Tipsheet: Amazon Visits +32% | OOS HEB #1/Target #2 | Lowe’s #3 Radio
Walmart/Sam’s Club will start taking employees’ temperatures before shifts at CNBC. “If an employee has a temperature of 100.0 degrees or more, he or she will be paid for reporting to work and asked to return home or get medical care. Employees with a high temperature won’t be allowed to return to work until they’re fever-free for at least three days.” Read more
…6-20-100 guidance “6 feet is the among of space people should keep from others…20 seconds is the among of time people should take to wash their hands…And 100 is the temperature that someone should stay home with.” Press release
Whole Foods Employees Are Staging a Nationwide ‘Sick-Out’ Today at Vice. “On March 31, Whole Foods employees will call in sick to demand paid leave for all workers who stay home or self-quarantine during the crisis, free coronavirus testing for all employees, and hazard pay of double the current hourly wage for employees who show up to work during the pandemic.” Read more
Amazon Struggles to Find Its Coronavirus Footing. ‘It’s a Time of Great Stress.’ by Dana Mattioli & Sebastian Herrera at Wall Street Journal. “The company’s website had 639,330,722 visits for the week of March 9, according to data from Comscore, up 32% from the year earlier. From Feb. 20 to March 23, Amazon’s sales of toilet paper increased 186% from the year-earlier period, according to analytics firm CommerceIQ…sales of cough and cold medicine grew by 862%, compared with a forecast growth rate of 110%, and children’s vitamins by 287%, compared with a forecast rate of 49%.” WSJ subs.
Simon Property, furloughs 30% of workforce at CNBC. Read more
IKEA making masks to help fight coronavirus at Reuters. “Having started off with masks for staff in China in early stages of the pandemic, the Swedish group is working with several suppliers to ramp up output of masks for health workers, as well as hand sanitizers, visors and single-use aprons.” Read more
Macy’s to furlough most of 130,000 employees as stores stay shut at Reuters. Read more
OpenTable will allow people to reserve shopping times at supermarkets by Taylor Lyles at The Verge. “Currently, seven partners across Los Angeles and San Francisco — six restaurants turn pop-up markets plus one local grocery store are using the new feature, but OpenTable told The Verge it is in “active talks with other national grocers/retailers.” Read more
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Amazon fires worker who led New York strike over coronavirus safety worries at Fortune. “Amazon confirmed it fired Smalls, saying he violated safety regulations, including failing to abide by a 14-day quarantine required after being exposed to an employee with a confirmed case of Covid-19.” Read more
…Amazon worker speaks out after firing at Fox Business. “It was retaliation,” Christian Smalls told FOX Business. “There’s no way around it. The truth will come out.” Read more
According to IRI, sales of meat increased 91% during the week ended March 22 at Progressive Grocer. “In absolute dollars, the five biggest winners for the week of March 22 were ground beef ($180 million more versus the comparable week in 2019), chicken breasts ($75 million), pork loin ($40 million), beef short loin (nearly $40 million) and beef chuck ($35 million), according to IRI.” Read more
Field Agent: H-E-B is leading the pack when it comes to out-of-stocks – but Target is a close #2 “In all, 22% of shelves audited at H-E-B (N = 160) were completely OOS. That’s good enough for first place among 12 total retailers audited, though, it should be stressed, neck-and-neck with Target (23%).” Read more
LOWE’S #3 IN RADIO SPOTS – Moved from 22nd to 3rd on the Media Monitors chart last week. Lowes aired 42,612 spots on radio stations all across the country. Radio Ink
Amazon Is Struggling to Pay Workers in Quarantine by Olga Khazan at The Atlantic. “In line with Amazon’s new policy, the company said it would pay her for the length of her quarantine. But there is a catch: She was told she won’t be paid until after she returns to work.” Read more
Williams-Sonoma fined $1 Million for misleading ‘Made in USA’ claims at Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “The FTC’s complaint involves numerous Williams-Sonoma Goldtouch Bakeware products, Rejuvenation-branded products and its Pottery Barn Teen and Pottery Barn Kids-branded upholstered furniture.” Read more
In chaotic times, gardening becomes therapy at AP. “At the Almaden Valley Nursery in San Jose, California, rose expert John Harp has seen a mix of new gardeners and regulars….“Around town everyone is gardening right now,” Harp said. “They’re looking to be a little bit more self-sufficient.” Read more
Tipsheet Extra
Microsoft’s Skype struggles have created a Zoom moment
ESPN moving up highly anticipated Michael Jordan documentary
5th ShopRite employee in N.J. tests positive for coronavirus
Why Walmart is seeing increased sales for tops, but not bottoms
Dollar General offers 10 percent discount for first responders
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