American Express Platinum Card now $895 annually - benefits include $300 to use at Lululemon at AP   Amazon Aims to Grow Ad Sales Further by Automating Creation at WSJ. "The results can run across Amazon’s ad inventory, including commercial breaks on the Prime streaming service and ads on outside websites sold through the company. The ads may run on platforms that have deals with Amazon, including Disney, Roku and, as of last week, Netflix. Creative Studio content also appears on sellers’ brand store pages or product listings." WSJ subs.   Rachel Brand to leave Walmart as chief legal [...]

  Target steps up next-day parcel delivery as discounter tries to narrow gap with rivals at AP. "Target is expanding its next-day delivery of parcel shipments to 35 of the nation’s top 60 metropolitan markets by the end of next month, marking 22 new cities this year...That means that its next-day delivery expansion will go to 54% of the U.S. population, up from 20%, according to Gretchen McCarthy, Target’s chief supply chain and logistics officer." Read more   Amazon Prime Big Deal Days returns October 7-8 Press release   The New Pitfall of Online Shopping: A Surprise Tariff Bill at [...]

  Inflation Rose to 2.9% in August at WSJ. "...hotter than July’s gain of 2.7%. That matched the 2.9% rise expected by economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal." WSJ subs.   Kroger Q2 ID sales without fuel +3.4% "CEO: ...we are raising our identical sales without fuel guidance to a new range of 2.7% to 3.4%. We are also raising the lower end of our adjusted FIFO net operating profit and net earnings per diluted share guidance, to new ranges of $4.8 to $4.9 billion and $4.70 to $4.80, respectively." Press release   Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For® [...]

  Forbes: The 400 Richest People In America (Musk #1, Bezos #4, Waltons -#11, 12, 15, 24) Full list   Walmart Announces First Stores in South Africa "With sites already in development, these new stores are set to open before the end of the year, with official opening dates to be announced in October." Read more   Bain: US retail sales to grow 4% YoY in November and December (vs. 10 yr. avg of +5.2%) Press release   Mary Dillon Out as Dick’s Closes Foot Locker Deal at FN/Yahoo. "Dick’s executive chairman, Ed Stack, will lead the global Foot Locker [...]

  ADP: Labor market growth slows dramatically in August with U.S. adding just 54K jobs vs. 75K estimate at CNBC   PwC: 2025 holiday spending to decline on average by 5% "...the first notable drop since 2020. 84% expect to cut back over the next six months...Gen Z respondents (ages 17 to 28)...say they expect to reduce their holiday budgets by 23%, more than any other generation." Press release   Powerball jackpot jumps to $1.7 billion after another night without a big winner at AP   American Eagle stock soars 20% as retailer says Sydney Sweeney campaign is ‘best’ to [...]

  ADP: Labor market growth slows dramatically in August with U.S. adding just 54K jobs vs. 75K estimate at CNBC   PwC: 2025 holiday spending to decline on average by 5% "...the first notable drop since 2020. 84% expect to cut back over the next six months...Gen Z respondents (ages 17 to 28)...say they expect to reduce their holiday budgets by 23%, more than any other generation." Press release   Powerball jackpot jumps to $1.7 billion after another night without a big winner at AP   American Eagle stock soars 20% as retailer says Sydney Sweeney campaign is ‘best’ to [...]

  Kraft Heinz to split into two companies "Global Taste Elevation Co.”...will include...three billion-dollar brands – Heinz, Philadelphia and Kraft Mac & Cheese – with approximately 75% of net sales coming from sauces, spreads and seasonings...“North American Grocery Co.”...will include...three billion-dollar brands – Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables." Press release   Aldi Wants to Conquer the American Grocery Store Landscape at WSJ. "Aldi plans to add more than 200 stores on a net basis in the U.S. in 2025, making it America’s fastest-growing retailer this year after the two big dollar-store chains...plans to add more than 800 additional stores [...]

  Dick's Q2 comp sales +5.0% / Raises full year 2025 comp guidance to a range of 2.0% to 3.5% Press release   ...Dick’s beats Wall Street’s expectations on the top and bottom lines at CNBC. "...Stack said new drops from Nike’s revamped running portfolio, including the Pegasus Premium and the Vomero Plus, are performing so well, it can’t keep the shoes in stock. “Anything that’s new, innovative and kind of the cool factor, is blowing out,” Stack said." Read more   Best Buy Q2 comp sales +1.6% - highest growth in three years Press release   Dollar General Q2 comp [...]