China retail sales decline for first time since 2022 at Yahoo. "Retail sales decreased 0.6% from a year ago in May, the National Bureau of Statistics reported. This marked a reversal from the 0.2% increase in April and sharper than the expected 0.3% decline." Read more   Most Trusted Brands 2026: Morning Consult; Amazon #13 / Home Depot #25 / Gen Z: Costco #4 Read more/Download report   Kohl's Names Elliott Rodgers Chief Operating Officer "Most recently, Rodgers was Chief Operations Officer at Foot Locker, Inc....held...leadership roles at Ulta Beauty...spent six years at Target in distribution and omnichannel operations..." [...]

  Amazon knocks Walmart from the top spot on Fortune 500 for the first time in 13 years at GeekWire "Only four companies have ever held the No. 1 spot in the 72-year history of the Fortune 500 list: General Motors, ExxonMobil, Walmart, and now Amazon." Read more | Fortune full list (subs.)   Sam’s Club names new chief operating officer at Talk Business. "Sam’s Club has promoted Steve Schrobilgen, who once worked as a club cart pusher, as its next chief operating officer and executive vice president. He replaces Tom Ward who retired amid recent management changes at Sam’s [...]

  Amazon Announces Prime Day Event from June 23–26 Press release   ...Target Circle Deal Days June 23–26 Press release   The Walmart blueprint: CEO John Furner’s first interview in the top job at Fast Company. "As thousands of Walmart employees descend on Arkansas for the company’s annual Associates Week, Furner sat down for his first in-depth conversation in his new role. He discussed everything from leading through a moment of massive change to turning forklift operators and developers alike into AI builders." Fast Company subs.   Dollar General Q1 comp sales +2.0% "...increases of 1.4% in customer traffic and [...]

  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 [...]

  How Barnes & Noble Became Private Equity’s Most Radical Retail Experiment at Bloomberg. "To understand the strategy that’s brought Barnes & Noble Inc. back from the retail abyss, you first have to understand the pyramid...no two pyramids on the dozens of tables inside each of the company’s nearly 750 locations are alike...The method is now so revered among Barnes & Noble employees, every one of them I interviewed in reporting this story used the word “pyramid” as a verb, including the company’s chief executive officer, James Daunt..."  Bloomberg subs.   Big Tobacco comes out on top after US FDA [...]

  Walmart Q1: Walmart US comp +4.1% (ex-fuel) / Sam's +3.9% comp (ex-fuel) / Walmart Int'l net sales +10.1% Press release   ...Walmart issues worse-than-expected outlook as high gas prices hit shoppers at CNBC. "Finance chief John David Rainey said high tax returns may have muted some of the impact high gas prices had on shoppers in the first quarter, indicating consumer pressures could rise in the current quarter." Read more   Kroger Plans Biggest Price Cuts In Years to Take On Walmart, Costco at Bloomberg. "I think about our business a bit like a Formula One race. There’s a [...]

  Home Depot Q1 comp sales +0.6% / US +0.4% Press release   ...Home Depot says core shopper is resilient in the face of higher gas prices, sales rise 5% at CNBC. "The homeowner in a relevant sense is perhaps more protected financially than other customer cohorts and so we continue to see engagement,” finance chief Richard McPhail told CNBC in an interview...Comparable transactions fell 1.3% — the fourth straight quarter of declines..." Read more   Target Names Jeff England EVP, Chief Global Supply Chain and Logistics Officer "England joins Target from QXO, where he served as chief supply chain [...]

  America’s Largest Family Businesses: Walmart, Wegmans, Wawa And 97 More at Forbes. "Forbes’ inaugural list ranks the 100 biggest family firms in the country by revenue. They hail from 31 states across the nation and have built brands like Marriott, Nordstrom and Kohler." Top 100 list   Retail sales rose for the third consecutive month in April at CNN. "Retail sales climbed 0.5% (vs. +0.6% projected) in April from the prior month, the Commerce Department said Thursday, down from March’s 1.6%..." Read more   U.S. Census Bureau: Population Growth Holds Steady in Midsized Cities / Largest Cities Faced Sharpest [...]