Online sales tax supporters hope gamble pays off by Mario Trujillo & Naomi Jagoda at The Hill. “Supporters of online sales tax legislation have been promised a vote in the Senate this year, but the timing is vague and House consideration is uncertain. To secure considerations of the online sales tax bill known as the Marketplace Fairness Act, advocates traded away one of their major bargaining chips by allowing a separate long-term ban on local Internet access taxes from going forward.” Read more

 

What The Lowe’s Robot Will Do For You—And The Future Of Retail by Jessica Hullinger at Fast Company. “People ask me, ‘Why do you work for Lowe’s?’’ (Kyle) Nel says. “One of my metrics of success is how often people go, ‘Robots at Lowe’s? What?’ We’re really good at retail and understanding home improvement, which means we understand how people live in their homes. Why can’t we also continue to iterate and innovate in uncharted ways?” Read more

 

Fast Company: The Most Innovative Companies of 2016 (CVS #3, Amazon #6…) See the top 50 list | Top 10 retailers

 

Looks Like Amazon May Sell Its Own Diapers, Using a New Non-Amazon Brand by Jason Del Rey at Recode. “A few weeks ago, Amazon emailed some customers, including me, a link to a market research survey about “the look and design of packaging of products that will possibly be sold on Amazon.” In it, Amazon asked a host of questions about a new diaper brand called Mama Bear, as well as the design of packaging associated with it.” Read more

 

Saks braces for battle in Canada’s crowded luxury fashion market by Marina Strauss at Globe & Mail. “It’s six days before the official opening, and Saks’s president is touring the almost-finished Toronto store before Hudson’s Bay Co., which bought Saks Inc. in late 2013, launches the first Saks Fifth Avenue in Canada on Thursday, raising the stakes in the country’s increasingly crowded luxury fashion market…” Read more

 

Why Trader Joe’s Big Move On Eggs Is So Important by Jenny Che at Huffington Post. “The company announced it would begin selling only cage-free eggs in all stores by 2025. Locations in California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado could see the switch as early as 2020.” Read more

 

**A message from 2016 Sweets & Snacks Expo – Discover what products are trending and guaranteed to fly off your shelves! Items selected during the Sweets & Snacks Expo’s Most Innovative New Product Awards go on to enjoy sweet success – See the 2015 New Product winners here. Get the first glimpse on the newest items and receive a sneak peek at products predicted by industry experts to become best-sellers. Register now to join us at Chicago’s McCormick Place from May 24-26. See this year’s exhibitors | See featured speakers | Learn More on Our Website

 

Amazon acquires Indian payments processor Emvantage via Reuters. Read more

 

Amazon’s second Treasure Truck deal sells out in an hour, courting Valentine’s Day procrastinators by Todd Bishop at GeekWire. “For the second straight weekend, the company on Sunday surprised customers in its hometown of Seattle with a bargain from the deal delivery vehicle: $10 for 24 long-stemmed roses, just in time for Valentine’s Day procrastinators.” See the pics / Read more

 

The 5 Ways Ed Lampert Destroyed Sears by Adam Hartung at Forbes. Read more

 

IKEA investigated for ‘underpaying taxes by one billion euros between 2009 and 2014’ in Europe by Corey Charlton at Daily Mail. “According to the Greens’ statement, IKEA uses ‘a series of tax loopholes in different European countries, namely the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg to avoid paying taxes’.” Read more

 

Ken Mangone to retire after coming back to help save J.C. Penney by Maria Halkias at Dallas Morning News. “Mangone, executive vice president of product development design and sourcing, retires on April 1. Val Harris becomes senior vice president of product development and design…Penney’s private label network of 400 suppliers located in 32 countries is considered one of the most experienced retail sourcing organizations in the industry.” Read more

 

Watch Gwen Stefani and Target’s Live Four-Minute Ad on the Grammys via Adweek. See the video

 

Retailers turn to Snapchat to share fashion week with curious clientele by Forrest Cardamenis at Luxury Daily. “Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue and Moda Operandi have all created Snapchat accounts in recent weeks, joining retailers such as Nordstrom and Bloomingdale’s on the network.” Read more

 

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Bullets strike five Wal-Mart trucks along U.S. 75 in north Tulsa County

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