Friday Tipsheet: Wmart: Scorpions & Christmas Creep | Costco: Boston Bombing Victim Returns to Work

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“Get Ready for Christmas Creep:  Walmart Starts Highlighting Hot Holiday Gifts” by Ashley Rodriguez at Ad Age.  “Walmart held an event for more than 100 long-lead magazine and gift guide editors on Wednesday to showcase what it expects to be top sellers this holiday season…In the past, Walmart pitched media outlets to make it in to their holiday gift guides, which usually close in July. This year, the retailer stepped up its game by gathering the media for a private event…it’s still holding its Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals close to the vest. “We have to keep some secrets,” said Jaeme Laczkowski, director of media relations.”  Read more

 

“What’s better for grocery delivery: Google, Instacart or Postmates?” by Joseph Pisani at AP via San Jose Mercury News.  “Google Shopping Express: The biggest downside is that the company doesn’t deliver meats, fish, fruits and other perishable groceries yet, even though it delivers from stores that sell them, including Target, Fairway and Costco. (You need to have a membership to order from Costco.)…Instacart: You can order from Costco even if you don’t have a membership for the warehouse club.”  Read more

 

“Wal-Mart not concerned about cannibalization with small-store expansion” by Kim Souza at The City Wire.  “How close is too close for Wal-Mart to put a Neighborhood Market to its cash cow supercenters? The retail giant said Thursday (June 19) that one to two miles outside a supercenter is the minimal distance guideline for placing Neighborhood Markets.”  Read more

 

“Jeff Bauman returns to work at Costco a year after losing both legs in Boston bombings” by Lydia Warren at Daily Mail.  “In a post on his Facebook page, the 28-year-old is pictured wearing a name tag and smiling alongside two colleagues as he stands behind a cash register while lightly holding his crutches. A caption on the photo, which was posted on Wednesday evening, reads: ‘Jeffrey back at work today! W/Mike & Maya @#Costco!’ ”  See the pics / Read more

 

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“Dinner meeting gone sour:  Carl Icahn calls for immediate sale of Family Dollar” by Jen Wilson at Charlotte Bus. Journal.  “Referencing a dinner discussion with Levine on Wednesday, Icahn noted “a strong difference of opinion as to the future of our company” and said that “it is imperative that Family Dollar be put up for sale immediately.”  Read more

 

“Family Dollar’s Carefully Worded Response”  “Members of Family Dollar’s Board and management team recently met with Mr. Icahn, and, as we expressed in the meeting, we are always open to constructively communicating with our shareholders with the shared goal of enhancing value.”  Read the release

 

“Here’s the story behind Kroger’s big Q1 earnings gain” by Steve Watkins at Cincinnati Bus. Courier.  “The company expects 12 percent to 15 percent profit growth this year, and same-store sales should rise 3 percent to 4 percent. That’s up from its prior guidance of 2.5 percent to 3.5 percent.”  Read more

 

“Man Pinched By Scorpion In Box Of Bananas At Pittsburgh-Area Wal-Mart” by Christine D’antonio at KDKA 2 CBS. “I yanked my arm out and flung it, and this scorpion flopped to the ground,” he said. “I was standing there in disbelief looking and there was another shopper there and people started to converge, and sure enough it was a scorpion.”…The man says Wal-Mart did offer to pay for his medical bills.”  See the video / See the critter / Read more

 

“Pier 1 posts a 26% drop in profits”, comp sales +6.3%” by Maria Halkias at Dallas News.  “Store sales and profits were “disappointingly soft” and the company discounted more than anticipated, CEO Alex Smith said….It’s not clear whether this is a “sea change of customer behavior or a temporary phenomenon,” he said.”  Read more

 

“Top Five Things Heard in Walmart Management Presentation at Jefferies Global Consumer Conference” at Seeking Alpha.

* Previously we had a number of algorithmic exercises we were asking our associates to go through in order to make sure we have the right product in the right place. We just quite honestly, we got down to the basics and basically went back to simplifying it.

* Walmart2Walmart money transfer program:  We’ve only been out now for about a month and a half and we’ve been able to drive about $7 million worth of savings to those customers already, so as we call it, it’s saving money on money.

