SURGE – Target reports holiday same-store sales growth of 5.7%, maintains 2018 outlook at CNBC. “That’s compared with growth of 3.4 percent a year ago…digital sales were up 29 percent during the holidays…It said the amount of online orders fulfilled through either in-store pick up or a curbside pick up services was up 60 percent from a year ago and accounted for roughly 25 percent of online sales during this past November and December.” Read more

 

BEATS – Costco December comp sales +6.1% Press release

 

TRACKED – National Enquirer tracked Jeff Bezos and mistress for four months “During a blockbuster four-month investigation, The Enquirer tracked Bezos…and secret lover Sanchez across five states and 40,000 miles, tailed them in private jets, swanky limos, helicopter rides, romantic hikes, five-star hotel hideaways, intimate dinner dates and “quality time” in hidden love nests.” Read more

 

Kohl’s holiday comp sales +1.2% – shares tumbled more than 6 percent in pre-market trading on the news at CNBC. Read more

 

Macy’s Nov/Dec comp sales +1.1% – shares tumble at Fox Business. Read more

 

Supplier says Shopko is expected to file for bankruptcy next week via Pioneer Press. “McKesson Corp. says it supplied Shopko with $67 million in drugs since Nov. 11 but has not been paid since early December…Shopko says it has more than 300 retail locations.” Read more

 

dunnhumby names Trader Joe’s top U.S. grocery retailer (Costco #2, Amazon #3, HEB #4, Wegmans #5) Top 13 list/Press release

 

Federal shutdown brings FDA cutbacks, fewer food inspections by Jorge L. Ortiz at USA Today. “Gottlieb added that he’s looking to bring back some of the 7,000 FDA employees who are on furlough…though they would initially have to work without getting paid…Gottlieb said foreign food inspections would continue, he acknowledged routine inspections of domestic facilities have halted.” Read more

 

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Bed Bath and Beyond soars more than 20% on improved 2019 earnings guidance at CNBC. “It also said that its fiscal 2019 earnings per share will be about the same as 2018’s, a big beat over Wall Street’s consensus, which projected a 21 percent decline…Same-store sales declined 1.8 percent during the quarter, more than the 0.3 percent decline that analysts had forecast.” Read more

 

Community celebration in honor of Blake Nordstrom to be held on Saturday at Seattle Times. Tiered subs.

 

Sears chairman submits new roughly $5 billion bid to save retailer at Reuters. “In a concession, Lampert agreed to assume tax and vendor bills Sears has incurred since filing for bankruptcy protection in October, the sources said…Lampert’s previous bid, which Sears had rejected, was valued at $4.4 billion.” Read more

 

Top 50 websites (Amazon #4, Walmart #19, Target #37, Best Buy #50) at SimilarWeb. List

 

Hipsters Are the New Hunters by Cameron McWhirter & Zusha Elinson at Wall Street Journal. “We didn’t lead with, ‘Hey, do you want to go shoot a deer?’ ” says Mr. Forester, a hunting programs manager at the Quality Deer Management Association, the group that sponsors Field to Fork. “If you’re talking about local, sustainable—I can’t certify organic—you can’t do better than white-tailed deer.” WSJ subs.

 

Amazon has hired Disney SVP Kyle Laughlin to head its Alexa Gadgets division by Brian Heater at TechCrunch. Read more

 

OPEN-BATHROOM HEADACHE – Starbucks is installing needle-disposal boxes in some bathrooms by Kate Taylor at Business Insider. “My primary fear when I worked there would be taking out the bathroom garbages,” the former employee, who quit in 2018, told Business Insider. “I was terrified that if I went to take the bag out, I would get poked by a needle I didn’t know was there.” Read more

 

Amazon to invest in French firm’s technology for self-driving forklifts at Reuters. Read more

 

Shoe Carnival Names McCann Agency of Record Press release

 

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