US retail sales rose slightly in September, adding to months of big gains at AP. "Sales increased 0.2% last month from August, the Commerce Department said Tuesday...The retail sales figures suggest that Americans as a whole are still willing and able to boost their spending..." Read more   TikTok Shop Pushes Into Luxury Retail With $11,000 Handbags at Bloomberg. "The emergence of high-end luxury goods on TikTok Shop is a sign of the company’s evolving e-commerce ambitions since it launched in the US two years ago to comparisons with Chinese fast-fashion heavyweights like PDD Holdings Inc.’s Temu and Shein [...]

  Walmart Q3 comp sales +4.5% (ex-fuel) / Op Income -0.2% / Sam's Club comp +3.8% (ex-fuel) / Walmart Int'l net sales +11.4% / Walmart US ecom +28% Press release   ...Walmart to Transfer Stock Exchange Listing to Nasdaq Press release   Walmart in talks to acquire Israeli-founded startup to combat scams, counterfeits at CNBC. "R&A Data has been working with Walmart as a third-party vendor since at least 2024, helping the company screen listings on its online marketplace for compliance issues, such as counterfeiting, according to the people and records. After working with the tech startup, Walmart decided to [...]

  Home Depot Q3 comp sales +0.2% / US comp sales +0.1% Press release   ...Home Depot cuts earnings outlook as home improvement demand falls short of expectations at CNBC. "The retailer said it now expects full-year sales will climb about 3% and comparable sales...to be slightly positive. That compares to its previous expectations for full-year sales to grow by 2.8% and comparable sales to increase by 1%." Read more   Layoff Tactics Keep Changing, and the Blunders Keep Coming at WSJ. "During Target’s recent layoffs, some employees logged on to a Zoom call—only to discover an audio glitch in [...]

  Target's new 10-4 policy at USA Today. "The new policy requires employees who are within 10 feet of customers to smile, make eye contact, wave, and use friendly, approachable, and welcoming body language..." Read more   The Credit-Card Rule That Powers Rewards Cards Just Got Broken at WSJ. "Under terms being discussed, Visa and Mastercard would lower credit-card interchange fees, which are often between 2% and 2.5%, by an average of around 0.1 percentage point over several years, the people said. They would also loosen rules that require merchants that accept one of a network’s credit cards to accept [...]

  Target’s sloppy stores are wearing on shoppers, and its turnaround could hinge on cleaning them up at CNBC. "The company is now rolling out a new approach that designates only some of its stores as locations where employees pick and pack orders in cardboard boxes to ship to customers’ homes. Other stores have stopped fulfilling those orders entirely. The company has expanded that plan to 36 markets as of the end of October, more than half of its 60 markets, after a successful pilot in the Chicago area, said Gretchen McCarthy, chief supply chain and logistics officer. It plans to [...]

  Instacart Debuts White-Label AI Shopping Chatbot in Enterprise Push at Bloomberg. "The company said Tuesday that its AI shopping assistant will be offered as part of its white-label e-commerce service, which powers the online shopping sites for some grocery chains like Sprouts Farmers Market Inc. and Publix Super Markets Inc. The chatbot will be tested on Sprouts’ website and app over the coming months, Instacart said in a statement on Tuesday. It will also be available on Kroger Co.’s iPhone app, it said." Bloomberg subs.   Sex Dolls, Boycotts, Protests: Furor in France as Shein Opens Paris Store at [...]