Wednesday Tipsheet: D.Gen Gets Hostile | Target’s Product Focus | Wmart’s Women Focus

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“Dollar General goes hostile with Family Dollar bid” at CNBC. “Dollar General said it would take its $9.1 billion offer directly to shareholders of Family Dollar Stores, after being spurned twice by its smaller rival. The company said it had started a tender offer to buy all shares of Family Dollar for $80 per share.” Read more

 

…Dollar General’s ‘Hostile’ Press Release “Dollar General’s all-cash offer of $80.00 per share provides Family Dollar shareholders with a substantially superior valuation to the $74.50 per share cash / stock offer announced by Dollar Tree, Inc. on July 28, 2014.” Read the release

 

“Target Narrows the Bull’s-Eye, With Emphasis on Signature Products” by Paul Ziobro at WSJ. “Target’s new CEO plans to double down on just a handful of departments like baby products and fashion, a strategic shift as the discounter works to bring shoppers back to its stores and better compete with online rivals…”We’ve got to major in these signature categories and make some bold changes to re-energize those businesses,” Mr. Cornell said in an interview. “All categories can’t be prioritized the same.” Read more

 

“Wal-Mart continues focus on helping women suppliers” by Kim Souza at The City Wire. “Executives with Wal-Mart gathered Tuesday (Sept. 10) for a meeting designed to reinforce efforts to empower women like 20-year-old Avani Bhadra of India, and Veronica Moreno, a tortilla baker from Atlanta, Ga…(David) Cheesewright said he is proud of efforts by Walmart Canada to increase its number of women managers all because someone inside expressed the idea…the number of women managers in Walmart Canada has risen from 17% to 26%. In Chile, the same program has helped increase the number of female managers from 35% to 70%.” Read more

 

“Wal-Mart unveils its kid-approved toy list, holiday layaway dates” by Kim Souza at The City Wire. “To encourage early shopping the retailer said it’s kicking off the holiday layaway option in stores this Friday (Sept. 12). Wal-Mart also said all 20 of the kid-approved toys would be covered on its Savings Catcher program beginning Wednesday (Sept. 10).” See the top toys

 

***A message from Relax Sacks – Get Ready For the Most Comfortable Chair on the Planet! Consumers love the comfort of our ‘big and fun’ bean bag chairs (up to 7.5 feet in size!).  Incredibly soft micro-suede covers and uniquely comfortable shredded foam filling make the Relax Sacks experience one your customers won’t want to miss!  Great for living rooms, basements, kids rooms, dorm rooms, etc. Bring some fun and excitement to your stores and drive impulse sales in the process. www.relaxsacks.com.  Email info@shiftmarketinggroup.net for more information.

 

“How the Home Depot Credit-Card Breach Affects Small Contractors” by Patrick Clark at Bloomberg. “The hack may have disproportionately affected small business owners: Professional builders and contractors account for as much as 40 percent of Home Depot sales and 4 percent of the chain’s total customers, according to Drew Reading, an analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence. “ Read more

 

…Here Come the Lawsuits at Chicago Tribune. “O’Brien said he used his credit card at two different Home Depot stores in Ilinois, once in Carpentersville on May 19 and the second in Palatine on June 2, and had his personal financial information exposed.” Read more

 

Gawker Won’t Let Up on Walmart’s New Dress Code…“A Walmart employee sends us this photo of a sign posted in a Walmart store, instructing employees on the finer points of the new Walmart dress code. “The followin positions can wear blue or black denim jeans” See the pic / Read more

 

“David Yurman Sues Sam’s Club for Selling its Jewelry” at The Fashion Law. “Yurman states: “Sam’s Club tortiously interfered with and intentionally induced the breach of Yurman’s contractual relations with one or more of its authorized retailers.” In addition to tortious interference, Yurman is charging Sam’s Club with trademark infringement, false designation of origin, and unfair competition.” Read more

 

“Amazon to open first North Carolina fulfillment center this fall” by Ken Elkins at Charlotte Bus. Journal. “Amazon.com plans to open a 222,500-square-foot distribution center in Concord in November, sources with knowledge of the project tell us.” Read more

 

“Dick’s Sporting Goods stores in Baltimore pull Ray Rice jerseys from shelves immediately” by Josh Sanchez at Fansided. “One store in the area told The Wire that customers have come in to return Ray Rice jerseys. Read more

 

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About Eye-on-Retail

Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet read by thousands of Retail Merchants & Executives every weekday morning. Eye-on-Retail is unique because it’s timely, smart and fun. It’s created bright and early every morning and delivered between 7-8 am CT. We love data, earnings reports, executive presentations and stories off the beaten path that get at what’s really happening in the world of retail.

