Target will add about 30 items, among them diapers and wipes, to its private-label Cloud Island line, starting Sunday. Parents with kids at home have historically spent more at Target, and there had been significant customer overlap with Babies R Us before that chain closed last year, Chief Merchandising Officer Mark Tritton said.
Walmart will team with Point Pickup, Skipcart, AxleHire and Roadie to grow its grocery delivery service in four states, as part of the retailer's ongoing efforts to bring grocery delivery to 1,600 stores. Currently, Walmart offers delivery from 800 stores with partners including Postmates, Deliv and DoorDash.
Sears has confirmed that Chairman Edward Lampert's ESL Investments won an auction to acquire the company, with a $5.2 billion bid and a plan to keep about 400 stores operating. Unsecured creditors who blame Lampert for the retailer's struggles have raised objections to the plan and have requested a public hearing.
United Natural Foods' $2.9 billion acquisition of SUPERVALU has set the company up for success in a competitive market, with a distribution network that provides more than 110,000 items to more than 40,000 locations, UNFI Chairman and CEO Steve Spinner said. "That combination puts UNFI in a position to win in the long term, and today we are the largest public wholesaler by far," he said.
Japanese hair care brand NatureLab is preparing to bring its cruelty-free, plant-based products to retailers in the US. To raise awareness of the expansion, the company has brought on celebrity hairstylist Andrew Fitzsimons as its first official ambassador.
Clean-makeup brand Westman Atelier launched an e-commerce site Thursday featuring its six-product line. The brand aims to use the site to create value with original content for the line, which launched last year at Barneys New York and Violet Grey.
Walmart is advertising to hire a CEO to create a new company from the ground up under the retailer's Store No. 8 tech incubator. Store No. 8 launched two years ago and several of its innovations were highlighted at NRF 2019: Retail's Big Show this week.
Book sales grew 1.3% in the US last year, according to NPD Group, and five titles sold upwards of 1 million copies, up from two titles in 2017. Sales of "Becoming" by Michelle Obama topped 3 million copies and a craving for cozy comfort fueled sales of titles like "Magnolia Table" by Joanna Gaines.
