Lowe’s CEO Niblock gets nearly 24% pay reduction in 2014 by Katherine Peralta at Charlotte Observer. “CEO Robert Niblock made $14.3 million in 2014, down from the $18.7 million he made in 2013, according to a securities filing this week…Niblock’s perks included $94,954 worth of personal use of the company’s aircraft, $6,406 for a company-required physical exam and $5,700 worth of reimbursement for his tax compliance costs.” Read more

 

Carlyle Group names ex-Wal-Mart CEO Mike Duke as operating executive at Business Insider via WSJ. “Duke, 65, will work with deal-makers who are focused on buying and investing in consumer products and retail companies at the firm in Washington, D.C.” Read more

 

….Mike Duke Will Continue to Serve as a Member of Walmart’s Board by Ryan Dezember at WSJ. “The position as a so-called operating executive is akin to being a paid consultant for the firm, rather than an employee, and will allow Mr. Duke to continue to serve as a member of Wal-Mart’s board. It won’t prevent him from taking on other roles elsewhere.” Read more (Subscription)

 

Women in Construction Conference Features Home Depot’s Carol Tome and Roz Brewer from Sam’s Club  Read the release

 

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Target settles with MasterCard for $19M in breach by Kavita Kumar at Star-Tribune. “The proposed settlement does not include Visa. A Target spokesman said he had no update to share on the retailer’s negotiations with Visa.” Read more

 

Amazon Prime Now in Austin: Ken doll delivered in 19 minutes 59 seconds to Univ. of Texas Residence Hall by Charles Liu at The Daily Texan. “The Daily Texan tested out the service by placing two separate orders…The second was 125 feet of bubble wrap, because the Texan knows how to have fun…The bubble wrap arrived in 25 minutes and 38 seconds, and it was delivered by a different person. Popping will ensue.” Read more

 

Walgreens’ Pessina: Finding Next CEO More Difficult than Hoped by Bruce Japsen at Forbes. “Though it’s “tempting to think of us as a U.S. business . . . we cannot afford to be parochial and nor would we choose to be,” Pessina said. To that end, Pessina said Walgreens next CEO will be from outside of the company with consultants are looking at external candidates. “Finding the right person is proving more difficult than we might have hoped,” Pessina said. “It’s not easy to find someone with the experience and gravitas that we want.” Read more

 

Whole Foods exec spends her day in Nashville by Adam Sichko at Nashville Business Journal. “Norah Smith, a vice president of real estate at Whole Foods, checked out possible locations with principals of the Nashville real estate brokerage firm Rudd Seeley Wallis LLC, according to multiple real estate sources.” Read more

 

Meet Tanium, The Secret Cybersecurity Weapon Of Target, Visa And Amazon by Brian Solomon at Forbes. “When Steven Sinofsky first saw Tanium software in action, he–along with the rest of a conference room full of Andreessen Horowitz partners–thought it was a trick. “It was too fast,” says Sinofsky, who used to run Microsoft’s Windows division. “To a person, we just assumed it was a mock-up. We asked how long it would take to build for real.” Read more

 

This chart about spending in restaurants is unbelievable … because it has a major problem by Myles Udland at Business Insider. “The chart shows that total spending at restaurants and bars — “food and drinking places” — topped spending at grocery stores in March. This is a huge deal. But it doesn’t quite show what you think.  That’s because major grocery retailers like Wal-Mart, Costco, and Target aren’t considered grocery stores, as Jonathan Maze at the Nation’s Restaurant News notes.” Read more

 

Cabela’s Names Ex-Tractor Supply CEO to Board  Read the release

 

Tracy Margolies Named Chief Merchant of Saks Fifth Avenue  Read the release

 

Duluth Trading apologizes to Don Henley to resolve trademark dispute by Evan Ramstad at Star-Tribune. “Duluth Trading…is known for clever, irreverent merchandising and marketing materials both in stores and online. Khaki pants, for instance, are referred to as “Middle Management chinos” and long-tail T-shirts “prevent plumber’s butt.” Read more

 

It is likely the first person who will live to be 1,000 years old is already alive today at News.com. “If we ask the question: ‘Has the person been born who will be able to escape the ill health of old age indefinitely?’ Then I would say the chances of that are very high,” he said.
“Probably about 80 per cent.” 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.