Thursday Tipsheet: 1st TargetExpress in Chicago | Costco +4% | Bed/Bath +3.7% | Giant +SWAT Team
TargetExpress coming to Chicago in October by Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz at Chicago Tribune. “The 24,000-square-foot shop at 401 E. Illinois St., less than one-fifth the size of a traditional Target, will house a Starbucks and carry merchandise geared toward neighborhood shoppers swinging by as they walk or bike home from work, Target spokeswoman Kristy Welker said .” Read more
Costco March Comp Sales -2% / +4% Excluding Gas Price Deflation Read the release
SWAT Team Called After Woman Steals $8.50 in Groceries from Giant Supermarket and Hides in Ceiling for 7 Hours at CBS Baltimore. “SWAT teams, a mandatory evacuation and a scissor lift–Baltimore County police pulling out all the stops to arrest a shoplifter who lodged herself above the highest walls of the Giant store in Arbutus (MD).” Read more
Walgreens Boots Alliance Q2 Sales +35.5% Read the release
Bed, Bath & Beyond Q4 Comp Sales +3.7% (vs. 1.7% last year) Read the release
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Amazon files first-ever suit over fake product reviews, alleges Calif. man sold fraudulent praise by Todd Bishop at Geek Wire. “Amazon has filed suit against the alleged operator of several sites that offer Amazon sellers the ability to purchase fake 4- and 5-star customer reviews of their products.” Read more
Family Dollar Q2 Comp Sales +0.5% (Street expected 1.7%) Read the release
Austin is 6th City to Get Amazon’s ‘Prime Now’ one-hour delivery service by Taylor Soper at GeekWire. Read more
Whole Foods makes loan to 10-year-old Austin ‘Shark Tank’ star by Greg Barr at Austin Business Journal. “Last year, BeeSweet sold about 25,000 bottles, thanks in part to its deal with Whole Foods to place the drinks in 10 stores. That agreement was expanded in January to 35 stores in the Southwest region.” Read more
Amazon Prime Subscribers Just In It For Two-Day Delivery Deal? by P.J. Bednarski at MediaPost. “44% of U.S. subscribers use Prime Instant Video at least once a week, compared to 55% in Germany and 54% in the U.K.” Read more
J.D. Power Ranks Top 10 Kitchen Cabinet Brands (IKEA #1) See the top 10 list
Ex-bagger at Cincinnati Kroger rises to division president at Cincinnati Business Courier. “After 38 years with the company, Marlene Stewart was promoted on Tuesday to president of its Dillons division.” Read more
The ‘Netflix for Books’ Just Invaded Amazon’s Turf by Davey Alba at Wired. “On Wednesday, (Oyster) announced that it is launching an e-book store on its platform. Oyster says it has corralled all of the Big Five publishers to contribute their book offerings to the service…(Amazon’s Kindle Unlimited) now gives subscribers access to more than 800,000 titles for $9.99 a month. But it doesn’t have the Big Five publishers on board—and it may not be close to striking any deals with them.” Read more
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Eye-on-Retail Tipsheet is created early every weekday morning and read by retail merchants and executives worldwide. 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 at info@shiftmarketinggroup.net.