* What’s really important here is that Savings Catcher is really an opportunity for us to build a deeper level of trust with our customers

* How close small format stores should be to Supercenters:  “What we’ve determined is that it’s important to be outside of that one to two miles of a Supercenter.”

* Drive – Grocery Pickup:  Within this depot it will have access to about 10,000 items. Many of those items are driving the majority of the volume in the neighborhood market…but also it includes anything in our overall the counter market also. The beautiful thing about this is it’s the same everyday low pricing.

Read the full transcript

 

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About Eye-on-Retail

Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet that is must-read material for 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 around 7 am CST. 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. Enjoy!

Send story tips, news releases, comments & questions to: info@shiftmarketinggroup.net

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thursday Tipsheet: Rite-Aid Q1 Comp Flat | Lowe’s Sniffing NYC for Urban Stores

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“Rite-Aid: Q1 Front-End Comp Sales Flat”  “The company reported revenues of $6.5 billion, net income of $41.4 million or $0.04 per diluted share, and Adjusted EBITDA of $282.6 million…Same store sales for the quarter increased 3.1 percent over the prior year. Front-end same store sales were flat compared to the prior-year period while pharmacy same store sales increased 4.6 percent.”  Read the release

 

“Kroger expected to post $543M profit in Q1” by Alexander Coolidge at Cincinnati.com.  “Wall Street analysts also forecast that newly added Harris Teeter stores will also power revenues to jump 8.5 percent to $32.6 billion, according to Bloomberg.” Read more

 

“Report: Lowe’s Sniffing Around NYC for Urban Concept Stores” by Lauren Elkies Schram.  “Lowe’s is looking to break into the New York City market with an urban concept a la the upscale Manhattan home furnishings chain Gracious Home, Commercial Observer has learned…Lowe’s is considering space in a condominium occupied by a Food Emporium until May 2013 at 2000 Broadway at the northeast corner of 68th Street, a source with knowledge of the search said.”  Read more

 

***A message from Dig It® Handwear.  Revolutionary 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…Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary is an investor…now being offered to US Retailers for the first time.  View the line at www.digithandwear.com.  Peggable gloves merchandise easily–see the off-shelf display. Contact info@shiftmarketinggroup.net  for more information.

 

“Amazon’s Fire phone designed to sear e-commerce rivals” by Phil Wahba at Fortune.  “Amazon shares shot up 3% when Bezos demonstrated the simplicity of the “scan-to-buy” feature. “If you’re a mediocre retailer, then this makes you extremely vulnerable,” said Doug Stephens, president of Retail Prophet Consultants in Toronto. “It’s shortening the distance between seeing an item you like and ordering it on Amazon—Firefly is like a trigger.”  Read more

 

“Contractor Gets Surprise Call to Appear in Home Depot Ads” by Ron Newberry at Whidbey News-Times.  “The crew had rubbed him down with dirt and sawdust to make him look like he’d been working hard on a construction site. “I told them I could have brought clothes from home and been just fine,” Linson said. The beads of sweat weren’t artificial, so a director listened to Linson’s advice and made an adjustment. “I was holding a 60-pound bag of concrete for about two and a half hours,” Linson said. “I said, ‘Can we take a little out of this?’ He said, ‘Good idea.”  Read more

 

“Family Dollar Names New Sr. VP of Merchandise Operations”  “Jeffrey Thomas joined Family Dollar in 2003 as a Director of Vendor Performance with responsibility for item data integrity and vendor relationships. Between 2005 and 2013, Mr. Thomas assumed greater roles with increased responsibilities, and in 2013, he was named Vice President – Merchant Services. Mr. Thomas holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from The University of Tennessee.”  Read the release

 

“U.K. Retail Sales Drop .5% in May” by Fergal O’Brien at Bloomberg.  “Food sales slid 2.4 percent after surging the previous month during the Easter holiday. Sales at other retailers jumped 2.2 percent, helped by demand for replica football jerseys before the World Cup tournament.”  Read more

 

“Office Depot CEO:  Turnaround to Bear Fruit by 2017” by Joann S. Lublin at WSJ (tiered subscription).  “(Roland Smith) is moving fast to fix the merged company, cutting more than 50% of middle and senior managers, and aiming to close at least 21% of Office Depot’s 1,900 U.S. stores by the end of 2016. Those and other consolidation efforts are expected to reap savings of $180 million this year.”  Read more

