CVS posts big earnings beat, raises full-year forecast at CNBC. “CVS’ pharmacy filled 19% more prescriptions this quarter than in the same period last year. Sales in the front of CVS’ drugstores also rose, mostly thanks to an increase of people buying health products like cough medicine.” Read more

 

Walgreens plans to close 200 U.S. stores, according to new SEC filing at USA Today. “The closing stores represent less than 3% of Walgreens nearly 9,600 U.S. stores, Phil Caruso, a Walgreens spokesman, said in a statement to USA TODAY.” Read more

 

FedEx to end ground-delivery deal with Amazon: Bloomberg via Reuters. “FedEx will terminate its contract at the end of this month for small-package ground deliveries with Amazon.com Bloomberg reported on Wednesday.” Read more

 

Walmart CEO pledges ‘thoughtful and deliberate’ response to El Paso mass shooting at CNN Business. “But in a post on LinkedIn late Tuesday, he offered no details and company officials say Walmart’s policy on gun sales has not changed. McMillon thanked store employees and first responders for what he said were heroic efforts that saved the lives of shoppers…” Read more

 

Amazon lays out a technology to guide delivery agents with augmented reality by Alan Boyle at GeekWire. “The patent…outlines a scheme for alerting a delivery agent about the best times to make a delivery, the best routes to take and even the best places for parking — all overlaid on the agent’s AR headset.” Read more

 

Rising rent at Barneys’ flagship store led to Chapter 11 filing by Lisa Fickenscher at NY Post. “Rent (at the Madison Avenue store) doubled this year to $30 million — $44 million, including taxes…Before the rent increase, the store had been profitable — generating about $25 million in profits, according to multiple sources.” Read more

 

Amazon’s Scout delivery robots have begun making deliveries in the Irvine, Calif. area by Darrell Etherington at TechCrunch. “While the robots can drive themselves around, which is the whole point of the project to begin with, for the time being they’ll be accompanied by an “Amazon Scout Ambassador.” Read more

 

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Petco will more than double its count of full-service in-store vet hospitals by the end of 2019 Press release

 

Office Depot to offer identification and background check services “…has completed an initial rollout of these services to over 200 of its store locations across the nation, with plans to grow to over 500 locations by 2020.” Press release

 

Walmart’s Crypto Coin May Face Less Heat Than Libra, Cowen Says by Gregory Calderone at Bloomberg. “…and may especially appeal to Democrats looking for alternatives for people who do not usually use banks, Cowen said…A launch does not seem imminent after a Walmart spokesman said…that the retailer has no plans to immediately use the patent it applied for.” Tiered subs.

 

Amazon’s Treasure Truck adds additional cities – Charlotte, Cincinnati, Columbus and Las Vegas Press release

 

Capri cuts sales forecast as Michael Kors demand slows at Reuters. “Demand for high-end handbags, Kors’ signature product, has also slowed in the United States in recent months as more shoppers choose to spend their money on retro fanny packs and fashion backpacks, according to analysts at research firm Jane Hali & Associates.” Read more

 

When every day is a sale, stores fail to catch shoppers’ attention by Jordyn Holman at Bloomberg via Star Tribune. “Levi Strauss CEO Chip Bergh remembers when back-to-school shopping was a one- or two-week thing. Now, it seems to go on forever. “Back to school used to be a moment,” Bergh said, recalling the briefer periods of yore “where it was like a fistfight in the stores.” Today, “it’s morphed into five weeks.” Tiered subs.

 

Tipsheet Extra Stories

Kroger drops lawsuit against Visa

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The dept. store of the future is using actors to sell you stuff

Read Tipsheet Extra Stories

 

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