Target CEO Brian Cornell to meet with Al Sharpton to discuss DEI rollback at CNBC. “The meeting, which Target asked for, comes after some civil rights groups urged consumers not to shop at Target in response to the retailer’s decision to cut back on DEI. While Sharpton has not yet called for a boycott of Target, he has supported efforts from others to stop shopping at the retailer’s stores.” Read more

 

Hudson’s Bay wants to hold auction for its art and artifacts including its royal charter at Yahoo. “The retailer filed for court protection from creditors under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act last month…HBC hopes to save six of its stores and its e-commerce business in the restructuring.” Read more

 

Seattle crosswalk buttons hacked to sound like Jeff Bezos at GeekWire. “Hi, I’m Jeff Bezos,” the voice says. “This crosswalk is sponsored by Amazon Prime, with an important message — please, don’t tax the rich, otherwise all the other billionaires will move to Florida, too…” Read more

 

The 14 Fortune 500 stocks most exposed to the tariff war (Best Buy, Wayfair, Target…) at Fortune/Yahoo

 

How Costco’s Kirkland Signature Beer Finally Hit the Mark at WSJ. “Costco never shared top billing with a brewery until September’s limited release of Kirkland Signature Vintage Ale, a barrel-aged imperial stout bearing the Deschutes logo…The imperial stout’s success led Costco and Deschutes to collaborate on the Helles-Style Lager, based on a recipe that won a gold medal at 2023’s Great American Beer Festival.” WSJ subs.

 

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Chinese App DHgate became the second-most popular app on Apple’s App Store in the U.S. on Wednesday at Fortune/Yahoo. “A video posted to TikTok by @LunaSourcingChina alleged Lululemon leggings could be purchased from two factories in Yiwu, China, for $5 to $6, claiming the activewear brand sources its clothing directly from them.” Read more

 

Ulta Beauty Names Lauren Brindley Chief Merchandising and Digital Officer “Most recently, she served as Chief Executive Officer of Revolution Beauty and prior to that, she held senior leadership roles at Walgreens and Boots UK…” Press release

 

Kroger Appoints Key Retail Leaders 

• Joe Kelley Named SVP of Retail Divisions
• Kenny Kimball Named Smith’s Division President
• Chris Albi Named King Soopers Division President
• Kendra Doyel Named Food 4 Less Division President Press release

 

Michaels, seeing a void left by Party City, expands its party supply selection at CNN. “Michaels…(is) expanding its party supply offerings with the addition of 300 new balloon options and more than 500 new products for all types of celebrations, ranging from graduations to birthdays.” Read more

 

Netflix co-founder: Why we turned down Jeff Bezos’ early acquisition offer at CNBC. “The decision taught him that when an opportunity comes, you don’t necessarily have to open your door, but you owe it to yourself to at least look through the keyhole. “We said no and [then] worked our a– off for 20 years,” Hastings said.” Read more

 

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