Core inflation hit an annual rate of 3.3% in April, as expected at CNBC. “…the soft monthly readings could provide some hope that the burst in prices over the previous month had begun to ease…gross domestic product growth in the first quarter was less than expected. GDP accelerated at an annualized rate of just 1.6% for the period (vs. 2.0% expected)…” Read more

 

Best Buy Q1 comp sales +2.0% “We are…maintaining our guidance for the year,” said Matt Bilunas, Best Buy CFO. “Comparable sales have started strong in May, with month-to-date growth up high single digits. Our comparable sales outlook for the full quarter is approximately 1.0% growth…” Press release

 

…Best Buy beats on top and bottom lines as retailer aims to reinvigorate sales at CNBC. “…its biggest growth drivers in the quarter were gaming, computing, mobile phones and services, which were partially offset by a decline in sales of appliances.” Read more

 

Fortune’s 2026 Most Powerful Women (Steelman – Ulta #39 | Watkins – Sam’s #87 | Zhu – Walmart China #92) Top 100 list (Fortune subs.)

 

Dollar Tree, Inc. Q1 comp sales +3.5% “…4.5% increase in average ticket, partially offset by a 1.0% decline in traffic.” Press release

 

EU hits Temu with $232 million fine over illegal products at AP

 

Men Are Spraying Themselves 100 Times in New Fragrance Frenzy at Bloomberg. “…men are being encouraged to layer their fragrances…trend is a boon to cosmetics companies as consumers buy several products instead of just one…influencers hawking fragrances to men on TikTok has increased around 12-fold…far outpaces the 8-fold increase in those marketing to women…” Bloomberg subs.

 

Kohl’s Q1 comp sales down 1.1% Press release

 

…Kohl’s Narrows Losses as Turnaround Takes Hold at WSJ. “CEO Michael Bender called the result Kohl’s best comparable-sales performance in over four years, attributing the moderate decline to ongoing efforts to improve the business…Shares rose 8.7%, to $14.05, in premarket trading.” WSJ subs.

 

Burlington Stores, Inc. Q1 comp sales +6.0% “(Outlook:) Total sales to increase in the range of 9% to 11% on top of the 9% increase during Fiscal 2025…To open approximately 115 net new stores…” Press release

 

Build-A-Bear Workshop Q1 total revenues decreased 2.4% “…with consumer traffic posing a challenge, our results were lower-than-expected for the quarter…commented Sharon Price John, President and CEO…” Press release

 

Amazon offers its AI shopping tech to outside retailers at GeekWire. “It’s designed to let retailers create AI assistants for their own e-commerce sites that can talk with shoppers, answer questions about products, and make recommendations tailored to each store’s inventory and brand. AWS says a retailer can get one up and running in about 60 days.” Read more

 

Yesterday’s rundown: Dick’s Business Q1 comp +6.0% | Abercrombie & Fitch Co. Q1 net sales +2.0% | Bath & Body Works, Inc. Q1 net sales down 3.0%

 

Walmart continues its milk processing facility expansion at Talk Business. “The three Walmart processing plants have the capacity to supply about 1,900 stores, or roughly 40% of its stores. This is still less than competitors like Kroger, which have been in the milk business for decades. Kroger operates 19 processing plants for milk, ice cream and other dairy products, supplying roughly 90% of its private-brand milk sales.” Read more

 

Lululemon’s founder promises not to trash the company—for 18 months at CNN

 

Walmart unveils first new Home brand launch in five years “…introducing Mainstays Kids…featuring more than 600 items across furniture, bedding, bath and décor…six coordinated collections…assortment spans 12 categories…” Press release