 

“How Retail Upstarts are Beating Amazon” by Joel Dreyfus at CNBC.  “An Amazon works for commodity products,” said Stephanie Palmieri, a principal at SoftTech Venture Capital in Palo Alto, California. “But there are giant niches out there.” The niches are big because the Internet is increasingly where America shops.”  Read more

 

“Kroger Pulling Out of Big Pension Plans” by Steve Watkins at Cincinnati Business Courier.  “The Cincinnati-based company that is the nation’s largest operator of traditional supermarkets said Wednesday that the move will give it more cost certainty and cut its potential liability.”  Read more

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About Eye-on-Retail

Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet that is must-read material for 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 around 7 am CST. 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. Enjoy!

Send story tips, news releases, comments & questions to: info@shiftmarketinggroup.net

Wednesday Tipsheet: Jay Z Coming to Wgreens | Amazon’s Secretive Lab | 8 Cities w/out Wmart

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“Jay Z and Mariah Carey, Coming to a Walgreens Near You” by Zack O’Malley Greenburg.  “The partnership stems from a meeting (former Def Jam chief Kevin) Liles had with executives from Walgreens. They were talking about foot traffic and demographics…Liles asked for a list of the company’s best-selling product categories, and discovered that the beverage segment was among the top. That’s when the inspiration struck, he says, to partner with major artists and create something capable of becoming a significant player in that niche.”  Read more

 

“Eight Largest Cities Without Walmart” at MarketWatch.  “There are no Walmart stores in five of the country’s largest 25 cities – New York City, San Francisco, Detroit, Seattle or Boston. That is a total of 11.23 million consumers that Walmart cannot reach. Adding in Newark and Jersey City, N.J., and Arlington, Va., brings the total to nearly 12 million.”  Read more

 

“Inside Amazon’s Secretive R&D Lab” by Brad Stone at Businessweek.  “One group at Lab126 is working on a device that projects a computer image onto any surface. A second is developing a wireless speaker that responds to voice commands. Apparently there are many more. Lab 126 insiders whisper about a credit-card reading device similar to Square, which could help propel Amazon’s fledgling payments business, plus a remarkably thin upcoming version of the Kindle Paperwhite, code-named Ice Wine.”  Read more

 

“T-Mobile honcho scoffs at AT&T-only Amazon phone” by Kaja Whitehouse at NY Post.  “Let’s hope @amazon doesn’t fall victim to the @att curse that is the facebook phone,” T-Mobile’s colorful CEO John Legere tweeted on Tuesday.”  Read more

 

“Morningstar Likes Target” by Mike Cherney at WSJ.  “Morningstar said the data breach appeared to be doing little long-term damage to the Target brand, noting that its “well-recognized brand still drives traffic.”  “Some consumer surveys indicate that a majority of the customers who initially changed their shopping habits after the breach have shopped at Target at least once through the end of the first quarter,” Morningstar said.”  Read more

 

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“UPS to consider box size in ground-shipping prices” by David Koenig at AP via San Jose Mercury News.  “UPS says it will consider box size when setting prices for ground shipment of parcels within the U.S. and Canada. The move announced Tuesday follows a similar change last month by rival FedEx.”  Read more

 

“Meet the 2014 ‘CNBC Disruptor 50’ company list (Warby Parker #2, Etsy #3)”.  “In the second annual Disruptor 50 list, CNBC features private companies in 27 industries—from aerospace to enterprise software to retail—whose innovations are revolutionizing the business landscape. These forward-thinking upstarts have identified unexploited niches in the marketplace that have the potential to become billion-dollar businesses.”  See the Top 50 List

 

“China’s #2 Online Retailer Wants to Take #1 Spot from Alibaba” by Paul Carsten at Reuters.  “JD.com has a logistics-focused e-commerce business. The company, whose delivery staff outnumber Alibaba’s 22,000 employees, promises same-day delivery in 43 of China’s biggest cities.  That sets it apart from Alibaba, which still depends on China’s often unreliable postal infrastructure to get goods to its customers’ doors as it accounts for about 80 percent of all e-commerce in China.”  Read more

 

“aisle411 Provides Indoor Mapping for Marsh Supermarkets”  “Shoppers can use the new Marsh App, built for Marsh by Taqtile Mobility, to find where products are located inside the 81 Marsh, O’Malia’s or Mainstreet Market Stores in Indiana and Ohio.”  Read the release

 

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About Eye-on-Retail

Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet that is must-read material for 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 around 7 am CST. 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. Enjoy!

