Aldi to Invest $3.4 Billion to Expand U.S. Stores via Fortune. “Aldi said on Sunday it would invest $3.4 billion to expand its U.S. store base to 2,500 by 2022, raising the stakes for rivals caught in a price war. Aldi operates 1,600 U.S. stores and earlier this year said it would add another 400 by the end of 2018 and spend $1.6 billion to remodel 1,300 of them.” Read more

 

…The expansion, over the next five years, puts the German grocer on track to becoming the third-largest food retailer in the U.S. by store count, behind Wal-Mart and Kroger by Heather Haddon at Wall Street Journal. Read more (subs.)

 

L’Oreal in talks to sell The Body Shop by Lisa Fickenscher at NY Post. “Brazilian-based Natura offered $1.1 billion for the 40 year-old, all natural Body Shop…The companies are in “exclusive” discussions. Natura is the Mary Kay of Latin America, selling its lotions and makeup door-to-door with nearly 10,000 sales associates worldwide.” Read more

 

QVC Execs On Mobile, the New Shopping Mall and Fidget Spinners by Leena Rao at Fortune. “Fortune spoke to QVC’s senior vice president of digital commerce, Alex Miller, and Peter Goodnough, the company’s vice president of consumer insights and analytics, about how the company is tackling mobile commerce and trying to appeal to younger shoppers.” Q&A

 

Amazon just quietly redesigned the Prime logo by Todd Bishop at GeekWire. “The italics and capital “P” are gone in favor of a new font, in all lower-case letters, with a simplified checkmark.” Read more

 

Talks to Combine Neiman Marcus and Saks Have Stalled by Suzanne Kapner & Matt Jarzemsky at Wall Street Journal. “The two sides have been unable to reach an agreement on price and are no longer actively working on a deal, one of the people said, adding that the talks could resume.” Read more (subs.)

 

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Home Depot grills its customers for product description ideas by Jessica Young at Internet Retailer. “We get this all the time. ‘I’ve got a grill, and it’s 64 inches. That means zip to me,’” said Mike Shady, senior director of web operations process at Home Depot. “‘I have no idea what that relates to or how that translates.’ We do it by hamburgers. Everybody understands how many burgers they can throw on a grill.” Read more

 

Target and Cartwheel apps to merge starting this summer by Sarah Perez at TechCrunch. “The Target app will also receive a notable upgrade this year, adding support for an indoor map that shows your location in the store, along with the nearby Cartwheel deals, in addition to support for mobile payments.” Read more

 

Now owned by Walmart, Omaha-based Hayneedle wants to make its name known with ad campaign by Cole Epley at Omaha World-Herald. “The goal of the campaign is to connect with homemakers — Hayneedle’s “primary customer” is female, between 36 and 55 years of age, and married with children living at home.” Read more

 

Amazon Prime Now expanding grocery relationships in Chicago by Lewis Lazare at Chicago Business Journal. “In addition to the newly launched Fresh Thyme relationship, Amazon Prime Now also offers delivery of goods from Chicago outposts of Plum Market and Eataly.” Read more

 

…Instacart is expanding throughout Chicago, adding 70 new ZIP codes by Jim Dallke at Chicago Inno. “Instacart says the expanded service will begin June 15, and it estimates that an additional 310,000 Chicagoland households will have access to its grocery delivery.” Read more

 

Twin City grocers step up their game by Sharyn Jackson at Star Tribune. “For a fee, plant-based sous chefs armed with cutting boards and sharp knives will slice, dice or julienne whatever needs chopping. New to Minnesota, the concept is taking hold throughout the country at select high-end supermarkets.” Read more

 

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Read Tipsheet Extra Stories

 

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