“Walmart Stores Are Now Price-Matching Amazon.com” by Amit Chowdhry at Forbes. “Greg Foran, the president and CEO of Walmart U.S., said that the price-matching plan simply formalized what many of the stores were already doing. “About half of the stores were doing it anyway,” said Foran.” Read more

 

Wal-Mart Q3 2015 Earnings Call Transcript  Read more

 

“Target Express plans worry people in South Park, San Diego” by Dominic Garcia at CBS 8. “South Park is really unique,” resident John Moore said. So when he heard a big box chain was moving into the old Gala Market, “My first reaction was, this has gotta be made up.”…”That landlord might say ‘I can get some more money for my little space, how about I invite in a Subway?’ And then one by one it changes the character of the neighborhood,” he said.” See the video / Read more

 

“Walmart Canada gaining ground in retail food fight” by Hollie Shaw at Financial Post. “The country’s biggest mass merchant has been locked in an aggressive pricing war with rivals such as Loblaw Cos. for the better part of two years…“In an increasingly competitive environment, Canada gained 20 basis points of market share in food, consumables and health and wellness combined,” (David Cheesewright) said.” Read more

 

“Costco CEO attends pre-opening of new Mishawaka store” by Heidi Prescott at South Bend Tribune. “Jelinek chuckled when he was asked about his rather unusual pre-store-opening tradition. He explained how each dollar, which he carefully inspected before the employee could walk away, contained the worker’s name and his or her projection for first-day sales. Whoever comes closest wins the entire amount.” Read more

 

“Target eyes Mid-South for distribution center with up to 600 jobs” by Ryan Poe at Memphis Bus. Journal. “Target is currently negotiating leases, and is in talks with both Tennessee and Mississippi economic development officials, sources familiar with the matter said.” Read more

 

“How Sam’s Club plans to push back against Costco” by Phil Wahba at Fortune. “Brewer warned investors last month that “it’s going to take some time” for Sam’s Club weak business traffic trends to improve, but she is optimistic. “The base of our business is very strong,” Brewer told Fortune. “If I could pull out those few soft points, we do compare pretty strongly category by category to Costco. We’re not hyperventilating at all.” Read more

 

“Report: Amazon plans big Austin office” by Michael Theis at Austin Bus. Journal. “The report, based on unnamed sources in the local real estate scene, said that the company could be bringing up to 250 tech jobs to work in a 76,000-square-foot office at Domain 7 at 11501 Alterra Parkway.” Read more

 

“23 Arrested In Protest At Pico Rivera (LA-Area) Walmart” at CBS LA. “There also were reports of some Walmart workers, with mouths symbolically taped shut, staging sit-down strikes at other Los Angeles-area Walmarts.” See the video / Read more

 

“Want to fix retail? Close more stores” by Krystina Gustafson at CNBC. “Belus Capital Advisors analyst Brian Sozzi said that he predicts Wal-Mart will also begin closing underperforming stores in 2015. “Theoretically, its own investments in its future of mobile buying is crippling the sales potential of new, and old, supercenters,” he said.” Read more

 

“Kohl’s 3Q profit misses consensus, same-store sales down 1.8%” by David Schuyler at Milwaukee Bus. Journal. “In a conference call, Kohl’s chairman and CEO Kevin Mansell said the company is projecting a 2 percent to 3 percent increase in same-store sales in the fourth quarter.” Read more

 

“Jim Cramer: Doug McMillon Is Helping Turn Walmart Around” at CNBC. “Jim Cramer says we got a nice upside surprise from Walmart Thursday when the retailer posted third quarter results that beat expectations. He credits CEO Doug McMillon with putting Walmart back on the map.” See the video

 

“Nordstrom beats same store sales” by Rachel Lerman at Puget Sound Bus. Journal. “Same store sales grew 3.9 percent, pleasing analysts who expected 3.3 percent growth.” Read more

 

***

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 early AM every weekday and delivered between 7-8 am CST. We love data, earnings reports, executive presentations and stories off the beaten path that get at what’s happening in the world of retail. Contact us @ info@shiftmarketinggroup.net.