Thursday Tipsheet: B.Buy Gift Card Snafu | Another Wgreen Exec Out | Amazon Gets Defensive

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Glitch on Best Buy’s website sells $200 gift cards for $15 by Kavita Kumar at Star Tribune. “For a period of time on Tuesday night, Best Buy’s website allowed shoppers to buy $200 gift cards for $15, leading to a frenzy of activity as the glitch was publicized on sites such as Reddit.” Read more

 

The surprising way smartphones are changing the way we shop by Sarah Halzack at Washington Post. “We’re not overly focused on conversion on mobile, we really see it as a tool to drive traffic in our stores,” said Krista Berry, the chief digital officer of department store chain Kohl’s. Read more

 

Online Grocery Shopping: Easy for You, Maybe Not for the Earth by Nick Bilton at NY Times. “We’ve all had that moment with online shopping when you order a thumb drive and it shows up in a box big enough for a hot tub. Or when you try a new food delivery start-up and the box is filled with more plastic wrapping than nourishment.” Read more

 

Another Walgreens executive leaves the company by Ameet Sachdev at Chicago Tribune. “Jeff Berkowitz, an executive vice president at Walgreens Boots Alliance, has left the company, according to an internal memo provided to the Tribune.” Read more

 

Amazon’s Hollywood Shopping Cart Secrets by Natalie Jarvey at The Hollywood Reporter. “Bezos himself explains the strategy with the clarity of a man who has made billions over the Internet…”You can have the best technology, you can have the best business model, but if the storytelling isn’t amazing, it won’t matter,” he tells THR in an interview. “Nobody will watch. And then you won’t sell more shoes.” Read more

 

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Macy’s shares spike as activist investor reveals real estate spin-off plan by Erin Caproni at Cincinnati Business Courier. “Starboard Value LP announced that it has invested in Macy’s and has suggested the retailer spin off its real estate into a separate company.” Read more

 

Shh, this company wants to stay anonymous by Ally Marotti at Crain’s Chicago Business. “Ravin Gandhi loves the kitchenware aisle at Target. He should. His company played a crucial role in producing many of those pots and pans, skillets, waffle irons, baking sheets and grills…” Read more

 

EBay’s Marketplace Sales Struggle Under Competition by Amazon by Spencer Soper at Bloomberg. “There is a lot of concern that between Amazon and retailers going online, EBay’s competitive challenges are getting worse and not getting better,” said Gil Luria, analyst at Wedbush Securities Inc. in Los Angeles.” Read more

 

Understanding retail theft by James F. Peltz at LA Times. “The $44 billion lost overall…was 1.38% of total retail sales. The biggest component was shoplifting at 38%, then employee theft at 34.5%. The rest includes administrative and paperwork errors and vendor fraud, among other things.” Read more

 

Amazon Gets Defensive As Customers Criticize Prime Day by Ryan Mac at Forbes. “…Amazon got defensive, uncharacteristically releasing an update during the sale to partially illustrate Prime Day’s impact, while characteristically shielding some figures to make it unclear of just how successful the event has been.” 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 really happening in the world of retail. See our website at www.eyeonretail.net