Target gets tough with vendors to speed up supply chain by Nandita Bose & Nathan Layne at Reuters. “The sixth-largest U.S. retailer by sales plans to tighten deadlines for deliveries to its warehouses, hike fines for late deliveries, and could institute penalties of up to $10,000 for inaccuracies in product information, according to a letter sent to suppliers and obtained by Reuters and an interview with Target’s chief operating officer John Mulligan.” Read more

 

Kroger Drops Plan to Charge Alcohol Suppliers for Shelf Display via Dow Jones Business News. “In addition to dropping the fees it had planned to charge alcohol producers, Kroger said it would hire P.L. Marketing to help design shelving plans for alcohol brands. Kroger spokesman Keith Dailey said the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau’s guideline clarifications meant the company couldn’t work with Southern Wine & Spirits because doing so could violate U.S. alcohol distribution rules.” Read more

 

Canada: A packaged-goods price competition might be on the way, with Walmart leading the charge by Hollie Shaw at Financial Post. “It is now our understanding that Walmart wants to consolidate its everyday low pricing image in the centre of the store by consistently having lower shelf prices on selected major branded items,” Howlett said” Read more

 

Brand Keys: 10 lowest-scoring brands on consumer engagement (Budweiser #8, Whole Foods #10) by Aaron Baar at Media Post. See the list of ten

 

More than 21,000 small businesses can add same-day delivery through Postmates by Jason Del Rey at Recode. “Shopify announced today that businesses that use its software to run their online shops can now give their customers a same-day delivery option through Postmates.” Read more

 

**A message from 2016 Sweets & Snacks Expo – the Show Floor is Sold Out! The 2016 Expo will set an all-time record in volume of confectionery and snack products with more than 720 companies showcasing nearly four acres of product innovation. The Sweets & Snacks Expo is the one place more confectionery and snack retailers and manufacturers come together to get inspired, make connections and find new best sellers. See all of this year’s exhibitors | 2016 New Exhibitors | Taste panel bios | Website

 

Study: Amazon reviews don’t mean as much as you think by Monica Nickelsburg at Geek Wire. “The likelihood that an item with a higher user rating performs objectively better than an item with a lower user rating is only 57 percent,” Bart de Langhe, author of the study and CU-Boulder marketing professor, said in a press release. “A correspondence of 50 percent would be random, so user ratings provide very little insight about objective product performance.” Read more

 

Big 5 Sporting Goods Q1 Comp Sales -1.9% Read the release

 

Millennials Change the Complexion of the Beauty Business by Sharon Terlep at WSJ. “Millennials are much more about immediate results than saving for the future,” Estée Lauder CEO Fabrizio Freda said in an interview. “The 30-year-old today gets more photographs of themselves in a day than their mother did in a year, so they care about what their skin looks like now, not when they are 40.” Read more (subscription)

 

Lowe’s CMO Jumps Ship to Academy Sports via Yahoo. “Academy Sports + Outdoors named Thomas “Tom” Lamb Executive Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer, effective May 23, 2016.” Read the release

 

Sports Authority pushes back on liquidation talk by Molly Armbrister at Denver Business Journal. “Beleaguered Englewood-based sporting-goods retailer Sports Authority insisted in court Tuesday that it is still proceeding with an auction that will sell off its assets later this month, but is not liquidating, according to a Wall Street Journal report.” Read more | Read WSJ article (subscription)

 

Wal-Mart, Kohl’s Among Top Retailers in ABX’s Ad Effectiveness Index by Arthur Zackiewicz at WWD. “For television campaigns, Wal-Mart took the top spot with “Today, I’m Going to Fight Hunger”…For radio, J.C. Penney was the most effective in April with an ABX Index score of 108 for its “Rush into J.C. Penney This Weekend for a Sale So Big…” spot…” Read more

 

Oculus Rift demos are coming to select Best Buys May 7th, with a ‘small number’ available for purchase by Brian Heater at Techcrunch. ““Select” is really the key word here. In fact, a mere 48 locations will be getting the headset to start.” Read more

 

Affluent class’ affinity for Amazon presents long-term obstacle for luxury brands by Forrest Cardamenis at Luxury Daily. “…the percentage of consumers who consider Amazon to be better than competitors is highest among those making at least $250,000. By contrast, only 1 percent rate it worse than competitors.” Read more

 

Analyst: Kroger could consider acquisition after Lucky’s Minnesota expansion says by Steve Watkins at Cincinnati Business Journal. “…Shea said it could indicate Kroger is considering an acquisition that would make it a major player in the Minneapolis/St. Paul market. That means it could be eyeing Supervalu, the Minneapolis-based parent of Cub Foods. Read more

 

UK: Amazon Fresh food deliveries ‘to start this month in UK’ by Sarah Butler at The Guardian. “The online retailer is understood to have been testing fresh food deliveries from its depot in east London and to have asked suppliers to begin deliveries in the next few weeks. One supplier of chilled meals, Bol, told trade magazine the Grocer that its salad bowls would be launching on Amazon Fresh on 18 May.” Read more

 

Kmart offers lifetime guarantee on plants, but take a look at fine print by Lauren Zumbach at Chicago Tribune. “They’ve covered just about everything that’s going to go wrong,” said Ken Johnson, a horticulture educator with the University of Illinois Extension whose specialties include plant pathology.” Read more

 

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Appliance Manufacturers Salute Home Depot’s Bob Baird

Listeria Infections Lead to Larger Recall at Safeway, Costco

Quebec: New language law for signs to be unveiled at Walmart store

Under Armour’s Chief Merchandising Officer Stepping Down

The Site That Brings Italian Boutiques Right to Your Computer

Kroger Denver facility seeking temp workers after strike

Will millennials buy into Lowe’s new social-media pitch?

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