Snoop Dogs WM | Poaching in Seattle | Costco +3.4%*
Snoop Dogg, Master P allege Walmart, Post Foods hid their cereal in sabotage plot at CNBC. “Walmart said…“We will respond as appropriate with the Court once we are served with the complaint.”…At a media briefing Tuesday announcing the lawsuit, Master P said the suit “is about minority-owned companies getting a fair share.” Snoop Dogg said, “We ain’t build this brand to sell it.” The rappers are being represented by high-profile civil rights attorney Ben Crump.” Read more
Costco January comp sales (ex. gas & f/x) +3.4% “This year’s retail month of January had one less shopping day due to the timing of New Year’s Day. This negatively impacted total and comparable sales by approximately three to three and one-half percent.” Press release
Saks Fifth Avenue Debuts New $52M Women’s Store in Beverly Hills at The Hollywood Reporter. “Looking for a private, pink-hued two-story suite with a view of the Hollywood Sign in which to try on the latest designer looks? Look no further than the top floor of Saks Fifth Avenue‘s new Beverly Hills store which opens to the public on Feb. 8, inside the 130,000-square-foot building at 9570 Wilshire Boulevard that once housed Barneys New York.” Read more
Walgreens Boots Alliance Announces Leadership Appointments “Mary Langowski joins WBA to lead U.S. Healthcare segment…Manmohan Mahajan, interim since July 2023, appointed permanent chief financial officer…Elizabeth Burger joins WBA as chief human resources officer…” Press release
Amazon’s Newest Competitors Are Stepping Into Its Territory—Literally at WSJ. “Fast-fashion company Shein and TikTok’s shopping unit are expanding in Amazon’s territory, seeking to poach Amazon’s employees and building out workspaces in the same Seattle-area office tower. The two companies are bolstering their staff at a 22-story tower near Seattle known as the Key Center, and both are recruiting current and former Amazon employees as they expand their U.S. logistics and supply-chain operations.” WSJ subs.
Target considering new paid membership program at Bloomberg/Reuters. “…similar to Amazon and Walmart, Bloomberg News reported, citing people familiar with the matter. The new program, internally titled as Project Trident, could launch as soon as this year…” Read more
Tapestry forecasts higher 2024 profit on China demand, strong margins at Reuters
Costco Korea to raise wages by 6.2% as labor relations worsen at The Chosun. “Costco Korea plans to increase the base pay of its store employees by 1,000 won per hour, from $12.2 (16,167 won) to $13 (17,167 won), on Feb. 19. The wage hike surpasses the national minimum wage increase of 2.5% for the year and exceeds the base salary increments of major domestic retailers such as Emart, Homeplus, and Lotte Mart.” Read more
San Jose residents say no to Costco at KTVU 2
Amazon cutting hundreds of jobs in health care units One Medical and Amazon Pharmacy at GeekWire. “Amazon Health Services Senior Vice President Neil Lindsay said Amazon is seeing “strong momentum and positive customer feedback” across its health care offerings, but a “few hundred” roles would be cut.” Read more
Publix VP of Customer Experience Bob Bechtel to retire – promotion of Publix Director of Omnichannel David Finger to VP of customer experience Press release
Alibaba shares sink after it shelves IPO plans for two units at CNN. “Net income fell by 77% to just over $2 billion, which the company said was caused by a “decrease in income” from its operations…announcement of a $25 billion share repurchase program, which it said demonstrated its confidence in its business and cash flow outlook, also failed to ignite interest among investors.” Read more
Best Buy’s Hubert Joly on Re-Defining Your Company’s Purpose at Harvard Business Review. 29:19 podcast
Ahold Delhaize USA Announces Partnerships with DoorDash “…available to customers at each of its local omnichannel brands – Food Lion, Hannaford, Giant Food, The GIANT Company and Stop & Shop. Delivery from DoorDash is expected to be available to customers of all brands by March.” Press release
Trader Joe’s shoppers are warned of wallet snatching in Bay Area at Daily Mail
American CEOs Visiting China Can’t Escape It: They Have to Dance on Stage at WSJ. “In China, CEOs are allowed to be dorky,” says Barra, who danced and sang a lot while there, often with other senior Xiaomi leaders, who he says would set aside time from their busy schedules to practice their footwork. Barra remains thankful that not all of his performances were public, and thus not all searchable online.” WSJ subs.
Masked California thief caught on video brazenly taking dozens of iPhones from Apple Store at Fox Business
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