Former Walmart CEO Bill Simon on CNBC by Tom DiChristopher. “Gas is an emotional purchase, as you know. People drive all the way across town for 2 or 3 cents a gallon. And now with gas at about half of what it was a year ago, I think consumer confidence is really starting to pick up,” Simon said in an interview on CNBC.” See the video / Read more

 

Retailers Presenting Today at ICR XChange (Wayfair, Big Lots, Five Below, Michaels) See the schedule

 

Amazon faces $25 million lawsuit from New York developer over Manhattan deal by Rachel Lerman at Puget Sound Business Journal. “Durst Organization, a New York real estate company, is suing Amazon for $25 million. Durst alleges the Seattle retailer did not follow through on an agreement to lease more than 300,000 square feet of office space in Manhattan.” Read more

 

Wayfair Reports Record Growth for Peak Five-Day Holiday Shopping Weekend “Wayfair reported a 51 percent increase in overall gross sales, defined as dollars of order intake, and a 76 percent increase in Direct Retail gross sales for the five-day peak shopping period of Thanksgiving Day through Cyber Monday.” Read the release

 

Next Target Express market could be central Philadelphia at Philly Business Journal. Read more

 

Amazon to take over textbook sales at UMass Amherst by Dan Adams at Boston Globe. “Under terms of the five-year deal, the online retailer will pay UMass Amherst a 2.5 percent commission on most sales to students through the school’s dedicated Amazon storefront. The company has agreed to pay at least $375,000, $465,000, and $610,000 in the first three years, respectively.” Read more

 

Gravie partners with Target on in-store health insurance advice by Katharine Grayson at Minn./St. Paul Business Journal. “The service, which launched last week, is available Thursday through Sunday at three Target stores: 2500 E. Lake St. in Minneapolis, 4175 Vinewood Lane N. in Plymouth and 15150 Cedar Ave. in Apple Valley.” Read more

 

***New product spotlight – A message from Comfy Sacks – Not your parent’s bean bag chair!  Incredibly soft micro-suede covers and our uniquely comfortable shredded foam filling make the mega-size Comfy Sacks an experience your customers won’t want to miss (up to 7.5 feet in size!) Great for living rooms, basements, kids rooms, dorm rooms, etc. Bring some fun and excitement to your stores today.  See the website  For program details contact: info@eyeonretail.net

 

Walmart, Kroger Execs Return as Multicultural Retail 360 Co-Chairs at Convenience Store News. “For the second consecutive year, Javier Delgado-Granados, senior marketing manager for Walmart Stores Inc., and Angel Colón, director of multicultural development for Kroger Inc., will co-chair the conference, which will take place Aug. 12-14 at the Anaheim Marriott.” Read more

 

Former Family Dollar President Takes Helm at Fred’s “Fred’s, Inc. announced that it has named Michael K. Bloom as the Company’s President and Chief Operating Officer, effective January 12, 2015.” Read the release

 

Dollar Tree CEO: We ‘have reached the end of our patience’ by Jennifer Thomas at Charlotte Business Journal. Read more

 

Gay ex-Lowe’s employee alleges discrimination by Lee Higgins at The Journal News via USA Today. “Adam Haimowitz, 32, of Tallman, N.Y., says his frequent complaints to the human resources department fell on deaf ears and the company fired him in retaliation for his testimony on behalf of another gay employee who sued for sexual harassment.” Read more

 

Instacart Confirms $220 Million Investment. Now Comes the Hard Part. by Jason Del Rey at Recode. “CEO Apoorva Mehta confirmed that Instacart is experimenting with outsourcing some deliveries to third-party companies, but declined to give more details about which companies or how heavily Instacart is moving into this new model.” Read more 

 

WSJ: Rebuilding History’s Biggest Dot-Com Bust by Greg Bensinger. “Not all are so sanguine about Instacart. When the company tried to expand to Chicago in 2013 by using Trader Joe’s stores, the grocer blocked the effort until a formal agreement could be reached. Instacart is still not delivering goods from Trader Joe’s.” Read more (Subscription)

 

Tiffany Holiday Sales Flat “Tiffany & Co. reported its sales results for the two-month holiday period ended December 31st. Worldwide net sales of $1.02 billion were 1% below the prior year…worldwide net sales increased 3% and comparable store sales equaled the prior year.” Read the release

 

Amazon created 6,000 new permanent jobs in Europe in 2014 at Reuters. Read more

 

***

Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet read by thousands of Retail Merchants & Executives every weekday morning. Eye-on-Retail is unique because it’s timely, smart and fun. It’s created early AM every weekday and delivered between 7-8 am CST. We love data, earnings reports, executive presentations and stories off the beaten path that get at what’s happening in the world of retail. info@eyeonretail.net.