Send story tips, news releases, comments & questions to: info@shiftmarketinggroup.net

Tuesday Tipsheet: @WalmartLabs Grabs Stylr | Target’s Mea Culpa Video | Inside Amazon’s Phoenix FC

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“Target Canada employees issue mea culpa in new video” by Hollie Shaw at Financial Post.  “A company video shared in social media by president Mark Schindele carries an apologetic tone and a commitment to turn things around…“Certainly, we think that we have disappointed our Canadian guests,” says Damien Liddle, senior corporate counsel, echoing a promise to do better voiced by multiple employees in the two-minute clip.”  See the video / Read more

 

“@WalmartLabs Grabs Its First ‘Silicon Alley’ Startup With Acquisition of Fashion App Stylr” by Sarah Perez at TechCrunch.  “The app, which helps consumers find clothes they love in nearby stores, will be shut down. It will be pulled from the iTunes App Store by the end of this month. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but we understand it was more of an “acqui-hire” related to bringing the talent of the founders, Eytan Daniyalzade and Berk Atikoglu, to Walmart.”  Read more

 

“A Rare Peek Inside Amazon’s Massive Wish-Fulfilling Machine” by Marcus Wohlsen at Wired.  “The first thing I saw when I walked into Amazon’s Phoenix warehouse was a man riding on a giant tricycle. Behind him, yellow plastic tubs the size of office recycling bins whizzed by on a conveyor belt. On the wall above, six massive words called out to the 1,500 workers who pass through metal detectors each day as they enter this million-square-foot cavern of consumerism: “work hard. have fun. make history.” Read more

 

“NY:  Big Retailers Agree to List Unit Prices on Websites” by Elizabeth Harris at NY Times.  “Major retailers including Walmart, CVS and Costco have agreed to the deal, brokered by the office of New York’s attorney general, Eric T. Schneiderman.  Mr. Schneiderman had aimed even wider but was rebuffed by one online retailing giant, Amazon. “Amazon refused to participate in this consumer-oriented initiative,” Mr. Schneiderman’s office said in a statement.”  Read more

 

“Target Wants to Go to College With Your Kids and Your Money” by Chris Katje at The Street.  “Target is taking the “millennial” market head-on with the beta launch of a college registry. Target launched beta testing for its new college registry, which will complement the retailers’ wedding and baby registries. Target is offering categories like bedding, bath, kitchen & dining, furniture, decor, storage & organization, and electronics.” Read more

 

Nielsen Study:  55% of global online consumers across 60 countries say they are willing to pay more for products and services provided by companies that are committed to positive social and environmental impact.  Read the release

 

“Lowe’s Makes a Radio Run at Home Depot” at Radio Ink.  “Even with 20,000 fewer spots (44,446) during the week of June 11, the Home Depot was still able to maintain its number one position on the Media Monitors weekly spot chart. Lowe’s climbed into the top 10, reaching number three (28,141).” Read more

 

***A message from Lock-it Block-it – Keep the Bad Guys Out and Let the Fresh-Air In. Adjustable window security bar blocks criminals from entering a home through open windows. Windows can be open AND homes remain secured. Prevents children from falling out of open windows. Easy installation! Grow category sales with a truly unique product. Watch the video. www.lockitblockit.com Contact info@shiftmarketinggroup.net for more information.

 

“Garden Ridge Changes Name to At Home” by Maria Halkias at Dallas News.  “After testing a couple of stores in Michigan and one in St. Louis, Garden Ridge is officially changing its name to At Home. It will spend $20 million this year to convert all of its 71 stores in time for the holiday shopping season…The company plans to open 200 At Home stores by the end of the decade and has the potential to open more than 500 (CEO Lee) Bird said.”  Read more

 

“JCPenney’s behavior ‘childish,’ ‘sophomoric’ in Martha deal” by James Covert at NY Post.  “The sneaky deal that JCPenney cut with Martha Stewart behind Macy’s back was such a disaster that the sheer public embarrassment of it is punishment enough. That’s what a New York judge effectively said in a long-awaited decision Monday.”  Read more

