“Breaking:  CVS Earnings Beat Street” at CNBC.  “CVS Caremark Corp posted higher quarterly profit and raised its forecast for the year on Tuesday, as sales grew at its drugstore chain and it processed more prescriptions.”  Read more

 

“Wal-Mart managers struggle to capture Millennials” by Kim Souza at The City Wire.  ““My team has dug into this, and I personally can’t see what this group is doing. There are great differences between the oldest and youngest in this generation. I understand them until they get to be about 27 with regard to how they shop and what they do,” Scott Huff, general merchandising manager for consumables.  He said the group is important to Wal-Mart, but like most retailers they are somewhat perplexed by demographic.”  Read more

 

“Target expanding skus on eBay for holiday” at Home Textiles Today.  “Target is undertaking in pursuit of omnichannel retailing, it will bump up his presence on eBay from 150 skus to 100,000 for holiday.  “Now this represents a new revenue stream for Target and it introduces a new guest base, which is predominantly men, to our brand,” said Casey Carl, president of multichannel…Carl cited a recent study from Deloitte that found 83% of shoppers use mobile devices while in store.”  Read more

 

“Fear of ‘Showrooming’ Fades” by Drew Fitzgerald at WSJ.  “Wal-Mart says it is benefiting from “reverse showrooming” as shoppers explore products online before buying them in stores. Target Corp. says it installed Wi-Fi at its stores partly to encourage customers to browse products on their phones.  “As my colleagues and I have said several times: We love showrooming—when Target gets to book the sale,” Target merchandising executive Casey Carl wrote in a blog post.  But their optimism doesn’t mean there isn’t cause for concern. The Internet’s share of overall purchases is still growing.”  Read more 

 

“Family Dollar president to appear on “Undercover Boss” “ by Ely Portillo at Charlotte Observer.  “Family Dollar President Mike Bloom will appear on the CBS show “Undercover Boss” on Friday night…“Bloom faces his fear of heights when learning to operate a forklift that takes him 35 feet into the air, nearly blows his rock ‘n’ roll disguise when one employee invites him to a jam session and more,” the Matthews-based discount company said in its description of the episode.”  Read more

 

“Tesco’s In-Store Ads Watch You—and It Looks Like You Need a Coffee” by Carol Matlack at Businessweek.  “Tesco is installing scanning software in its 450 gas stations across the U.K. to develop targeted in-store advertising based on customers’ physical features and shopping habits… The software, created by British digital-media group Amscreen, collects data on shoppers’ appearance to “guess” their rough age and gender. By matching that information with data on their purchases, Tesco can tell that a middle-aged woman buying gas in suburban London at 11 a.m. on a weekday might be in the mood for a coffee, while a man in his early 20s would probably prefer a soft drink.”  Read more

 

“22 Depressing Photos That Show That Kmart Is Dying” by Ashley Lutz at Business Insider.  “Brian Sozzi at Belus Capital Advisors visited several Kmart locations and took photos that illustrate how grim it is at the retailer.  “The research and photos presented below show that Kmart, believe it or not, may be in worse fundamental shape than Sears!” Sozzi writes. “By fundamental I mean dreadful to visit, borderline unsafe stores that are sending the division’s financials down a path of no return.”  See the Pics

 

“Retail sales up 2.6% in October” at The Retail Bulletin.  “Figures from the BRC-KPMG Retail Sales Monitor show that total sales increased by 2.6% year-on-year compared to a 2.4% rise September which was the weakest growth of the year. On a like-for-like basis sales edged up 0.8% in October.”  Read more

 

“U.S. Retailers Forecast 2.5% Increase in Holiday Comparable Store Sales, BDO USA Survey Finds”  “According to a recent BDO USA survey, chief marketing officers (CMOs) at leading U.S. retailers forecast a modest 2.5 percent increase in 2013 holiday comparable store sales. Last year, CMOs had a more optimistic projection of a 3.7 percent increase in holiday same store sales.”  Read more

 

“MacKenzie Bezos blasts new book about husband Jeff and Amazon” by Jay Greene at Seattle Times.  “The new book on Amazon.com by Bloomberg Businessweek writer Brad Stone gets one star from MacKenzie Bezos.  The wife of Amazon founder and Chief Executive Jeff Bezos posted her review on Amazon Monday in which she criticizes Stone for “numerous factual inaccuracies.”  Read more

 

“Pet food not P&G’s Bag? Why P&G might shed pet food” by Alexander Coolidge at Cincinnati.com.  “Analysts increasingly are intrigued with the prospect of the Cincinnati-based consumer products giant getting out of the pet food business.  “Iams just doesn’t fit their core business,” said Leon Loewenstine, managing director at Riverpoint Capital Management. “And Lafley’s under pressure to take bolder action to grow sales.”  Read more

 

“Seattle could be first U.S. big city where burger flippers earn $31,000 a year” by Peter Robison at Bloomberg via Vancouver Sun. “Supporting a $15-an-hour minimum wage could be suicide for politicians in Seattle. It’s too low.  Much of the U.S. would scoff at mandating a full-time pay equivalent of $31,200 a year, but in the biggest metropolitan area in the Pacific Northwest it’s an idea taken seriously.”  Read more

 

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