Tipsheet: Petco Rebrands | Costco +16.9% | H.Depot Skeleton | Sam’s Small
Petco rebrands, bans shock collars in health and wellness push at Fortune. “We’re transitioning from being a company that asks, ‘Can I help you put that big bag of dog food into your cart?’ into a full health and wellness company,” Petco CEO Ron Coughlin tells Fortune.” Read more
Costco September comp sales (ex. gas & f/x) +16.9%: US +16.7% / Canada +18.0% / Other Int’l +17.5% / Ecom +90.1% Press release
Dollar General to open stores aimed at wealthier shoppers at Fox Business. “The company plans to open a new brand of stores called Popshelf that mostly sells things shoppers don’t need but might want, such as party supplies, home decor or beauty products. Stores will be in the suburbs of larger cities, with two planned for the Nashville, Tenn., area in the next few weeks and 30 by the end of next year.” Read more
Home Depot’s sold-out giant halloween skeletons creep into brands’ social feeds at Ad Age. “There’s little doubt what this year’s most popular Halloween decoration is: The Home Depot’s 12-foot-tall skeleton with “LifeEyes” being sold for a whopping $300…People are now selling them on Amazon and eBay for up to $1,600.” Tiered subs.
J.Jill names Claire Spofford as CEO “Spofford a veteran retail executive with more than 20 years of experience, most recently served as President of Cornerstone Brands.” Press release
Sam’s Club adds petite packs as Americans plan smaller holiday gatherings at CNBC. “Customers will find holiday hams in three sizes: 4 pounds, 7 pounds and 10 pounds. They can buy green beans with garlic herb butter, sweet potato mash with cinnamon butter and mac and cheese — all packaged as side dishes for a family of four.” Read more
Amazon says internal investigation into WSJ report on third-party sales data finds no policy violations at GeekWire. Read more
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Tesco names a former Mondelez exec as CFO – Imran Nawaz is set to join Britain’s biggest grocery chain by market share next April at Wall Street Journal. WSJ subs.
Rite Aid to Acquire Bartell Drugs “Bartell Drugs generates over $550 million in revenue and fills approximately 5.5 million prescriptions annually across its 67 stores…Bartell Drugs’ stores join Rite Aid’s existing 69 Seattle area stores and will continue to operate under the Bartell Drugs name. The purchase price is $95 million.” Press release
Instacart’s valuation has more than doubled in 2020 to $17.7 billion following new funding round at CNBC. Read more
Democrats from the House Committee on Energy and Commerce wrote a letter to Bezos on Wednesday, which specifically addressed popular electronics products sold by AmazonBasics that have allegedly created “hazardous situations at rates well above comparable products.” at Fox Business. Read more
How AR Is Redefining Retail in the Pandemic at Harvard Business Review. “The next phase of augmented retail will likely be a gamified social experience. Burberry recently partnered with Snapchat on an in-store AR game, and I can see the concept being extended to digital store fronts and virtual closets where you can play, explore, and shop with friends. This coincides with a current trend popular among fashion and beauty brands such as Estée Lauder, Gucci, and Miu Miu: mobile arcade games.” Tiered subs.
Tipsheet Extra
Profile offers rare look at MacKenzie Scott’s distribution of Amazon wealth
Southeastern Grocers Investing in Fresco y Más Banner
Kroger is launching two on-premise ghost kitchens via partnership with ClusterTruck
H&M will turn your ratty old T-shirt into a brand new sweater
Lowe’s to have early curbside trick-or-treating
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