“Wal-Mart to Build Online Grocery Pick-Up Center in Bentonville” by Kim Souza at The City Wire.  “Wal-Mart is wasting no time in deploying its latest grocery format — a stand alone pick-up center where shoppers can drive up and retrieve their online orders and never leave their car…The retailer reviewed plans for the first concept depot with Bentonville city officials on Tuesday (April 29.) The proposed development goes to the city planning commission on May 6.”  Read more

 

“Family Dollar focused on regaining customer base after straying ‘off course’ “ by Jennifer Thomas at Charlotte Bus. Journal. “Levine expressed confidence Wednesday that Family Dollar is on the right path during a presentation at Barclays Retail and Consumer Discretionary Conference in New York City.  “We’re going back to what we know. We’re going back to our core values. We’re going back to what our customers expect from us,” Levine said…“We got off course. We lost our core focus on providing value and convenience,” Levine said.”  Read more

 

“How Wal-Mart May Give Detergent Overdosing — And Sales — A Boost” by Paul Ziobro at WSJ.  “Wal-Mart has announced an initiative to cut the amount of water in each dose of liquid laundry detergent it sells by 25% by 2018…The mandate from the world’s largest retailer essentially marks the start of another shift in a direction that could boost sales in the $7 billion U.S. laundry category.”  Read more

 

“Costco vs. Sam’s:  Price Showdown in Indy” at RTV 6 ABC – Indianapolis.  “The grand total was $262.05 for Costco; $274.31 cents for Sam’s Club.  But it’s important to point out that Costco charges $10 more a year than Sam’s Club for a basic membership.  Another thing to consider — the price you pay will not only depend on whether you shop at Costco or Sam’s, but in which part of town you shop.”  See the shopping list

 

“What does Wal-Mart not sell? ‘Anything is Fair Game’ “ at AP via Dallas News.  “What other services could be on the horizon for the retail behemoth? Brian Sozzi, an equities strategist who follows Wal-Mart, believes the retailer will continue to focus on adding services.  The possibilities are endless. Shoppers can order caskets online from Wal-Mart and they can even buy life insurance in 217 Wal-Mart stores. But they’ll have to go elsewhere to arrange funeral services…“Anything is fair game,” says Wal-Mart’s Barnett.”  Read more

 

“Carrefour Implements Electronic Shelf Labels” at Retail Touch Points.  “Multinational supermarket chain Carrefour has equipped more than 55,000 Electronic Shelf Labels (ESL) from Pricer into its Carrefour Villeneuve la Garenne store.”  Read more

 

2014 Barclays Retail & Consumer Discretionary Conference – Webcasts:

Walgreens 

Family Dollar

Kroger

SuperValu

 

“Walgreens Paperless Coupons Awarded Best Integrated Mobile Experience”  “Walgreens Paperless Coupons offering has set the standard for innovation and creativity on the Internet,” said David-Michel Davies, Executive Director of The Webby Awards. “This award is a testament to the skill, ingenuity, and vision of its creators.”  Read the release

 

“5 Secrets to Attracting Millennials at Retail”  “1. Millennials are willing to share their information with retailers, which makes them great candidates for loyalty programs. But the loyalty programs must be simple, beneficial, and save them money…5. Millennials don’t do all of their shopping online.”  Read the release

 

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