Kroger launches Nuro unmanned vehicles to delivery groceries to customers in Arizona by Ben Tobin at USA Today. “Kroger announced its partnership with Nuro in June. The companies started a pilot program in August to test the unmanned delivery service. Customers can pay a $5.95 flat rate for same-day or next-day delivery. There is no minimum order requirement.” Read more

 

Forget Drones. Amazon’s Jeff Bezos Needs Lots of Delivery Guys by Spencer Soper & Thomas Black at Bloomberg. “The Dragos now have 42 vans and 70 employees who each deliver about 250 packages in a typical day. Their profit is about $40,000 each month, about $1,000 per van, Drago says. The biggest challenge is hiring and retaining drivers, who earn about $150 for each eight-hour shift.” Tiered subs.

 

U.S. sportswear traced to factory in China’s internment camps at AP News. “This is one of a growing number of internment camps in the Xinjiang region, where by some estimates 1 million Muslims are detained…The Associated Press has tracked recent, ongoing shipments from one such factory inside an internment camp to Badger Sportswear, a leading supplier in Statesville, North Carolina.” Read more

 

Amazon opens its ninth Amazon Go store today, and second in San Francisco by Kurt Schlosser at GeekWire. Read more

 

Kroger CFO Michael Schlotman to retire April 3 at CNBC. “…he will be succeeded by Gary Millerchip, chief executive of Kroger Personal Finance.” Read more

 

Saks Fifth Avenue closing women’s store in downtown Manhattan by Lisa Fickenscher at NY Post. “This Saks branch location was a test concept,” Saks said in a statement, adding that customers’ “preferred format is a combination of our digital channels and our iconic Fifth Avenue flagship.” Read more

 

…but will keep its men’s shop at Brookfield Place in New York at CNBC. Read more

 

Opus closes on purchase of former Target campus by Nicole Norfleet at Star Tribune. “The campus has been empty since 2016 when Target moved 1,300 employees from the site to the company’s expanded Brooklyn Park campus.” Tiered subs.

 

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Meet the Best Buy employee who inspired the company’s new child care benefit at Washington Post via Pioneer Press. “Family members who had been helping Lanette couldn’t watch Logan that day, either. And so, Lanette brought Logan to work, delivering her presentation while her baby slept in his stroller a few feet away…A human resources manager was in the Arlington store the day Johnson brought Logan to work, and advocated for the benefit…” Read more

 

Rent-A-Center terminates deal to be bought by Vintage Capital affiliates at MarketWatch. Read more

 

Amazon’s vision for the future of health care is becoming clear at CNBC. “So imagine you have a sore throat. You let Alexa know…the doctor through Alexa asks you about your symptoms. It decides to send a courier to your home with a tiny portable device to do some basic tests for things like strep throat. The strep test is positive, so the virtual doc sends over a prescription for an antibiotic.” Read more

 

Couche-Tard signs asset swap deal in U.S. with Cross America Partners via Montreal Gazette. “Couche-Tard has agreed to sell 192 U.S convenience and fuel retail stores to CrossAmerica…CrossAmerica has agreed to sell…real estate property for 56 U.S. company-operated convenience and fuel retail stores.” Read more

 

Amazon’s Top-Selling Television Comes Via Its Frenemy Best Buy by Matthew Boyle at Bloomberg News. “TVs sold by Best Buy have grown to dominate the television category on Amazon,” said Joe Kaziukenas, founder of researcher Marketplace Pulse.” Tiered subs.

 

Institute Says Dollar Stores May Do Low-Income Areas More Harm Than Good by Claire Kelloway at Eater. Read more

 

Woman has massive heart attack – three Home Depot employees save her life by Rachel Lloyd at Fox 47. “Doug Kelly said he has a simple thank you for the employees who saved his wife. “You’ve given me a second chance with this gal,” he said as his wife wiped a tear away.” Read more

 

UPS Store deletes Christmas ‘shredding’ tweet after massive backlash at Fox News. “The UPS Store is being criticized online after posting a cheeky Christmas tweet telling parents they can shred letters to Santa.” Read more

 

This fake package covers porch thieves in glitter and fart spray by Greg Kumparak at TechCrunch. “Oh, and the whole thing is being filmed (and uploaded online!) from basically every angle, thanks to a very carefully aligned rig of four hidden cameras. And there’s more! I don’t want to spoil it, but everything down to the tiny details of the box itself were planned out to make thieves feel a little bit more silly after the glitter settles.” Video/Read more

 

Tipsheet Extra Stories

This 25-year-old got the eBay CEO as her Reddit Secret Santa—here’s what she received

Whole Foods won’t have to reopen Bellevue store, court says

Target plans mini store for old Kmart in Spring Valley – San Diego

Charter/Spectrum Cable agrees to record $174M settlement for misleading customers on internet speed

A holy mess: Churches, other nonprofits confront parking tax

Read Tipsheet Extra Stories

 

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