Tipsheet: Walmart/Kidbox Team | Midway Mall | Blockchain 50
Walmart announces partnership with Kidbox – a clothing subscription box company for kids at AP News. “Walmart customers will get access to more than 120 premium children’s brands. The style box will include about five fashion items for $48, about 50% off the suggested retail price of the bundled items.” Read more
Chicago’s Midway Airport is becoming more like a mall. And there’s more to come. by Lauren Zumbach at Chicago Tribune. “Retailers that do well in airports tend to be those addressing needs the Internet can’t fill, like a gadget store where a traveler can replace a lost charger or shops selling products people want to see before buying, like jewelry and apparel, said Darren Perry, managing director at L.E.K. Consulting.” Tiered subs.
Amazon ‘flooded by fake five-star reviews’ by Tom Belger at Yahoo Finance. “Which? found more than 10,000 reviews from unverified users on just 24 pairs of headphones in a couple of hours. It said 71% of products on the first headphones page had perfect five-star reviews, and 87% of products were not confirmed as Amazon purchases.” Read more
Best Buy’s new CEO designed the retailer’s revival at Bloomberg via LA Times. “The (Corie) Barry-led push into services has helped Best Buy buck the trend of legacy retailers succumbing to the shift online…“They make as much money around the product as the product itself,” Johnson said. “They’ve done an excellent job on that.” Tiered subs.
Amazon reportedly exploring free, ad-supported music streaming service by Nat Levy at GeekWire. “Citing sources familiar with the plans, Billboard reported that Amazon is in talks to launch the music service as soon as this week. Amazon plans to market the service, which would offer a limited catalog of music at first, through its network of Echo smart speakers, according to Billboard.” Read more
J.Jill names Mark Webb as new CFO “Most recently, Mr. Webb was SVP, Chief Financial Planning & Analysis and Treasury Officer at Hudson’s Bay Company. He previously was with Gap, Inc. from 1995 through 2017…” Press release
Walmart CEO Doug McMillon in India to discuss strategy by Peerzada Abrar at Business Standard. “He (McMillon) would be visiting the Flipkart campus and would be meeting the employees,” said a person.” Read more
What Retail Recovery? Malls Under Pressure as Stores Close by Esther Fung at Wall Street Journal. “S&P also signaled more turbulence ahead. Analysts say about 12 of the approximately 136 retailers it rates would default this year, compared with three a year historically.” WSJ subs.
Forbes Blockchain 50 (Walmart, CVS, Amazon) by Michael del Castillo at Forbes. List/Read more
Ro, a direct-to-consumer online pharmacy, reaches $500M valuation by Kate Clark at TechCrunch. “Its latest infusion of capital will likely be used in part to support its third personalized health brand, Rory, a purveyor of women’s health products…“Right now, we have [millions] of women experiencing menopause,” Rory co-founder Rachel Blank told TechCrunch last month. “They are walking around and frankly, their vagina hurts and they are uncomfortable.” Read more
Rite Aid Appoints Elizabeth Burr and Katherine Quinn to Board “…Burr most recently served as chief innovation officer and vice president of healthcare trend and innovation at Humana, and Quinn, who currently serves as vice chairman and chief administrative officer of U.S. Bancorp…” Press release
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Champion Accidentally Hit the Fashion Jackpot by Jordyn Holman & Kim Bhasin at Bloomberg. “Champion is a benefactor of three swirling style trends that converged to create a teen and millennial fashion craze: Logo apparel is in vogue; throwback gear has returned; and streetwear—the casual style derived from skateboard and sports culture—is having a moment.” Tiered subs.
Bellevue accelerates self-driving transit plans as Amazon moves major team from Seattle by Monica Nickelsburg at GeekWire. Read more
JD will scrap basic salary for couriers by Rita Liao at TechCrunch. “Alibaba’s arch-foe JD.com has long prided itself on owning and controlling its logistics services: couriers are treated as in-house staff and paid a basic income. But that will end soon as costs keep piling up for the ecommerce giant.” Read more
Tipsheet Extra Stories
The 5th Avenue Apple store is crawling with bed bugs
Target quietly rolls out order consolidation
Playboy bunnies display rebuilt even bigger after neighbor tears it down
Swiss government says coffee ‘not essential’, stockpiling to end
Hy-Vee Opens Minnesota HealthMarket Rx, Pharmacy Locations
H&R Block CEO Jeff Jones Shakes up Tax Season
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