 

“Wal-Mart tests its own health clinics to shave insurance costs” by Kim Souza at The City Wire.  “For now the three pilot clinics in Texas consist of two in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and one is outside of Waco. Wal-Mart declined to confirm that there is a clinic planned locally in the Walmart Supercenter at Pleasant Grove Road in Rogers, Ark. However, there is a sign in that Rogers Walmart that says “Another Wal-Mart Concept Coming Soon.” Read more

 

‘I just want to see my son, I just want to shake his hand and have him acknowledge that I’m his father’: Desperate plea of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’s ailing biological father” by Laura Collins at Daily Mail.  “Speaking from his home in Glendale Mr Jorgensen said: ‘I don’t think he will come to me now. I haven’t heard a word for him or had any sign that he wants to connect with me. I hoped with the publicity it might happen but I can’t blame him. I guess I wasn’t a very good father.’ ” Read more

 

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About Eye-on-Retail

Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet that is must-read material for 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 around 7 am CST. 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. Enjoy!

Send story tips, news releases, comments & questions to: info@shiftmarketinggroup.net

 

Monday Tipsheet: Target Glitch = Long Lines | Hillary at Costco | CA ‘safety warning’ on Soda?

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“Target Hit with Register ‘Glitch’ and Long Lines on Sunday” by Kavita Kumar at Star-Tribune.  “Customers around the country took to social media Sunday night reporting long check-out lines due to ­registers not working.  Target did not elaborate on the exact problem or problems, but said it would provide updates as they became available. It also was not immediately clear how many stores were affected by the glitch.  “Earlier this evening, Target experienced a glitch that impacted the speed of checkout at some of our U.S. stores. Since that time, we’ve been able to restore our check-out process. Once again, we sincerely apologize to anyone inconvenienced by this issue,” Molly Snyder, a company spokeswoman, said in an e-mail on Sunday.”  Read more

 

Tweet:  Nothing worse than being stuck in line at target because their registers crashed.. #myicecreamwillmelt #thankgodforsmartphones via KSTP News – Minneapolis.  See the video / Read more

 

“Costco Co-Founder Jim Sinegal Stops by Hillary Clinton Book Signing” at CBS News.  “Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor dropped by Clinton’s book signing at a Costco warehouse in suburban Virginia, and surprised the former secretary of state…The Saturday morning book event attracted more than 1,000 people, including Democratic Rep. John Lewis of Georgia, Costco co-founder Jim Sinegal and a few former Clinton aides and relatives.”  Read more

 

Hillary Clinton Book Signing at Costco:  Stats:  Time – Three Hours & 20 Minutes;  Signed – 1,200+; New Memberships – 164 (5X Normal!); Media Questions – Zero by Maggie Haberman at Politico.  “When she finished, she posed for photos with Costco staffers, volunteers who’d worked on the event and staffers from her publisher, Simon & Schuster.  Clinton has had a series of media interviews, but has not done a gaggle with the group of reporters that routinely follow her to most events. “Time for a question?” one reporter called out as she got up to leave the desk. Clinton kept walking.”  Read more

 

***A message from Dig It® Handwear.  Revolutionary 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…Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary is an investor…now being offered to US Retailers for the first time.  View the line at www.digithandwear.com.  Peggable gloves merchandise easily–see the off-shelf display. Contact info@shiftmarketinggroup.net  for more information.

 

“Instacart Raises $44 Million From Andreessen Horowitz” by Ryan Lawler at TechCrunch.  “According to co-founder and CEO Apoorva Mehta, nearly every city that it’s launched in has grown more quickly than the previous one. With that in mind, it’s moving full-steam ahead in launching new markets. The company expects to have operations in a total of 17 U.S. cities by year end, it hopes to be in all major U.S. cities by the end of 2015.”  Read more

 

“Chinese Government Wants to End Walmart Labor Disputes”  by Tom Mitchell at Financial Times.  “The neighbourhood officials, who enforce Chinese Communist party diktats at street level, carried pictures of the workers and conveyed a simple message to them and their families: do not interfere in Walmart’s removal of goods from the store.”  Read more

 

“CA Senate Introduces Bill Targeting Sugary Sodas” by Marc Lifsher at LA Times.  “The soda bill would require manufacturers to put labels on containers with a “safety warning” that says “drinking beverages with added sugar(s) contributes to obesity, diabetes and tooth decay.”  Read more

 

“Big-Box India Stores Downsized as Profits Prove Elusive” by Adi Narayan at Bloomberg.  “It’s too costly to operate these big stores, and it doesn’t make business sense anymore,” said Vivek Kaul, head of retail services at real-estate broker CBRE South Asia Pvt. “There is no incremental benefit in the sales per square foot.”  Read more

 

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About Eye-on-Retail

Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet that is must-read material for 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 around 7 am CST. 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. Enjoy!

