Eye-on-Retail Tipsheet 1/16/13: Walmart to Boost U.S. Sourcing; CVS pulls Tylenol

“Walmart to Boost Sourcing of U.S. Products by $50 Billion Over the Next 10 Years.” “Walmart today announced bold commitments to increase domestic sourcing of the products it sells…Speaking at the National Retail Federation’s annual BIG Show, Walmart U.S. President and CEO Bill Simon also announced the company is helping part-time associates who want to be full time, make that transition…On domestic sourcing, Walmart and Sam’s Club will buy an additional $50 billion in U.S. products over the next 10 years. The company will grow U.S. manufacturing on two fronts: by increasing what it already buys here – in categories like sporting goods, apparel basics, storage products, games, and paper products, and by helping to onshore U.S. production in high potential areas like textiles, furniture and higher-end appliances.” Read more: https://media.prnewswire.com/en/jsp/latest.jsp?resourceid=6130650&access=EH

“Facebook rolls out friends-based search product” at Reuters. “Facebook Inc took the wraps off a new search tool on Tuesday that lets people trawl their network of friends to find everything from restaurants to movie recommendations, an improvement that’s likely to increase competition with review websites like Yelp and potentially even Google Inc…”Graph search is designed to take a precise query and return to you the answer, not links to other places where you might get the answer,” Zuckerberg told reporters at its Menlo Park, California, headquarters. “What you’ve seen today is a really different product from anything else that’s out there.” Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/2013/01/16/us-facebook-search-idUSBRE90E0WM20130116

“Hey, where’s my Tylenol? CVS pulls popular pain-reliever from some stores” at NY Daily News.” “If you cannot find Tylenol pain reliever at your local CVS store this flu season, it might be because that store is no longer stocking it. CVS this month changed how it stocks Tylenol at its stores in the wake of manufacturing problems at the drug’s maker, Johnson & Johnson, that have disrupted supplies for more than three years. Under the new plan, CVS will try to have Tylenol in stores in each market, but will not have it in every store, spokesman Michael DeAngelis said… At the same time, CVS and other retailers have been putting more emphasis on their private-label products, which cost less than brand-name products but can be more profitable for retailers. Read more: https://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/cvs-won-stock-tylenol-stores-article-1.1240622#ixzz2I8eYqrdv

“Minnetonka Moccasin’s suit against Target tip-toes away” by David Phelps at Star-Tribune. “Minnetonka Moccasin’s well-publicized lawsuit against Target for trademark infringement involving a beaded thunderbird design on its shoes has quietly gone away…Minnetonka filed its lawsuit in September after it discovered that Target was selling a moccasin that had a toe design similar to Minnetonka Moccasin’s “iconic” thunderbird design on its $40 suede moccasin. The Target version sold for $20. The lawsuit said Target began selling the similar moccasin after Minnetonka Moccasin “promptly and politely passed” on an offer from Target to sell the Minnetonka Moccasin line on “prime real estate” in its stores.” Read more: https://www.startribune.com/business/186888522.html

“LA Times Post Features Lowe’s Iris Explainer Video” by Andrew Follett at Demo Duck (Overview Video). “Lowe’s has been making a splash this week at CES 2013, the annual consumer electronics show held in Las Vegas, with their Iris home automation system. Iris allows you to wirelessly control and monitor your home from just about anywhere.” Read/see more: https://www.demoduck.com/2013/01/la-times-features-lowes-iris-explainer-video/

“Branding Brand Mobile Commerce Index Shows Holiday Sales up 171%, Conversion up 30%.” “The Branding Brand Mobile Commerce Index is a compilation of 84 mobile sites developed by Branding Brand for retailers across a variety of industries including apparel, health and beauty, and home goods.

The Index had the following results for the Holiday 2012 period:

* 77 million visitors

* 413 million page views (63% iOS; 33% Android)

* 620,000 orders (69% iOS; 28% Android)

* $84.66 average order value ($85.21 iOS; $81.54 Android)

* 21% of total e-commerce traffic came from smartphones

Compared to the 2011, the Branding Brand Mobile Commerce Index showed the following year-over-year holiday gains for the 21 sites that were live during both periods:

* Visits increased 109%

* Page views increased 116%

* Average order value decreased 5%

* Mobile sales increased 171%

* Conversion rate was up 30%

Whole Foods Market announces debut of ‘Conscious Capitalism: Liberating the Heroic Spirit of Business’. “In this book, Mackey and co-author Raj Sisodia, business professor and co-founder of the Conscious Capitalism Institute, boldly defend the good of business and free market capitalism by presenting Conscious Capitalism —a way of thinking about the higher purpose of a business, its relationships with interconnected stakeholders and the impact it has on the world…The book is a new blueprint for capitalism explaining that business is inherently good because it creates value, it is ethical because it is based on voluntary exchange, it is noble because it can elevate our existence, and it is heroic because it lifts people out of poverty and creates prosperity. Read more: https://media.prnewswire.com/en/jsp/latest.jsp?resourceid=6129864&access=EH

“Class action against Pennsylvania-based Rite Aid settled for $20.9 million” by Gina Passarella in Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “A federal judge in the Middle District of Pennsylvania has approved a $20.9 million settlement in a wage-and-hour class and collective action against Pennsylvania-based Rite Aid Corp., stemming from unpaid overtime. The judge’s approval brings a formal end to the years-long labor case. U.S. District Judge John E. Jones III’s final approval in the consolidated cases of Craig v. Rite Aid settles 14 class and collective actions brought across the country against Rite Aid, over allegations the drugstore chain improperly designated assistant store managers and co-managers as exempt employees not eligible for overtime pay. Read more: https://www.post-gazette.com/stories/business/news/class-action-against-pennsylvania-based-rite-aid-settled-for-209-million-670290/#ixzz2I8jHbSvc

“Survey Reveals Bombarding Consumers with Marketing Results in Brand Resentment.” “New research shows that poor email marketing correspondence can negatively affect consumer sentiment toward a company or brand. According to an online YouGov survey commissioned by Emailvision, the leader in relationship marketing and customer intelligence,a massive 75 percent of respondents reported they would resent a brand after being bombarded by emails, while 71 percent cited being sent unsolicited messages as a reason to become resentful. Read more: https://media.prnewswire.com/en/jsp/latest.jsp?resourceid=6131211&access=EH

“Meijer Announces Appointment of J.K. Symancyk to President.” “Meijer announced today the appointment of J.K. Symancyk as president of the company, one year after he assumed the role of chief operating officer for the Grand Rapids, Mich.-based retailer. In addition, Meijer has announced the appointment of Mark Murray to the new position of Co-CEO, where he will serve with current CEO Hank Meijer. In this position, Mark will serve as a partner in the development of future business strategy with Hank Meijer, Doug Meijer and J.K. Symancyk. Murray will also serve as vice chairman of the Meijer board of directors.” Read more: https://media.prnewswire.com/en/jsp/latest.jsp?resourceid=6133254&access=EH

“Judge throws out antitrust case against Supervalu” by Mike Hughlett at Star-Tribune. “A federal judge in Minneapolis has tossed out an antitrust lawsuit against Supervalu and C&S Wholesale Grocers, ruling that a 2003 deal between the nation’s two largest grocery wholesalers didn’t restrain competition. Two supermarkets, one each in Iowa and Massachusetts, sued the wholesalers in 2009, claiming the companies divvied up regions so they wouldn’t have to compete with each other.” Read more: https://www.startribune.com/business/187054771.html