Tipsheet: JCP’s HVAC Test | Escalator Dumps 40 | Costco Golf Balls +2 Hrs | R.Aid -3.4% | Bed/Bath -1.4%
J.C.Penney’s HVAC Test by Maria Halkias at Dallas Morning News. “A display for Trane at Penney’s Collin Creek Mall store in Plano says the HVAC service is coming soon…Other Penney stores are part of the HVAC test, but the company wouldn’t say how many. It’s a “small number of stores,’ said Penney spokeswoman Sarah Holland.” Read more
Bed Bath & Beyond Q3 Comp Sales -1.4% Press release
Costco restocks popular Kirkland golf ball, only to run out in two hours by Joel Beall at Golf Digest. “The good news is the in-house Kirkland ball was back on shelves December 20. The bad news? The ball is out of stock again. And this time, it was only accessible for two hours. As soon as the ball became available, consumers complained that the Costco website was jammed.” Read more
Rite Aid Q3 Comp Sales -3.4% “…consisting of a 4.7 percent decrease in pharmacy sales and a 0.4 percent decrease in front-end sales.” Press release
The U.S. just dumped Alibaba back on its ‘notorious’ counterfeit markets blacklist by Jason Del Rey at Recode. “Alibaba Group President Mike Evans said the company was “very disappointed” by the decision and questioned whether it was “influenced by the current political climate” in the U.S., where president-elect Donald Trump has already taken a hard stance against the country’s current trade relationship with China.” Read more
IKEA agrees to $50 million settlement in dresser tip-over case at Reuters. “Two U.S. toddlers died in separate 2014 incidents when MALM dressers fell on them. A 22-month-old boy was killed this year in a similar incident.” Read more
Union Says Walmart Is Discriminating Against Black Customers by Locking Up Black Hair Products by Ashley Weatherford at NY Mag. “Hair products locked up, an extra layer of security,” begins a new national commercial spot. “But only for some shoppers, black shoppers. That’s what three Virginia Walmart stores did.” Read more/Video
Amazon will cover the cost of shipping your donations to Goodwill by Monica Nickelsburg at GeekWire. “Amazon is participating in a free shipping program, called Give Back Box, that encourages customers to reuse their cardboard boxes. After shoppers receive a box from Amazon, they can repack it with household goods they want to donate. Amazon will cover the cost of shipping so customers can simply print a label from GiveBackBox.com and drop the package off at a post office. Carriers deliver the boxes to the nearest Goodwill.” Read more
How TJ Maxx Ignored the Internet and Won by Kim Bhasin & Lindsey Rupp at Bloomberg. “They’re not worried about it at all,” says Mickey Chadha, an analyst at Moody’s Investor Service who considers the T.J. Maxx’s online penetration negligible. “The product is right at the right price. Online is only as good as the product.” Read more
**A message from the 2017 Philadelphia Gift Show – See emerging artists and gift, home décor, and color trends! Get a sneak peak in our product spotlight, and see our list of unique exhibitors. Sweetening the pot, this all-category gift show runs concurrently with the Philadelphia National Candy, Gift & Gourmet Show. See it all January 6-9, 2017, at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center, in Oaks, PA. Register now | Website
Mass. will be home to America’s largest medical marijuana facility by Catherine Carlock at Boston Business Journal. Read more
Brick-and-mortar stores having a rough holiday shopping season by Lisa Fickenscher at NY Post. “One designer falling on hard times is Yoana Baraschi, whose fashions have been carried in Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Henri Bendel and Bloomingdale’s…After 15 years Baraschi closed down her business this week, according to industry sources.” Read more
Target shoppers falsely accused of shoplifting by employees in social media post by Karen Jordan at ABC 7. “Another employee tweeted a picture of the girls, saying the store manager told her to follow them. By the time their mom picked them up, screen shots of the tweet picked up stream on social media, making its way to their family and friends. “Once you put it out there on the internet you can’t take it back,” said Mochan.” Video/Read more
The Container Store Wraps Gifts for Free At Ten Airports Nationwide Today Press release
‘Moana’ sails at the box office, but it could sink in the toy aisle by Sarah Whitten at CNBC. “For ‘Moana’ you have the dolls, the boat, the demigod and the fish hook and that’s about it,” Silver said…The trouble for “Moana” is her outfit isn’t as iconic.” Read more
Almost 40% of young adults live with their parents hitting a 75-year high in America at Daily Mail. Read more
Millennials are driving the board games revival by Luke Graham at CNBC. “Global sales of games and puzzles have grown from $9.3 billion in 2013 to $9.6 billion in 2016, according to Euromonitor International, with expected year-on-year growth of more than 1 percent this year.” Read more
Is Amazon Europe’s Next Top Model? by Aaron Ricadela at Bloomberg. “Zalando ruled fashion e-tailing. Then you-know-who came along…” Read more
Finish Line’s Stumble Is a Warning for Athleisure by Shelly Banjo at Bloomberg. “Apparel sales fell a whopping 50 percent in the quarter from the year before. A cursory glance at the women’s tops available on Finish Line’s website helps explain why: The unadorned jackets — in mostly dull blacks and grays — and plain, over-sized tanks struggle to compete with the color splashes, wild prints, and flashy styles that are fashionable today.” Read more
Hershey Names COO Michele Buck as Chief Executive at Fox Business. Read more
Tipsheet Extra Stories
Target Shopper Falls on Escalator, Takes Down 40 Other Riders
Montreal’s Rockefeller-style Christmas tree is an epic failure
NYC pols support victims’ lawsuit against Walmart over sale of bullets used to kill three
Lowe’s employee says she was fired for calling 9-1-1
Woman Gets Banned From Mall For Racist Rant at J.C.Penney
American Airlines’ top executives wearing controversial “itchy” uniforms to make a point
Contact us: Send story tips, press releases and advertising inquiries to info@eyeonretail.net
Subscribe to Eye on Retail Tipsheet here