rather than giving generic answers, Amazon says the AI builds on previous responses to provide more relevant and helpful information…” Read more

 

 

 

Trump reclassifies state-licensed medical marijuana as a less-dangerous drug in a historic shift at AP. “…does not legalize marijuana for medical or recreational use under U.S. law. But it does change the way it’s regulated, shifting licensed medical marijuana from Schedule I — reserved for drugs without medical use and with high potential for abuse — to the less strictly regulated Schedule III.” Read more

 

Americans cut spending due to higher gas prices and see no relief in sight at CNBC. “About 60% of respondents have cut back on entertainment like eating out, movies and concerts to save money. More than 50% plan to travel less. Around 40% are spending less on essential items like groceries and medical care.” Read more

 

SNAP benefits don’t pay for rotisserie chicken. A bipartisan bill might change that at AP. “…senators this week introduced what they’re calling the Hot Rotisserie Chicken Act, which would make the supermarket staple an eligible purchase under (SNAP)…“America’s best (and delicious) affordability play is Costco’s $4.99 rotisserie chicken,” said Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania…” Read more

 

lululemon Names Ex-Nike Exec Heidi O’Neill as CEO “… over 25 years at Nike…She served most recently as President, Consumer, Product & Brand…” Press release

 

Sam’s Club Launches One Hour Delivery for $10 “…one hour or less service at a flat $10 for Plus members / $22 for Club members…traditional three hours or less service…$5 for Plus members / $17 for Club members on eligible items…(started) fleet-wide rollout of the enhanced service across 600-plus clubs on April 2…” Press release

 

The Comeback of the Physical Store – and What it Means for Your Business Harvard Business Review subs. 

 

UPS Doesn’t Want to Deliver Every Package, but It Really Likes Returning Them at WSJ. “A UPS business unit called Happy Returns, a software and logistics subsidiary that handles returns for retailers, is adding another 1,700 locations where consumers can drop off their returns. The addition brings its nationwide network to a total of 10,000 locations…” WSJ subs.

 

Best Buy to be led by 26-year company veteran Jason Bonfig when CEO Corrie Barry steps down on 10/31/26 Press release

 

Walmart Leads U.S. Supermarkets In Awareness; H-E-B Wins Loyalty at The Shelby Report. “Walmart leads all chains with a 36 percent awareness-to-preferred conversion rate, turning more than one in three people who know the brand into loyal advocates who name it their favorite supermarket…Kroger, Costco and Aldi also achieve strong awareness-to-preferred conversion rates at 13 percent, 11 percent and 11 percent, respectively.” Read more

 

North America’s 50 Best Bars Press release

 

Home Depot launches new customer service AI voice agent phone system “Early results from a 50-store pilot show that AI voice agents understand why a customer is calling in just 10 seconds, getting the customer to a solution four times faster than navigating traditional phone menus.” Press release

 

Amazon sellers boycott ads in policy change revolt: ‘We’re running out of f—ing margin’ at CNBC. “The 24-hour advertising boycott is being organized by Million Dollar Sellers, a community of more than 700 members…Sellers have complained for years, but this feels different,” MDS co-founder Eugene Khayman said in a post on X about the boycott. “The reason is simple: this is no longer just about irritation. It is about cash extraction.” Read more

 

Cattle prices soar to record highs as grilling season heats up at CNBC. “Live cattle futures traded at the CME Group settled at $2.51 per pound on Tuesday, the highest price on record going back to the 1960s…” Read more

 

Target’s new retro-inspired Pokémon collection was made for superfans, by superfans at Fast Company. “Distilling 30 years into one collection was the challenge faced by Gigi Guerra, a vice president of marketing at Target, who brought her perspective as a die-hard fan to the process. To pare down the Pokédex, Target chose to lean into the occasion and return to where it all began, basing all of its new products on Pokémon from the original Pokémon Red and Pokémon Blue.” Read more

 

Nike’s New Temporary SoHo Store Celebrates the Grit of NYC – Opens Today at WWD. “The space is speckled with graffiti tags and throw-ups as well as a full-ceiling mural created by pioneers of NY graffiti. Other details include a running bib wheat paste ceiling as a nod to the wheatpasted posters the city is known for, and to pay homage to the New York marathon.” Read more

 

Wayfair’s Way Day event runs April 25–27, with “daily drop” deals starting April 20 Press release

 

Tesco Says Iran War Is Clouding Outlook for UK Shoppers at Financial Post

 

Behind the QVC Group Collapse, a Loss of Relevance and Late to Innovate WWD subs.

