Where Christmas is Most Loved in U.S. by Eric Chemi at CNBC. “Look at the states dominating the top of the list: Georgia, Tennessee, Florida, Arkansas, South Carolina, Texas, Mississippi and North Carolina are all up there. These are all Republican-voting strongholds, home to a dominant Christian citizenship.” Read more

 

Most-searched places on Google Maps in 2014 (Walmart #1, Home Depot #5, Costco #10) by Ben Abramson at USA Today. See the Top 10 List

 

WSJ: Sears Bets Big on Technology, but at the Expense of Its Stores by Suzanne Kapner. “…in the four years it was open, Mygofer notched an unusual distinction: On some days, more people returned goods than bought them…internal projections had called for Mygofer to build over four years so that it would eventually generate $8 million in annual sales…Annual sales struggled to top $1 million, these people said. During an interview, Mr. Lampert acknowledged that “going to a store where there were no products may have been weird for shoppers.” Read more (Subscription)

 

Wal-Mart must pay $188 million in workers’ class action at Reuters. “The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ordered Wal-Mart Stores Inc to pay $188 million to employees who had sued the retailer for failing to compensate them for rest breaks and all hours worked. Wal-Mart said on Tuesday that it might appeal the decision.” Read more

 

Family of man killed in BB gun case sues police and Walmart at CNN. “The shooting happened August 5. Crawford was shopping at Walmart and picked up a BB gun that wasn’t packaged and had been sitting on the store shelf for two days, the Crawford family’s lawyers said.” Read more

 

Retailers to try again for online sales tax by Bernie Becker at The Hill. “David French of the National Retail Federation said advocates would continue to “carpet bomb Congress with our message,” after his group and others have sponsored fly-ins from local retailers and state and local government officials. “We’ve told the Hill all along that this is going to pass because it needs to happen, and eventually people will see that,” French added. “They’re not going to pass a bill just because we have a good lobbying strategy.” Read more

 

*** New product spotlight – A message from Eye Dig It Safety Sunglasses: Fashionable protection….set your sights on this pair of chic sunglasses to find the best of both worlds. Maximum visual perception and shatter/scratch-resistant protection, Eye Dig It helps protect your eyes from debris and provide UVA and UVB protection…there’s no need to sacrifice safety for style. Available in Black and Tortoise Shell. See the sell sheet. For more information contact info@shiftmarketinggroup.net

 

Standard shipping deadlines loom for online shoppers by Krystina Gustafson at CNBC. See the chart

 

Amazon extends Christmas shipping deadlines by Ben Miller at Puget Sound Business Journal. “Amazon.com said it’s extending its free shipping cutoff deadlines to Dec. 19 to ensure Christmas delivery.” Read more

 

Private label items give Walmart pricing edge in new study by Kim Souza at The City Wire. “A consumer who purchased a basket of 55 grocery and consumable products in December at a typical Walmart Supercenter or Neighborhood Grocery Store would have saved $45 on the $160 purchase by choosing private label products or rollback items over branded everyday low priced products, according the study.” Read more

 

Boston: Watershed Exchange is a farmers’ market on wheels by Jane Dornbusch at Boston Globe. “He says there are three main problems with the traditional grocery model that he and Stanfield wanted to address. First, says Schoen, “In that model, 40 percent of food goes to waste. Second, only 20 cents on the dollar goes to a farmer or producer. Third is that the average product travels 1,500 miles. We said, How can we create a system that’s better and different?” Read more

 

Watch Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos Get Grilled in Rare Public Interview by Jason Del Rey at Recode.  See the video

 

“Dick’s Sporting Goods Next Buyout Target?” at Seeking Alpha. “I believe that DKS is the next buyout target, due to its attractive valuation, its ability to generate substantial returns, its FCF and EBITDA strength, and same-stores-sales competitive moat. At a reasonable $61.5 purchase price, DKS presents at least a 22% upside opportunity, with a high likelihood given the high achievable returns for a financial buyer.” Read more

 

Salvation Army bell ringer hit by car outside Walgreens store at WCVB 5 Boston. “A Salvation Army bell ringer was injured Tuesday after he was run down by an elderly driver who mistook a store’s door for a drive-through in Arlington, police said. “ See the video / Read more

 

***

Eye-on-Retail is a daily tipsheet read by thousands of Retail Merchants & Executives every weekday morning. It’s created early AM and delivered around 8 AM EST daily. 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@shiftmarketinggroup.net.