Tuesday Tipsheet: H.Depot Confirms Breach | Wmart Onshoring Snag | Twitter’s Buy Button

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“Home Depot confirms data breach” at CNBC. “Home Depot officially confirmed a data breach on Monday. Home Depot’s investigation is focused on transactions made as far back as April. There is no evidence that shoppers’ debit PIN numbers were compromised, according to a statement the retailer released Monday.” Read more

 

.…Home Depot’s Press Release: “We apologize for the frustration and anxiety this causes our customers, and I want to thank them for their patience and support as we work through this issue,” said Frank Blake, chairman and CEO. “We owe it to our customers to alert them that we now have enough evidence to confirm that a breach has indeed occurred.” Read the release

 

“Wal-Mart’s onshoring manufacturing effort hits snag with Redman problem” by Kim Souza at The City Wire. “The suit claims that Ellen Liu, executive director for Sales Chief, made clear her intention to derail the “Made in the U.S.” plan earlier this year. Between March and May, Sales Chief shipped $3.4 million of inventory to Redman in the U.S., but on May 24, Sales Chief revoked Redman’s credit terms requiring full payment of goods ordered, shipped and those in transit.” Read more

 

“Amazon Is Under Attack Like Never Before” by Jillian D’onfro at Business Insider. “People still think of Amazon as a retailer,” says SunTrust analyst Robert Peck, “But when you think about all of its investments, it has expanded into many new areas.” Read more

 

“Activist Investor Scores a Win at Walgreen” by David Benoit at WSJ. “Walgreen facing mounting pressure from analysts and shareholders, said it is giving activist investor Jana Partners LLC two board seats, a relatively large say for a shareholder with a little more than 1% of the company’s stock…The agreement with Jana is a big win for an activist investor.” Read more

 

***A message from Dig It® Handwear.  Garden glove protection for manicured female hands!  Patented line of high-quality gardening gloves provides unique “pillow-top” protection for female gardeners.  Nationally distributed in Canada – now offered to US retail for the first time.  High dollar ring – get ready for Spring ’15. View the line at www.digithandwear.com. See the wire rack.  Contact info@shiftmarketinggroup.net to get started.

 

“Twitter’s Buy Button” by Anthony Ha at TechCrunch. “Twitter is officially announcing that Buy button today …it will be visible to “a small percentage of U.S. users (that will grow over time).” As a result, users will actually be able to make purchases directly within tweets. If you see something you want, you hit “buy”, bring up a little information, enter your payment and shipping information while still Twitter (it’s encrypted and stored for future purchases), and complete the transaction “in just a few taps.” Read more

 

“In B2B e-commerce, Alibaba has solved the one problem Amazon can’t” by Erin Griffith at Fortune. “This means tinkerers, builders, entrepreneurs, and small businesses can order custom motors and parts from Chinese factories without having to travel there, find a scout, and forge a relationship with a manufacturer before doing business. It opens up the world of international suppliers to people who wouldn’t normally have access to it. They can buy in bulk through Alibaba, which acts as a trusted third party, vouching for the transaction.” Read more

 

“Can 1.3 Million Walmart Workers Deduct ‘Uniforms’ On Their Taxes?” by Robert W. Wood at Forbes. “The clothing must be specifically required by your employer, but the second requirement is the key. The clothing must not be suitable for taking the place of your regular clothing.” Read more

 

“How Walmart’s ‘Dress Code’ Costs Employees” by Erik Sherman at Forbes. “Although a representative had previously told me that the company had first made the announcement in July to give employees time to save up, people making $8 or $9 an hour, even with full-time hours, have little money available for additional expenses. Wal-Mart did remind employees that they could use their discounts to purchase the clothing at the store or its online site.” Read more

 

“Blogger hits the bullseye, designs for Target” by Jana Shortal at KARE 11 NBC. “But it was the call that came last year that’s the one that hit the bullseye. “All of the Pinners that Target enlisted are designers by trade,” Arends said, referring to the call to work on a design project for Target. Target Corporation contacted Kate, and two other major lifestyle bloggers, and enlisted them to design a party décor collection.” See the video / Read more

 

“British firm lays out US expansion ambitions” by Claer Barrett at Financial Times via CNBC. “Primark, the UK’s biggest clothing retailer by volume, has said it will open 10 stores in the US by 2016 as its international expansion supported a 17 per cent increase in full year sales.” Read more

 

***

About Eye-on-Retail

Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet read by thousands of Retail Executives every weekday morning. Eye-on-Retail is unique because it’s timely, smart and fun. It’s created bright and early every morning and delivered between 7-8 am CT. We love data, earnings reports, executive presentations and stories off the beaten path that get at what’s really happening in the world of retail.