Send story tips, news releases, comments & questions to: info@shiftmarketinggroup.net

Friday Tipsheet: 8 Worst Things @ T.Joe’s | Lowe’s Lab | Target Mtg: 1 Stroller

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“Whole Foods’ CFO dishes on the early days” by Colleen Leahey at Fortune.  “What was the atmosphere like when you first started? We were just about to open stores seven and eight [Richardson, TX, and Palo Alto, CA], so the company was very small. [Co-founder] John Mackey actually did the financial plan on a spreadsheet on one of those Mac computers—what were the first ones called? Those little square television-looking ones.”  Read more

 

“Why Lowe’s is Working with a Team of Science-Fiction Writers” by Natalie Zmuda at Ad Age.  “Mr. Nel declined to comment on budgets for either the Holoroom or Lowe’s Innovation Labs, though he pointed out that his is a small team of only about 10 people. “We’re small on purpose. We’re focused more on growing our partnerships rather than growing a large bureaucracy of innovation,” he said.”  Read more

 

“8 Worst Things to Buy at Trader Joe’s” at Kiplinger.  “Whole Foods beat Trader Joe’s price on a gallon of organic milk by a whopping $2.30…both Kroger and Walmart beat Trader Joe’s price per pound on (organic chicken) breasts. The savings was 50 cents per pound on organic chicken breasts at Kroger but a more substantial $2 per pound at Walmart.”  See the List

 

“Moms Demand Action Protest Draws 12 People at Target Meeting” at Truth Revolt.  “Although it was called the “stroller jam,” Dallas News reported only one woman showed up with a stroller and her granddaughter.”  Read more

 

“Apple Offers Sneak Peek Inside New Japanese Retail Store Ahead of Opening” by Mikey Campbell at Apple Insider.  “Among the architectural features of Apple’s soon-to-open store is a “green curtain” of foliage that drapes over the rear concrete wall, put in place to cut down on energy needed to cool the box-like structure during the day.”  Read more / See the video

 

“Wal-Mart tests health care clinics with $4 office visits for its employees” by Maria Halkias at Dallas News.  “Wal-Mart is testing healthcare clinics in three Texas stores that will charge its own employees $4 a visit if they are covered by Wal-Mart’s health insurance.  The charge for everyone else, including customers, is $40.”  Read more

 

“Grocers sue Vermont over law requiring labels on genetically modified food” by Wilson Ring at Star-Tribune.  “Maine and Connecticut also have adopted GMO label laws, but their laws require neighboring states to follow suit before their requirements go into effect. New York lawmakers are working on a GMO labeling bill, as well. And if it becomes law, Connecticut’s law would automatically take effect.”  Read more

 

“Green Bay: Mayor’s alternative to Walmart? Downtown baseball stadium” by Scott Cooper Williams at Press-Gazette.  “Schmitt has floated the stadium idea privately to several aldermen and other civic leaders as an alternative to Walmart’s planned retail superstore in the Broadway shopping district.”  Read more

 

“Sources:  Crafts retailer Michaels looks to long-awaited summer IPO” at Chicago Tribune.  “The U.S. crafts retailer is likely to begin marketing shares to potential investors in the next several weeks, according to the sources, who declined to be named because the matter is private.”  Read more

 

Britain: “Aldi wins ‘Oscar’ for best grocer” by Sean Poulter at Daily Mail.  “It is the second year in a row that the discount chain, which has led a charge on middle Britain families with the result sales are rising 35 per cent a year.” Read more

 

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About Eye-on-Retail

Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet that is must-read material for 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 around 7 am CST. 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. Enjoy!

