A Marriage Gone Bad: Walgreens Struggles to Shake Off Theranos by James B. Stewart. “In every case, Walgreens was blindsided, the insider told me, learning the bad news from media reports or from regulators rather than Theranos itself. This has hardly endeared Theranos to its ostensible partner’s directors and executives.” Read more

 

Conservative group boycotts Target after big-box store announces transgender bathroom policy by Christopher Brennan at NY Daily News. “The American Family Association released a statement urging its members to boycott the big-box store and support a petition that had more than 129,000 signatures as of Thursday night. AFA President Wildmon said that the policy “poses a danger to our wives and daughters” and “ is exactly how sexual predators get access to their victims.” Read more

 

…GOP lawmaker threatens Target boycott over LGBT bathroom policy by Cristina Marcos at The Hill. “If they’re going to be having women come to men’s restrooms, I won’t be going to Target to shop, unless and until that changes,” Gohmert said.” Read more

 

Wal-Mart Spent $10.5 Billion on Information Technology in 2015 by Kim S. Nash at WSJ. “Wal-Mart Stores Inc. again tops the list of the biggest technology spenders worldwide.” Read more (subscription)

 

America’s 100 Best Corporate Citizens In 2016 (CVS #29, TJX #90, Best Buy #100) at Corporate Responsibility Magazine via Forbes. See the top 100 list

 

** Trade show spotlight – Don’t miss the 2016 National Stationery Show – The ONLY stationery market in North America!

“I travelled from Brazil for the first time to visit NSS. It’s the best place to source Greeting Cards, Stationery, Boxed Notecards and all kinds of unique gifts.” Retail chain owner. On May 15-18 at Javits Center, NYC come and discover new & unique products from 800 exhibitors. About the show/category list | Upcoming trends you’ll see | Retailer stationery stories | Register

 

Amazon is shutting down its Gilt Groupe competitor MyHabit by Jason Del Rey at Recode. “Amazon launched the website five years ago near the height of the flash-sale craze, but MyHabit has struggled in recent years as the one-time popular fashion niche has become less popular and Amazon has prioritized other fashion initiatives.” Read more

 

First CVS Pharmacy locations in Target stores are now open in Utah  Read the release

 

Lowe’s discovers that negotiating directly with hospitals is cheaper than going through insurance companies by Michael Tomsic at NPR. “Another lesson was startling, Ross says. In addition to cutting the cost of procedures, another chunk of savings to the companies came from avoiding surgeries that probably shouldn’t happen in the first place. “We’re seeing up to 30 percent — close to 30 percent of cases — who should not be moving forward with the joint replacement,” Ross says.” Read more

 

Shoppers flock to new Tulsa Costco store on opening day by Samantha Vicent at Tulsa World. “I’ve been waiting for this since I moved here in 2008,” Young said…Jones, who arrived at 5:30 a.m., led the pack of about 150 people who waited in line — with oversize red-and-gray grocery carts in tow.” See the video / Read more

 

Sears and Kmart Are Closing 78 More Stores by Phil Wahba at Fortune. “The closings will leave Sears with fewer than 700 department stores, compared to 860 in 2008, while Kmart’s store count will below 900, compared to almost 1,400 that same year.” Read more

 

You Can Already Shop Target’s Latest Designer Pair-Up by Ana Colon at Refinery 29. “Usually, when a certain designer lands at Target, it’s preceded with monthsof anticipation…However, the big-box retailer’s latest pair-up is a little different — for starters, you don’t have to wait for it.” Read more

 

AutoNation CEO: ‘Biblical hail’ pounded profits by Matthew J. Belvedere at CNBC. “AutoNation chief Mike Jackson said Friday the company missed estimates on first-quarter earnings because of “epic, biblical hail storms” last month in Texas.” Read more

 

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