Monday Tipsheet: Delivery Wars | No Credit for 18-29 | Video Up for 50-64

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“Whole Foods and Instacart turn up the heat in the delivery wars” by Beth Kowitt at Fortune. “Starting next month, rather than dispatching an Instacart shopper to a Whole Foods when an order is placed, shoppers will already be embedded in its stores. The service will start in Boston and Austin before rolling out to other participating cities.” Read more

 

“Report Says Retailers Are Emerging From A Yearlong Apparel Slump” by Barbara Thau at Forbes. “For the first time since September 2013, apparel industry inventory levels are growing at a rate slower than sales growth, according to a Credit Suisse report released Friday, “CS Softlines Industry Inventory Tracker.” “As a result, we believe that a nine-month period of excessive markdown activity and margin degradation for the group is coming to an end,” the report said.” Read more

 

“Dick’s Field & Stream Store Opens in Columbus, OH” by Tim Feran at Columbus Dispatch. “Along with the Columbus store, another location will open this weekend, in Cary, N.C. Next weekend, Dick’s will open a store in Washington, Pa., and plans to open four more locations later this year. The company plans to open about 55 stores by 2017.” See the video / Read more

 

“Everything you need to know about the dollar store love triangle” by  John Kell at Fortune. “Dollar Tree did provide a few meaningful updates. It now says it will divest “as many stores as necessary” to win antitrust clearance. It also expects the timing of the transaction to accelerate and close as early as the end of November. Dollar Tree also says the Federal Trade Commission has issued a second request for additional information.” Read more

 

“Kmart’s first Christmas ad of the season? You decide” by Christina Cheddar Berk at CNBC. “It’s too early for Christmas, so just to be clear, this is not a Christmas commercial,” the ad begins. “Let’s say you have an event in late December that you need a lot of gifts for, like, maybe your entire family is having a birthday on the same day,” the ad says.” See the video / Read more

 

“Wal-Mart’s Rick Webb Talks STEM & Drive Up Grocery” by Kim Souza at The City Wire. “This Drive Up Grocery solution is a new concept in the U.S. but it’s quite common in France. In order for Wal-Mart to test it here, there was a lot of collaborative work to do to get this up and running,” Webb said…He said the logistics team that gets the order also will get some type of routing detail that tells them where the product is located in the small warehouse, so they don’t wander around looking for each item.” Read more

 

“Debt-averse millennials steer clear of credit cards” by Sarah Whitten at CNBC. “According to a new Bankrate.com study, 63 percent of individuals aged 18-29 don’t own a credit card. This holds true for 35 percent of adults 30 and over, nearly half the number of the younger generation.” Read more

 

“Nielsen Finds Older Adults Are Embracing Digital Video” by Emily Steel at NY Times. “People 50 to 64 years old watched an average of 19 minutes a day of digital video during the second quarter of 2014, up from 11 minutes a day during the same period last year.” Read more

 

“Good Eggs Raises $21 Million From Index Ventures To Deliver The Farmer’s Market To Your Door” by Ryan Lawler at TechCrunch. “Good Eggs is kind of like Instacart, but purely for locally sourced organic and sustainable meats, produce, and other goods. It offers up a marketplace to enable customers to buy from nearby farms and vendors, but then handles all the logistics associated with packaging up their orders and handling delivery.” Read more

 

“Amazon Prime auto-renewal charges frustrate customers” by Nicole Bogart at Global News. “I was misled that I would have 6 months free to try it. Is this a new scam of theirs? I am seeing a lot of people being charged on the same date here for memberships they did not want. Hmmm…..a little fishy,” another added.” Read more

 

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About Eye-on-Retail

Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet read by thousands of Retail Merchants/Executives every weekday morning. Eye-on-Retail is timely, smart and fun.  It’s created bright and early every morning and delivered between 7-8 am CT. We love data, earnings reports, executive presentations and stories off the beaten path that get at what’s really happening in the world of retail.