Send story tips, news releases, comments & questions to: info@shiftmarketinggroup.net

 

 

Thursday Tipsheet: Lowe’s New ‘Holoroom’ | Target’s Quick Mtg | Rest. Hard. Shines

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“Amazon to take on Angie’s List/Home Depot/Lowe’s by connecting patrons with service providers” by Deepa Seetharaman at Reuters via Columbus Dispatch.  “Amazon.com Inc. plans to launch a marketplace this year for local services, a broad term that encompasses anything from baby sitters to handymen, people familiar with the matter said…at least one of the startups contacted by Amazon focuses on home repair.” Read more

 

“Target Wastes No Time With an Extremely Brief Annual Meeting” by Susan Berfield at Businessweek.  “Wait—that was it? Target’s annual meeting Wednesday afternoon in Dallas seemed to be over before it really began.  Apparently about 100 shareholders were in the audience for the 30-minute event, which resulted in the reelection of the entire board of directors.” Read more

 

“Wal-Mart Reconfiguring Electronics Space” by Kim Souza at The City Wire.  “Electronics are a challenging industry,” (Stephen) Quinn said. “The new sets in our local stores adjust our space-to-sales ratio better and we are leaning in toward the growth areas.”  Wal-Mart said wireless devices, tablets and mobile connectivity items will have more dominant presentation space in its stores. The space also will include bigger brand presentations, and newer and more popular brands. Those brands will be featured in more prominent store locations to better ensure customer awareness.”  Read more

 

“Restoration Hardware Shares Shine on 200% Earnings Jump” by Samantha Sharf at Forbes.  “The company reported $366.3 million in first quarter revenue, up 22% from the same period last year. Adjusted net income came in at $7.2 million, up 217% from last year and far ahead of Wall Street analysts’ $4.1 million consensus estimate. ” Read more

 

“Lowe’s 3-D ‘Holoroom’ makes remodeling a (virtual) reality” by Krystina Gustafson at CNBC.  “Lowe’s announced on Wednesday that it will transform the in-store experience by building a 30-by-30 virtual reality room that enables customers to view a 3-D representation of their renovation projects before they start with demolition…The Holoroom will debut later this year in two of the company’s Toronto stores…The initial launch will be limited to bathroom remodeling, but over the next 12 to 18 months, Lowe’s plans to add new categories and rooms such as kitchen, living and outdoor spaces.”  See the video / Read more

 

***A message from Lock-it Block-it: Keep the Bad Guys Out and the Good Guys In. Adjustable window security bar blocks criminals from entering a home through open windows and prevents children from falling out. Windows can be open AND homes remain secured. Easy installation! Grow category sales with a truly unique product. See the video. www.lockitblockit.com  Contact info@shiftmarketinggroup.net for more information.

 

“Kroger to build $250M Distribution Center in Atlanta” by Steve Watkins at Cinc. Bus. Courier.  “Kroger completed a deal with the city on Tuesday to build the center. It plans to open it by September 2015.”  Read more

 

“Imagining a more modern grocery store” by Jessica Wohl at Chicago Tribune.  “Industry experts at this week’s FMI Connect conference at McCormick Place are trying to prepare for what they see as the retail experience of the future…For example, a store’s glass entryway doors could lift up on a weekend morning to provide space for a farmers’ market.”  Read more

 

“Ouch:  Analyst Downgrades Radio Shack Stock to Zero” by Danielle Abril at Dallas Bus. Journal.  “We think a turnaround is nearly impossible for the company at this point, and think liquidation value is minimal,” Tilghman wrote in the note he released Wednesday. “Based on recent and expected cash burn, working capital and debt are likely to be at best, offsets to one another.” Read more

 

“Forget Target, your health care info is more at risk” by Shelley DuBois at The Tennessean.  “While no single breach was as widespread as Target’s, health care-related data breaches accounted for 43 percent of all major breaches in 2013, according to the Identify Theft Resource Center. It marked the first time in more than a decade that health care-related attacks surpassed other business sectors.” Read more

 

“It’s an Amazon.com economy, now” by Stephen Gandel at Fortune.  “Amazon most likely falls into a government category called non-store retailers. As of May, the government said there were just under 500,000 people employed in that category. Amazon itself says it has 124,600 employees, up from 91,300 a year ago, or about 1 out of every 4 workers in the category, though not all of Amazon’s employees are based in the U.S.”  Read more

 

“Goldman Sachs Misses Out on Big Alibaba Payoff” by Alexandra Stevenson at NY Times.  “In October 1999, Goldman Sachs led Alibaba’s first round of investment, which raised $5 million…The investors in that round secured a 40 percent stake in the company, according to news reports…One Western executive who has known Jack Ma, Alibaba’s founder, for more than a decade, said: “At that time, Jack’s company was relatively undistinguished. No one would lend him any money or provide capital for the business.” Read more

 

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About Eye-on-Retail

Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet that is must-read material for 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 around 7 am CST. 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. Enjoy!

