Best Buy Q4 comp sales down 4.8% “Bilunas (CFO): “For Q1 FY25, we expect comparable sales to decline by approximately 5% and our non-GAAP operating income rate to be approximately 3.4%, which is flat to Q1 FY24.” Press release

 

…Best Buy tops holiday quarter estimates but issues soft full-year guidance at CNBC. “Q4: Earnings per share: $2.72, adjusted vs. $2.52 expected. Revenue: $14.65 billion vs. $14.56 billion expected.” Read more

 

Walmart Computer Glitch Halts Sales and Returns at Stores at WSJ. “The outage began to affect stores Wednesday morning, rendering some registers inoperable, according to store workers and people familiar with the situation. The problem continued to roil hundreds of stores hours later as the retailer worked on technical fixes for the system. The issue has since been resolved…” WSJ subs.

 

Bath & Body Works Q4 net sales up 0.8% Press release

 

Rent the Runway’s Plan for Regrowth Starts With a New Marketing Chief at WSJ. “The fashion rental service on Wednesday named Natalie McGrath as its chief marketing officer, establishing a dedicated marketing leader role for the first time in years. McGrath…had been vice president of marketing at payment company Afterpay…” WSJ subs.

 

Birkenstock beats holiday quarter revenue expectations with 22% year-on-year jump at CNBC

 

Jim ‘Mattress Mack’ McIngvale places $1M wager on Houston to win March Madness at Fox Business. “If the Cougars win the tournament, McIngvale’s earnings will help fund the latest Gallery Furniture promotion. The promotion states that customers will receive a refund if they purchase a Tempur-Pedic mattress and adjustable base priced at $4,000 or more and Houston wins the national title.” Read more

 

TJX Companies, Inc. Q4 consolidated comp store sales increased 5%

…Marmaxx +5% / HomeGoods +7% / TJX Canada +6% / TJX Int’l +3% Press release

 

What is ‘ungraded’ beef? Label at Loblaw-owned grocery store sparks confusion among shoppers at Toronto Star. “Recent reports that Loblaws is selling “ungraded Mexican beef” has prompted some confused shoppers to raise concerns…”My hubby went shopping and didn’t notice the ungraded,” she wrote. “If I had been blindfolded I would not have known what kind of meat I was eating. It was disgusting.” Read more

 

Advance Auto Parts Q4 comp sales down 1.4% Press release

 

This ‘Amazon’s Choice’ video doorbell could let just about anyone spy on you at The Verge. “Amazon didn’t even respond to Consumer Reports findings last we’d heard, much less pull the cameras off its virtual shelves…Shopping app Temu, at least, told CR it would halt sales after hearing just how incredibly easy they are to hack.” Read more

 

Barron’s 100 Most Sustainable U.S. Companies 2024: Best Buy #11 / Kroger #27 / Walmart #61 / Lowe’s #72 / TJX #89 / Target #91 Read more

 

FOX5 rides along with Henderson, Nev. police on retail theft blitz operation at KVVU-TV. “Although Det. McGeahy says most suspects will give up once police make contact, sometimes, these interactions can get violent. “We’ve had some in the past, they’ve had guns, they’ve had pepper spray, we actually had a group that was using tasers,” said Det. McGeahy…The one-day blitz resulted in 17 arrests.” Read more

 

6 Hottest Food Trends at UNFI’s Orlando Show at Progressive Grocer. “More than 6,000 retailers, suppliers and trend-watchers attended the United Natural Foods Inc. Spring and Summer Selling Show this month in Orlando, Fla., and one thing is for certain: Banana water is the new coconut water.” Read more

 

Wonder, Marc Lore’s $3.5 Billion Startup, Has Launched a Food Hall in Walmart at Inc. “The New York City-based food business’s 11th location–inside a Quakertown, Pennsylvania, Walmart–marks the start of its relationship with (Walmart)…The location will offer menu items from eight restaurants through Wonder’s quick-prep model.” Read more

 

In delicate China play, Reckitt turns to livestreaming to sell condoms at Reuters. “There is no clear definition of what vulgar content is – that’s up to the regulator to decide and the system is quite socially conservative,” said Kendra Schaefer, head of tech policy at China-focused research firm Trivium.” Read more

 

***Advertising inquiries, new product searches, comments, questions, etc., contact Jason Long at jlong@eyeonretail.net