Friday Tipsheet: H.Depot/G.Sachs Highlights | Wmart/Target Team Up | Jeff Gordon @ Wmart

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“Target & Walmart Team Up on Sustainability” by Kavita Kumar at Star-Tribune. “The nation’s two largest discount retailers took the unusual step of co-hosting a meeting in Chicago to push beauty and personal care suppliers to be more transparent about the chemicals that go into their products…The forum was attended by about 75 people, including representatives from suppliers such as Procter & Gamble, Unilever, Estee Lauder and L’Oreal as well as other retailers such as CVS, Walgreens and Ulta. “It’s a pretty big deal,” said Janet Nudelman, director of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. “It’s surprising to see two such staunch competitors come together to tackle this problem.” Read more

 

Target Survey: Credit Suisse Surveys 2,000 Canadian Consumers (the Four Things they Found)” by Jonathan Ratner at Financial Post. “Target’s prices may not be compelling enough to drive basket growth. Credit Suisse’s channel pricing survey showed that its basket price premium versus Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has been widening…Meanwhile, an investment in loyalty could have a disproportionate impact on traffic since Target’s more frequent customers and those that value loyalty most both fall into the $50,000-$100,000 income bracket.” Read more

 

Report: Whole Foods has 2nd lowest grocery prices in NYC at NY Post. “The supermarket chain ranks the second cheapest in the city, behind Fairway Market, on a list of popular grocery stores in Manhattan, according to a report released by Bloomberg Intelligence. Despite Whole Foods’ reputation as a wallet shrinker, it beat out local faves FreshDirect, D’Agostino, The Food Emporium and Gristedes for the best prices, the study says.” Read more

 

“Rev. Jesse Jackson Calls Jeff Bezos” by Jessica Guynn at USA Today “Rev. Jesse Jackson is calling on Amazon.com to release its work force diversity numbers…The Rainbow Push Coalition will respond with an “action” if Amazon.com does not release the information, Jackson said.” Read more

 

“The Amazon.com of Stolen Credit Cards Makes It All So Easy” by Dune Lawrence at Bloomberg. “On Sept. 1, the website Rescator.cc alerted customers to a big new batch of product about to hit its digital shelves. ”Load your accounts and prepare for an avalanche of cash!” a post on its News page read.  The items, marketed under the names American Sanctions and European Sanctions, appeared as promised the next day, spurring such an enthusiastic response that the site was pushed offline at times by the high demand.” Read more

 

***A message from Relax Sacks – Get Ready For the Most Comfortable Chair On the Planet! Consumers love the comfort of our ‘big and fun’ bean bag chairs (up to 7.5 feet in size!).  Incredibly soft micro-suede covers and uniquely comfortable shredded foam filling make the Relax Sacks experience one your customers won’t want to miss. Great for living rooms, basements, kids rooms, dorm rooms, etc. Bring some fun and excitement to your stores! www.relaxsacks.com.  Email info@shiftmarketinggroup.net for more information.

 

Walmart’s David Cheesewright Presents at Goldman Sachs Retail Conference See the Ppoint / Webcast

 

“Home Depot working ‘around the clock’ to find data breach, CEO says” by Phil Wahba at Fortune. “The most important thing for us is making sure that our customers feel comfortable shopping at The Home Depot, and that’s going to be our guiding principle,” said Blake, who announced his upcoming resignation before the possible breach came to light. Just look at Target’s travails to see why he feels that way.” Read more

 

“Jeff Gordon Greets Fans at Charlotte Walmart” by Kacie Hollins at Fox 46 Carolinas. “The most devoted fans arrived Wednesday evening and camped outside through the night before returning to the store to reclaim their spot in line when it opened Thursday morning. Others skipped work or pulled their kids out of school to come down to the store to get an autograph and picture with Gordon.” See the video / Read more

 

Target’s Jeff Jones Attends Altuzarra for Target Launch Event Pic 1  Pic 2

 

CA: Gov. Brown says he will sign bill that would ban plastic grocery bags by Phil Willon at LA Times. “I probably will sign it, yes,” Brown said during the televised debate. “ In fact, I’ll tell you why I’m going to sign it …. There are about 50 cities with their own plastic bag ban, and that’s causing a lot of confusion.’’ Read more

 

Home Depot’s Frank Blake & Carol Tome Present at Goldman Sachs Retail Conference

 

Home Depot’s Frank Blake on breach:

When you are in a situation like this, you have a choice. On the one hand, you can wait to communicate anything until you have the facts at hand or you can communicate the facts as you know them. We chose the latter path.

The downside of that is we can’t answer all of the questions, because we have told everybody what we know.

We will have all of our terminals fully enabled for credit card EMV PIN and chip by the end of this year, so well in advance of the October 2015 deadline.

 

Carol Tome ‘Doggone Proud’ of Ted Decker:

Blake: Ted’s learned a ton from Carol. Ted also back in the day did our M&A transactions.

Blake: Ted has spent a number of years really as the chief financial person reporting to Carol with responsibility for both operations and merchandising and has enormous insights into the business.

