Amazon is shutting down its Fresh grocery delivery service in parts of five states by Jason Del Rey at Recode. “Amazon Fresh customers in parts of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland and California have reported receiving the notices…An Amazon spokeswoman confirmed that Fresh is ending service in parts of these states, but made clear the service would remain serving certain areas of big cities such as New York City, Boston, Chicago, as well as Philadelphia and Los Angeles, among other metropolises.” Read more

 

Apple Store Lines Return as iPhone X Debuts by Tripp Mickle at Wall Street Journal. “People have been coming by and saying, ‘Do you know you can order it online?’” Mr. Eaton said. “I say, ‘Have you ever met people online?’ It’s about the experience.” Read more (subs.)

 

…Thieves steal more than $300,000 worth of new iPhones from a truck in San Francisco at CNBC. “The thieves, who have yet to be caught, broke into the truck while its driver had been making a delivery at the Stonestown Galleria shopping mall in San Francisco.” Read more

 

Marc Lore Just Sold His Modest New Jersey Home by Kathryn Hopkins at WWD. “Marc Lore…has quietly sold his four-bedroom, 2,508-square-foot brick colonial-style house for just under $900,000 in an off-market deal, WWD has learned. Many might have assumed that Lore lived in an opulent multimillion-dollar mansion, but he and his wife Carolyn actually called the unassuming Mountain Lakes abode home from 2006 when they paid $841,000 for it.” Pic/Read more

 

Retail mogul Hank Meijer writes political biography – in his spare time by Jim Harger at M Live. “When he wasn’t running his family’s growing chain of 235 hyper-markets in six Midwestern states, the 65-year-old billionaire was researching and writing “Arthur Vandenberg: The Man in the Middle of the American Century.” Meijer plans to unveil the book on Thursday, Nov. 2, at a sold-out event.” Read more

 

Accused Thornton Walmart gunman mostly kept to himself, neighbors and boss say by Kirk Mitchell & Tom McGhee at Denver Post. “He made me nervous because he always had a rifle in a case over his shoulder,” said Teresa Muniz, who lives in the same complex. She said her dog never bothers anyone but would growl whenever Ostrem walked nearby. “I would know it was him,” she said. She added: “He was evil! Evil!” Read more

 

…Other shoppers pulled guns but did not confront the killer by Kevin Simpson at Denver Post. Read more

 

Target’s former comms head, Dustee Jenkins, has resurfaced as Spotify’s global head of communications and public relations by Diana Bradley at PR Week. “Jenkins previously served as Target’s EVP and chief communications officer. She left the retailer after seven years in June. Katie Boylan, communications VP at Target, replaced her.” Read more

 

**A message from Fabe – Made in Italy – hand-crafted pillows prevent and relieve neck and back pain. Fabe’s Ergo Praxis pillow supports and aligns the head and neck to prevent cervical pain. Created in cooperation with Ludes University in Switzerland – it gets the body in the right position for a good night’s sleep. Ergo Praxis Specs | How the pillow is made video | Retailers request samples at info@shiftmarketinggroup.net. 

 

Organic Search Market Share in Retail Dominated by Macy’s, Not Amazon, in Q3 2017 by Matt Southern at Search Engine Journal. “Macy’s came in first place, followed by Nordstrom, followed by Amazon. That means, during the third quarter of 2017, Macy’s was more consistent at ranking in the top organic spots for high volume, relevant searches in the retail sector.” Top 10 list

 

Almost a third of web orders end up being sent back, vs. 9 percent of purchases at physical stores by James Ellis at Bloomberg. “The expense of processing and shipping boomeranged items can range from 20 percent to 65 percent of an e-tailer’s cost of goods sold, says United Parcel Service Inc.” Read more (tiered subs.)

 

Ralph Lauren’s Exit From Many Department Stores Is Helping Profits by Phil Wahba at Fortune. “While Ralph Lauren has made clear it wants less exposure to U.S. department stores such as Macy’s, which generate 25% of its global sales, and off-price chains, Louvet made clear the company doesn’t want out of such stores altogether.” Read more

 

L.L.Bean plans to give its stodgy image the boot at Boston Globe. Read (tiered subs.)

 

Sears Will Close 63 More Stores in January by Natasha Bach. “…it’ll shutter an additional 45 Kmart stores and 18 Sears stores across the country in late January.” Read more

 

What Men Really Want for Christmas (#1 Smartphone, #2 Cash/Gift Card) at Field Agent. Top 10 list

 

QuikTrip experiments with new in-store ‘beer cave’ by Rick Maranon at Fox 23 News. “The test was launched a couple of months ago, but the convenience store chain wanted to launch it quietly so it could study how customers would react without much fanfare.” Read more/Video

 

Tipsheet Extra Stories

Sellers are protesting against Amazon India’s returns policy by pulling back ads

This 28-year-old’s company makes millions buying from Walmart & Target & selling on Amazon

University of Arkansas only campus nationwide with UPS package locker

CBS Will Revive ‘Twilight Zone’

More Than 40 Million Fire Extinguishers Recalled

Step aside, Alexa. Make way for Oprah.

Read Tipsheet Extra Stories

 

***

Eye on Retail Tipsheet is must-read material for 20,000+ 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