 

Jim Whittaker, Mountaineer Who Turned REI Into a National Retailer, Dies at 97 “In 1955, Whittaker received an offer to join REI, then a single 20-by-30-foot shop above the Green Apple Pie Restaurant in Seattle…Joining a tiny organization was “sort of a gamble,” he told The Wall Street Journal later, “but I thought what the heck.”…Whittaker rose to chief executive of REI in 1971.” WSJ subs.

 

Bessent warns gas stations that Treasury Dept will keep them ‘honest’ after spike in prices Fox Business

 

Get ready for the great American TV trade-in rush at Fast Company. “Circana, which monitors consumer purchases, says the average TV is replaced every 6.6 years. That figure dropped to 5 years during the pandemic…That puts more than 20% of the sets in use globally in that upgrade zone.” Read more

 

Walmart Unveils Modern Redesign of Great Value “The redesign will span almost 10,000 food and consumables items, making it the most extensive private brand update in Walmart’s history…the rollout will be phased over the next two years, beginning with salty snacks…” Press release

 

Amazon and U.S. Postal Service Reach Delivery Deal at WSJ. “Instead of reducing the number of packages Amazon ships through the Postal Service by two-thirds…the two sides now have a tentative deal that will result in a 20% reduction…(Amazon) is the Postal Service’s largest customer, shipping nearly 15% of all the packages that the USPS delivered in the country last year.” WSJ subs.

 

Lowe’s is investing $250 million to train skilled trades workers at Fortune. “… to help train 250,000 skilled trades workers in fields like plumbing, carpentry, and electrical work. The company had previously committed over $50 million to nonprofits and community college partners…” Fortune subs.

 

Doritos at $7 a Bag Ended Up Costing PepsiCo Billions at Bloomberg. “Meetings with retailers like Walmart, which wanted the snack maker to address concerns about affordability as soon as possible, became tense…By agreeing to lower prices, the company secured, on average, a double digit increase in shelf space at major retailers like Walmart, Costco and Target.” Bloomberg subs.

 

Academy Sports expects sales for Q1 to be up 6% – 7%, with comp sales up 2% – 3% Press release

 

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Empowering merchants with agentic AI at McKinsey & Co. “Especially in merchandising, a lot of activities are still manual…Two things I often discuss with my clients, particularly in grocery retail, are performance management and procurement…Now, these tasks have become much easier. The agent does them for you…You come in on Monday morning no longer looking at dashboards, but at a report detailing what worked and didn’t work last week, along with recommendations…” Read more

 

Bed Bath & Beyond Names Veteran Retail Operator Amy Sullivan President “…(joined) Kirkland’s in 2012, where she rose from divisional merchandise manager to President and CEO.” Press release

 

The Retailer That Welcomes Returns at WSJ. “Revolve’s return rate is roughly 60% as the retailer remains committed to a shopper-friendly free return policy. That didn’t stop the company’s profit from surging nearly 60% in the fourth quarter.” WSJ subs.

 

Retailers rely on First Sale mitigation tactic. Congress has noticed. at Retail Dive. “Essentially, you have a manufacturer who makes a product, sells it to a middleman for $20, but the middleman then sells it to the importer for, let’s say, $80,” The NRF’s VP of Supply Chain and Customs Policy, Jonathan Gold, told Retail Dive. “That importer can use the $20 valuation for what they’re declaring for customs for the tariff purposes.” Read more

 

Wayfair Announces First Florida Store “…in Florida at Galleria Fort Lauderdale, as part of the center’s comprehensive redevelopment. Scheduled to open in late 2027…” Press release

 

Used car prices rise to highest point since summer 2023 at CNBC. “We thought we’d see some impact from the Middle East conflict, and that may still happen. But right now, the data is clear: used-vehicle demand is healthy and inventory levels are relatively tight,” Cox Automotive chief economist Jeremy Robb said in a release.” Read more

 

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