Tomé: If I could just add a personal note, I am so doggone proud of him.

Blake: Yes, he is going to do a great job.

 

Craig Menear

Blake: When I first got this job and more than intimidated by it, my wife’s comment to me was remember, it’s not about you. And I would say the same thing about Craig, Craig is a great leader.

 

Blake on International

China: We shut that business down and don’t have any plans of going back. We couldn’t figure out how to make any money in China to just bring it to a point.

Brazil: We have looked at Brazil several years ago. Have no plans, I mean Brazil is one of those things every couple of years you say, ought to be in Brazil and then every couple of years you go, good not to be in Brazil. 

Pro

Blake: We already do a lot of deliveries from the store. It is something particularly we do for our pro-customers, but the system underlying that is quite antiquated.

Blake: The new system is going to allow much, much better visibility and much, much more efficiency in terms of how we utilize the assets.

Blake: The good news for us is that our pro customer is from if you look at how they shop the store. The margin rate characteristics of that customer, is pretty much the same as our consumer. And that’s our business model and that’s the business model we want to maintain.

Tome:  If you just look at the market opportunity looking at the census data, the NAICS 444 data, it would suggest that the addressable market for the Home Depot is $260 billion, of which $80 billion is that retail pro customer. So, now we have got a lot of room for growth within that addressable market.

 

Read the full transcript via Seeking Alpha

 

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About Eye-on-Retail

Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet read by thousands of Retail Merchants/Executives every weekday morning. Eye-on-Retail is unique because it’s timely, smart and fun. It’s created bright and early every morning and delivered between 7-8 am CT. We love data, earnings reports, executive presentations and stories off the beaten path that get at what’s really happening in the world of retail.

 

 

 

 

 

Thursday Tipsheet: Costco Comp +7% | Icahn’s F.Dol Score = $200 Mil | Bad Kroger Ads

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“Costco Comp Sales +7% in August” “Costco reported net sales of $8.8 billion for the month of August, the four weeks ended August 31, 2014, an increase of ten percent from $8.0 billion during the similar period last year…For the 52-week fiscal year ended August 31, 2014, the Company reported net sales of $110.2 billion, an increase of seven percent from the $102.9 billion reported in fiscal year 2013.” Read the release

 

“Wal-Mart exec outlines growth strategy for Latin America” by Kim Souza at The City Wire. “We plan to grow sales in three ways: Focusing equally on same-store sales gains, adding square footage and more e-commerce transactions,” Rank said…In 2014, the retailer will open 149 stores in Mexico and Central America.” Read more  Listen to Webcast

 

“Costco to Pay $335,000 to Settle Clean Air Act Charges (+$2 Mil for Improvements)” by Tess Stynes at WSJ. “Costco will be required to retrofit or replace commercial refrigeration equipment at 30 stores. Costco also will be required to implement a refrigerant-management system to prevent and repair coolant leaks and reduce its corporate-wide average leak rate at least 20% by 2017.” Read more

 

San Francisco: “TargetExpress stores to land in Financial District and Berkeley” by Annie Sciacca at San Francisco Bus. Times. “The 18,000 square-foot store will open at the southwest corner of Bush and Sansome Streets, next to the Montgomery BART station, while the Berkeley store will be a smaller 12,000 square feet at Shattuck Avenue and Allston Way in the city’s downtown corridor.” Read more

 

“Report: Data shows most US Home Depots hit by breach” at CNBC. “(Brian Krebs) said he found new evidence that the breach first surfaced on the website Rescator, where customer credit cards were listed according to store ZIP code. These codes showed a 99.4 percent overlap with Home Depot stores, he said. In all, there were 1,939 codes corresponding to Home Depot store locations.” Read more

 

“Icahn scores $200 million profit in sale of Family Dollar stake (has sold all of his shares)” by Benjamin Snyder at Fortune. “It’s unknown when the billionaire investor sold his remaining stake. Reuters suggested that the sale may have meant Icahn didn’t expect Dollar General to bid for the company and perhaps sold too soon.” Read more

 

***A Message from Orchard Road Canning: Target Millennials to Grow Home Canning Sales.  Young female canners are the growth engine behind category growth – tap into the opportunity!  Orchard Road targets millennials with a simple and elegant glass jar design and unique package graphics that feature authentic food-filled jars.  See the package design. See the sell sheet. www.orchardroadcanning.com.  Contact info@shiftmarketinggroup.net for more information.