Send story tips, news releases, comments & questions to: info@shiftmarketinggroup.net

Wednesday Tipsheet: Target: Mtg, Strollers & Liquor | HD Sup.+6% | Wgreen VC Fund

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“Michael Bloomberg Backed Moms in Action Take Their Fight to Target Shareholder Meeting”  “Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America today announced that it will host a “Stroller Jam,” a gathering of moms and children with their strollers, outside of Target Corp.’s annual shareholder meeting in Dallas on Wednesday to continue its call on Target Corp. to prohibit the open carry of guns in Target stores.”  Read the release

 

Today in Dallas:  Target Annual Meeting of Shareholders   Webcast at 1:30 PM CST

 

“Sozzi:  Carl Icahn Knows That Your Local Family Dollar is a Mess”  “An activist investor such as Carl Icahn doesn’t magically appear on the doorsteps of publicly traded companies for no good reason…Family Dollar is in a state of operational disarray says CEO of Belus Capital Advisors Brian Sozzi.”  See the video / Read more

 

“Online grocery a tough sell despite all the buzz” by Krystina Gustafson at CNBC.  “A new study from PwC found that only 1 percent of consumers said online shopping is their primary way to purchase groceries. That’s despite the fact that the vast majority of the 1,000-plus respondents have access to the option.”  Read more

 

“eBay: We’re not killing our same-day delivery service (but not expanding as planned)” by JP Mangalindan at Fortune.  “eBay Now isn’t going anywhere for the foreseeable future. “We’re still focused on the 4 cities we’re in right now,” he adds…they no longer have plans to expand to 25 U.S. cities by the end of 2014 — an about-face from the ambitious goal they stood by as recently as late last year.”  Read more

 

“HD Supply Q1 Sales +6%”  “Adjusted EBITDA increased $25 million, or 15 percent, to $190 million for the first quarter of fiscal 2014 compared to $165 million for the first quarter of fiscal 2013.”  Read the release

 

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“Target Hands A Big Victory To Low-Wage Janitors In Minnesota” by Dave Jamieson at HuffPo.  “That sort of measure, sometimes referred to as a labor peace agreement, could very well pave the way for subcontracted janitors in Target’s Minneapolis-area stores to unionize.”  Read more

 

“Walmart & Costco Condemn Slave Labor in Prawn Supply Chain” by Felicity Lawrence at The Guardian. “Walmart said: “We are actively engaged in this issue and playing an important role in bringing together stakeholders to help eradicate human trafficking from Thailand’s seafood export sector…Costco told us it required its suppliers of Thai shrimp “to take corrective action to police their feedstock sources”.  Read more

 

“Walgreens:  The big name in startup funding you don’t know” by John Pletz at Crain’s.   “For the past few years, it has been operating one of metro Chicago’s largest venture-capital funds. Walgreen won’t put a figure on its Well Ventures unit, but multiple sources who have had discussions with the company say it has more than $150 million available. Only a handful of local players, such as Pritzker Group Venture Capital and Lightbank, have bigger war chests.” Read more

 

“Finally:  Minnesota Target Store Will Sell Liquor this Summer” by John Ewoldt at Star-Tribune.  “Later this summer, the Otsego SuperTarget will open a liquor store adjacent to its main location as part of a pilot program Target is launching in Minnesota…The retailer has been selling wine, beer and spirits since 1996 and offers them in 1,300 of its 1,800 locations nationwide. Minnesota is one of the last states where Target doesn’t sell alcohol.”  Read more

 

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About Eye-on-Retail

Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet that is must-read material for 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 around 7 am CST. 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. Enjoy!

Send story tips, news releases, comments & questions to: info@shiftmarketinggroup.net