Costco comp sales flat in Jan., misses Street’s view at Yahoo Finance. “Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters predicted a 1.2 percent rise in sales at stores open at least a year.” Read more

 

…Comp sales +7% excluding gasoline price deflation and foreign exchange. Read the release

 

Target will eventually take a second crack at Canada by Thomas Lee at San Francisco Chronicle. “If Target can’t succeed in Canada, where else in the world can the retailer expand? Abu Dhabi?…But Wall Street won’t ease up on Target for long, and it will force Cornell to show growth. That’s when Target will make a second attempt at Canada. And maybe this time, the retailer will get it right.” Read more

 

Chinese Retailers Play Poker in Empty Malls as Shoppers Go Online at Bloomberg. “The market was packed with people when it first opened in 2004,” said Li, looking up from the TV drama he was watching, for want of customers. “Business has gone from bad to worse in the last five years. The impact from online sales is huge.” Read more

 

Target Canada’s liquidation sales worry landlords by Marina Strauss & Jeff Gray. “The landlords are worried that Target, which is operating in bankruptcy protection, will flout the terms of some of its leases by bulking up on inventory and widely promoting its going-out-of-business sales – potentially sullying their malls’ image and detracting from rival retail tenants.” Read more

 

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Target taps new chief information officer by Kavita Kumar at Star-Tribune. “(Bob) DeRodes will continue to serve for a short period in an advisory role at Target. (Mike) McNamara, who is moving to the Twin Cities from England, will join Target later this year. In the meantime, the IT department will be led by (Brad) Maiorino; Jim Fisher, senior vice president of technology services; and Navneet Kapoor, president of Target India.” Read more

 

“The Magical World of Home Depot” at The Mommy Page. “Every year, Home Depot holds a talent contest for its staff across the country—and it’s actually a pretty huge deal…Now they’re back with a brand new song...In this new parody, the team pairs up to belt out famous Disney tunes rewritten with lyrics that compliment the products and services Home Depot has to offer. With lines like, “I can tile your floor, granite, porcelain or marble,” set to Aladdin’s “A Whole New World,” this fun crew sings through the floor, lighting, and paint aisles, awarding each department its own song.” See the video

 

Target’s downtown Minneapolis employment dips in survey by Sam Black at Minn./St. Paul Business Journal. “Target said it has 10,000 downtown employees, down from the 12,582 it reported last February in the 2014 survey of the largest employers by the Minneapolis Downtown Council.” Read more

 

Sam’s Club vs. Walmart: Is Sam’s really worth the $45 membership fee? at WCPO 9 Cincinnati. “When it comes to buying in bulk, is Sam’s Club really worth its membership fee? That’s what WCPO’s sister station KJRH worked to figure out in a comparison study of Sam’s Club versus Walmart…The difference between most items was a few cents, and in some cases less than one penny.” See the video / Read more

 

Macy’s buys spa retailer Bluemercury for $200M by Alexander Coolidge at Cincinnati Enquirer. “Based in Washington, D.C., Bluemercury operates about 60 specialty stores in 18 states – typically in prime street-level locations and urban lifestyle centers – and an online business.” Read more

 

Staples to buy competitor Office Depot at CNBC. “The deal values Office Depot at $11 per share. The companies put the transaction’s value at $6.3 billion. The deal is expected to close by year’s end.” Read more

 

Dollar Tree: Feds’ review of Family Dollar deal delays closing by Jennifer Thomas at Charlotte Business Journal. “It appears that Family Dollar Stores Inc. won’t become part of Dollar Tree Inc. until at least late April, according to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing Tuesday.” Read more

 

Walmart heiress’s ex-husband ‘claims he needs $400,000 a Month in alimony for “necessities” including a personal stylist, a chauffeur and vacations’ by Sophie Jane Evans at Daily Mail. “$30,000 a month would go on vacations, a staggering $80,000 every month would be spent on entertainment and a further $4,000 would be used to pay for a driver.” Read more

 

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