 

Cincinnati:  Bloomberg’s Moms Demand Action Runs Ads Slamming Kroger by Alexander Coolidge at Cincinnati.com. “The ads depict customers breaking Kroger rules with outside food, skateboards or dressed inappropriately – standing next to an armed shopper. A caption reads: ‘One of them isn’t welcome at Kroger. Guess which one.’ Smaller print explains Kroger’s policy against outside food, skateboards and dress, then asks: ‘So why would they allow this loaded gun?’ See the ad / Read more

 

Ablilene, TX: Former Walmart CEO Mike Duke at Distinguished Speaker Luncheon on Oct. 14th  Read more

 

“Long-time Amazon CFO To Retire Next Year” by Ryan Mac at Forbes. “On Wednesday, the Seattle company announced that the 12-year servant will retire next June and would be replaced by Brian Olsavsky, currently vice president of finance for Amazon’s global consumer business.” Read more

 

Yesterday: Dick’s Presents at Goldman Sachs Retail Conference  Webcast / Presentation

 

Today at Goldman Sachs Retail Conference:

Home Depot @ 10:35 AM ET  Webcast

Tractor Supply @ 11:20 AM ET  Webcast

Walmart International @ 12:20 PM ET  Webcast

 

‘El Mustachio The Magician’ Sought In Santa Cruz, California For Allegedly Robbing Costco by Ed Mazza at HuffPo. “Police in Santa Cruz, Calif., are looking for a mustachioed man they say repeatedly robbed a Costco store. They’ve given him the name “El Mustachio The Magician” for both his facial hair and “his ability to make Bose speakers disappear.” Read more / See the video

 

***

About Eye-on-Retail

Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet read by thousands of Retail Merchants/Executives every weekday morning. Eye-on-Retail is unique because it’s timely, smart and fun. It’s created bright and early every morning and delivered between 7-8 am CT. We love data, earnings reports, executive presentations and stories off the beaten path that get at what’s really happening in the world of retail.

 

Wednesday Tipsheet: Wmart’s Dress Code | H.Depot Message | CVS New Name

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“Walmart Workers Rant About the “Nonsense” New Dress Code” by Hamilton Nolan at Gawker. “The Walmart employee who sent us this information told us, “I believe Walmart is placing yet another financial burden upon the workers…I do hope that media attention will cause the company to either set up a hardship fund to help us pay for this, or even better, do away with it all together.” Read more

 

“CVS Stops Tobacco Sales Today, Changes Name To Reflect New Era” by Bruce Japsen at Fortune. “The move to remove tobacco products effective this morning coincides with a company decision to also change its corporate name to CVS Health (CVS), from CVS/Caremark Corp. to reflect “its broader health care commitment” and desire to change the future health of Americans.” Read more

 

Study: Walmart Beats Dollar Stores on Price by Jillian Berman at HuffPo. “A typical basket of goods at Walmart is about 4 percent cheaper than the same basket at Dollar General and about 12 percent cheaper than the same basket at Family Dollar, according to a pricing survey in Pikeville, North Carolina, conducted by Wolfe Research.” Read more

 

“Moms-oriented zulily goes for the pitter-patter of little tweets” by Angel Gonzalez at Seattle Times. “The 27-year-old was promoted from receptionist after her funny emails warning people about illegally parked cars and book sales caught management’s eye.“We have a theory that we want you to prove wrong,” Gay says the executives told her. “Twitter doesn’t work for us.” So Gay was handed the keys to the account.” Read more

 

***A message from Relax Sacks – Get Ready For the Most Comfortable Chair On the Planet! Consumers love the comfort of our ‘big and fun’ bean bag chairs (up to 7.5 feet in size!).  Incredibly soft micro-suede covers and uniquely comfortable shredded foam filling make the Relax Sacks experience one your customers won’t want to miss!  Great for living rooms, basements, kids rooms, dorm rooms, etc.  Bring some fun and excitement to your stores and drive impulse sales in the process. www.relaxsacks.com.  Email info@shiftmarketinggroup.net for more information.

 

“How Tom Brady led Jim Cramer to Home Depot” by Lee Brodie at CNBC. “I like to think of Tom Brady as more of a Home Depot player; like Brady, Home Depot just delivers and delivers. It’s a pocket passer with incredible consistency,” Cramer said. In other words, when you draft a quarterback, you’re look at leadership, and Cramer says Home Depot is a leader in many ways.” Read more

 

“What’s next in Family Dollar acquisition saga?” by Jennifer Thomas at Charlotte Bus. Journal. “It would be insane if Dollar Tree made its initial offer, faced some resistance from Dollar General, then walked away,” says Dutch Fox, vice president and equity analyst at FBR Capital Markets & Co.” Read more

