Dick’s CEO @ ABC News Announcing Sales Ban of Assault Rifles “Based on what’s happened and looking at those kids and those parents, it moved us all unimaginably,” company Chairman and CEO Edward Stack said today on “Good Morning America,” referring to the Feb. 14 school shooting in Parkland, Florida, that killed 14 students and three educators.” Video/Read more

 

Lowe’s Q4 Comp Sales +4.1% Press release

 

…Lowe’s profit and margins miss lowest Wall Street estimate, shares tumble at Reuters. “Lowe’s expects same-store growth to slow to about 3.5 percent this fiscal year, from 4 percent in the just-concluded fiscal.” Read more

 

…Lowe’s to become the exclusive retailer for Sherwin-Williams’ paint products at CNBC. “…the sole distributor in the home category of popular paint brands including Minwax, Cabot, and Thompson’s WaterSeal. Sherwin-Williams will continue to operate its own retail storefronts, as it skips over other major retailers for outside distribution in this deal.” Read more

 

TJX Q4 Comp Sales +4.0% Press release

 

Office Depot Q4 Total Sales -5.0% Press release

 

JCPenney is purging full-time employees to cut costs by Lisa Fickenscher at NY Post. “Many full-time employees will be cut to 25 hours a week from 35, The Post has learned. New part-time hires will also get 25 hours a week. “We are steering away from having any full-time associates,” a JCPenney insider told The Post.” Read more

 

American Customer Satisfaction Index Retail Report 2017:

• Costco #1 in Dept & Discount stores
• Target trounces Walmart
• Lowe’s bests Home Depot
• Publix #1

Press release | Download report

 

Costco wins firing fight against ex-staffer accused of swearing at customer at CBC News. “He admitted to calling her a bitch, but said it was his “clumsy” way of explaining that the customer created an “unpleasant situation” that he “did not respond to very well.” Read more

 

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The U.K. arm of Toys “R” Us is going into administration after the retailer failed to find a buyer by Natasha Bach at Fortune. “We will be conducting an orderly wind-down of the store portfolio over the coming weeks,” Simon Thomas, joint administrator and partner at Moorfields, said in a statement. Read more

 

BOSTON – Amazon set to bring at least 2,000 more jobs to the Seaport by Tim Logan at Boston Globe. Read more (tiered subs.)

 

Executive recruiting firm hires former Walmart execs to lead international division at Talk Business. “Cameron Smith has hired former Walmart Inc. executives Tom Colella and Eduardo Mariscotti to lead the new division, dedicated to placing business leaders around the world.” Read more

 

Walgreens and AmerisourceBergen deal talks have cooled as takeover looks unlikely at CNBC. Read more

 

Ahold Delhaize reported net sales growth of 1.6% to 15.8 billion euros ($19.3 billion) for the fourth quarter via CNBC. Read more

 

TP SHORTAGE – Taiwan Costco customers bum-rush pallet of toilet paper at Taiwan News. “As the video begins, a mob of customers is already surrounding the stack of toilet tissue packages and before the 16-second video is complete, the pallet has been picked completely clean.” Video/Read more

 

CHICAGO – Macy’s eyes sale of Medinah Temple, moving out Bloomingdale’s home store by Ryan Ori at Chicago Tribune. “The retailer has hired CBRE brokers to evaluate whether to sell and move out of the landmark building at 600 N. Wabash Ave., which is occupied by a massive Bloomingdale’s home furnishings store, according to sources.” Read more

 

What Amazon’s acquisition of Ring means for the smart home market by Nat Levy at GeekWire. “Ring products are carried by several Amazon competitors, such as Walmart and Costco. It seems unlikely that will continue, but it remains unclear.” Read more

 

COSTCO HAWK SNACKS ON PIGEON – “People are used to birds getting stuck inside the airport, and our big box stores. But the Costco Hawk is a particularly clever creature…Customers tell 9NEWS when the store opened the doors at night to let the hawk leave, it stayed. Instead, a pigeon flew in, and the hawk ate it.” Read more/Video

 

Tipsheet Extra Stories

Tim Hortons franchisees might sue head office over cash-register outages

‘Walking Dead’ ratings plummet again

Lowe’s Punished by Investors for Not Growing Like Home Depot

Robot ‘double’ allows sick students to attend school

96.5% of YouTube creators don’t make above the U.S. poverty line

Man Dumped His Dismembered Girlfriend’s Body Parts at Target

Read Tipsheet Extra Stories

 

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