 

“Home Depot reportedly hacked by data thieves who hit Target — but this one could be bigger” at Minn./St.Paul Bus. Journal. “The Home Depot breach may date back to late April, which potentially could make it a much bigger heist than Target’s data breach, which lasted a few weeks. Home Depot did not say how many many stores were affected.” Read more

 

…Home Depot Releases Statement via Website “For now, you should know the following: First, you will not be responsible for any possible fraudulent charges.  The financial institution that issued your card or Home Depot are responsible for those charges should we confirm a breach…” Read the statement

 

“A Carrot Company Is Using Junk Food-Style Marketing To Change The Way Kids Eat” by Adele Peters at Fast Company. “The data shows that fruit and vegetable consumption is down 7% in the U.S. over the last 10 years. We’re not doing well on that ledger.” See the pics / Read more

 

***

About Eye-on-Retail

Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet read by thousands of Retail Merchants/Executives every weekday morning. Eye-on-Retail is unique because it’s timely, smart and fun. It’s created bright and early every morning and delivered between 7-8 am CT. We love data, earnings reports, executive presentations and stories off the beaten path that get at what’s really happening in the world of retail.

 

 

Tuesday Tipsheet: D.Gen Sweetens Bid | Costco’s 93 inch Bear | Insulted Pay More

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“Dollar General sweetens cash bid for Family Dollar to $80 a share, or about $9.1B” by Andrew Ross Sorkin at CNBC. “Dollar General is willing to sell up to 1,500 stores if required by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, even though it feels its pledge to divest 700 stores in its prior proposal provides more than enough cushion to clear any regulatory review.” Read more

 

“Kickstarter users fundraise for products already sold on Amazon” by Kaja Whitehouse at NY Post. “The Bellevue, Wash., company launched a Kickstarter campaign seeking $20,000 for its high-tech knife, whose pitch is that it needs neither batteries nor electricity to generate heat. The problem? The knife officially launched last year and can be purchased on Amazon.com. The knife also was available for sale on the company’s Web site until late last Friday when That! took it down amid criticism.” Read more

 

Boston Consulting Group:  Mexico has Lower Manufacturing Costs than China at The Economist. “America and Mexico really are “rising stars”. American wage restraint and newly cheap energy have improved its attractiveness to manufacturers. And Mexican wages have grown less than 50% in dollar terms over a decade, leaving them 13% cheaper (adjusted for productivity) than China’s.” Read more

 

“Costco welcomes massive 93″ plush bear” by Billy Langsworthy at Toy News. “The bear is 93″ tall head to toe, or 55″ when sitting down and even has its own Facebook and Twitter pages. As the video below demonstrates, the bear is perfect for laying on, trampolining with, or smacking with pillows, although it makes a naff seesaw partner.” See the video / Read more

 

“Is gun battle a no-win for Kroger?” by Alexander Coolidge at Cincinnati.com. “Company officials say Kroger just wants to sell groceries, not enter political debates. “Our long-standing policy on this issue is to follow state and local laws and to ask customers to be respectful of others while shopping,” Kroger said in a statement.” Read more

 

“Eyeing that pricey handbag? Prepare to be insulted” by Bob Sullivan at CNBC. “Morgan Ward tested her theory with Darren W. Dahl of The University of British Columbia, in a study to be published in October’s Journal of Consumer Research. In one of the experiments they found that consumers who were treated poorly by sales staff were willing to pay 10 percent more than others.” Read more

 

“Price Check: Which Online Retailer has Best Prices?” by Valerie Hoff at WXIA-11 Atlanta. “Costco came in first with the best prices on coffee, batteries, diapers and cleaning wipes. Next was Sam’s Club, followed by Walmart. Amazon had the overall highest prices on the seven items we checked, though it did have the lowest on paper towels and trash bags.”  See the video / Read more

 

“We Can’t Reduce Inequality By Forcing WalMart To Pay Like Costco” by Tim Worstall at Forbes. “If WalMart had to pay labour like Costco does then we’d expect them to also employ labour like Costco does. That is, we’d expect them to reduce their workforce by more than half: that’s what they would have to do in order to get to roughly the same sales per head of staff, that thing which is the determinant of how much they can pay people.” Read more

 

“Two Months On From Hobby Lobby Ruling, Grocery Co-ops Dump Eden Foods Products From Shelves” by Clare O’ Connor at Forbes. “So far, larger nationwide grocery chains remain on board with Eden Foods…a spokesperson for Whole Foods, Eden’s biggest supplier, told Forbes that it’ll keep selling the Michigan company’s organic goods, but that shoppers have every right to “vote with their dollars.” Read more

 

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About Eye-on-Retail

Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet read by thousands of Retail Merchants/Executives every weekday morning. Eye-on-Retail is unique because it’s timely, smart and fun. It’s created bright and early every morning and delivered between 7-8 am CT. We love data, earnings reports, executive presentations and stories off the beaten path that get at what’s really happening in the world of retail. Contact us at info@shiftmarketinggroup.net.

Friday Tipsheet: Wmart Preps ‘Pickup Grocery’ | Target Likes Annie | Google Drone Delivers Dog Treats

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“Walmart ‘Pickup Grocery’ site preps for grand opening” by Kim Souza at The City Wire. “The retailer has named the test format Walmart Pickup Grocery…amid a flurry of activity as the 15,000 square-foot grocery center is being stocked with 10,000 fresh and dry grocery products – everything from cereal, chips and bread to fresh produce, meat and milk. Wal-Mart told The City Wire that several tests will be conducted before the online grocery service opens to the public early this fall. Walmart declined to provide a specific date or share who will be allowed to test the service.” Read more / See the pic

 

“Wal-Mart Looks Online for Chinese Growth” by Shelly Banjo & Laurie Burkitt at WSJ. “”We’ve taken a long-term view of China,” said Neil Ashe, Wal-Mart’s head of global e-commerce, in an interview. “It’s an awfully big market—it doesn’t have to be number one to be a good business.” Read more

 

Hollywood Reporter: “Annie-Inspired Target Collection Coming this Fall” by Stephanie Chan. “The 25-piece range, with all items priced under $30, includes Annie’s signature red frock and a heart-shaped locket, as well as pieces featuring elements of patchwork, pins, buttons and tulle, and a DIY kit. The collection is available starting Nov. 16.” Read more

 

“Lowe’s to pay $1.6 million in settlement for mislabeled lumber dimensions” by Scott Morris at Bay City News. “They alleged that Lowe’s sold structural dimension building products that described product dimensions that were not the actual dimensions — incorrectly advertising the length, width, depth or thickness of building materials. In some cases, the inaccurate labeling was because of inaccurate dimensions provided by the manufacturers or other suppliers, according to Marin County prosecutors.” Read more

 

“Google Building Fleet of Drones to Bypass Earthbound Traffic” by Michael Liedtke at AP via SF Gate. “Although Google expects it to take several more years before its fleet of drones is fully operational, the company says test flights in Australia delivered a first aid kit, candy bars, dog treats and water to two farmers after traveling a distance of roughly one kilometer, or just over a half mile.” Read more

 

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“Is Dollar General really committed to acquiring Family Dollar?” by Jennifer Thomas at Charlotte Bus. Journal. “What hasn’t happened, though, is a new offer from Dollar General or a letter addressing Family Dollar’s concerns to jump-start talks between the dollar-store rivals. “Dollar General has got to make the next move,” says Brian Yarbrough, an equity analyst with Edward Jones.” Read more

 

“Tacoma Walmart developer sues individual council members for $1.8 million” by Kathleen Cooper at News Tribune. “In addition to the city itself, the lawsuit names individual city council members and 20 unidentified city employees as defendants.” Read more

 

Germany: Retail Sales Fell 1.4% in July by Emese Bartha at WSJ. “The economic expectations suffered the greatest slump since 1980, GfK said. The group added, however, that this hasn’t had much of an impact on the propensity to spend.” Read more

 

“Screen-obsessed Teens Threaten Apparel Retailers” at NY Times via CNBC. “It’s definitely more exciting for a lot of teenagers to have a new phone that can do lots of cool stuff than clothing,” said Nicole Myers, 19, a model in New York who emerged from an Apple store on Monday with a new iPhone that cost about $200. “A phone keeps you much more entertained. It’s a better distraction than clothing.” Read more

 

“Home Depot go-to guy with cerebral palsy celebrates 20 years” by Philip Morgan at Tampa Bay Times. “He has had a lot of experience: Last Friday marked his 20th anniversary as an employee of the Carrollwood Home Depot. “I’ve only been at this store for two months,” manager Jim Burgett said, “and sometimes I’ve got to rely on him to show me where something’s at.” See the video / Read more

 

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About Eye-on-Retail

Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet read by thousands of Retail Merchants/Executives every weekday morning. Eye-on-Retail is unique because it’s timely, smart and fun. It’s created bright and early every morning and delivered between 7-8 am CT. We love data, earnings reports, executive presentations and stories off the beaten path that get at what’s really happening in the world of retail. Contact us at info@shiftmarketinggroup.net.