retail

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Lousy Retail Sales Will Delay Recovery

Recession isn't over as far as consumers are concerned

(Newser) - If the recession is indeed waning, nobody told consumers. Retailers of every kind reported lousy sales for the quarter ended Aug. 1, the Wall Street Journal reports. Target’s same-store sales fell 6.2%, Home Depot’s dropped 9.1% and Saks’ plummeted a whopping 15.5%. And with unemployment,...

New Kiss Disc to Land at Wal-Mart

Group becomes latest classic band to move merch through retailer

(Newser) - The deal was sealed with a Kiss: the heavy metal band is joining the ranks of classic bands releasing their music through Wal-Mart, the world’s biggest retailer, the AP reports. Their new collection, “Sonic Boom,” comes out Oct. 6 only at Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club; it...

Michelle Inspires Shoppers—All the Way to the Hospital

Quest for Talbots dress KOs one imitator

(Newser) - Michelle Obama’s taste for off-the-rack clothes has been a boon for retailers—but occasionally hairy for shoppers. The $169 sleeveless rose-print Talbots dress Obama donned for her Essence magazine cover shoot has become the struggling retailer's best-selling item, the Boston Herald reports. And so anxious was one Dallas shopper...

Ho-Ho-Hold on a Minute, Xmas in July?

Stores launch summer promotions to snag holiday dollars early

(Newser) - It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas in malls across the country as stores angle for some extremely early holiday dollars, the Wall Street Journal reports. Retailers like Toys'R'US, Sears and Kmart have dragged Santa away from his summer break and launched July Christmas promotions, hoping to boost sales...

France May Ease Century-Old Ban on Sunday Shopping

(Newser) - France's Senate next week is expected to overturn a century-old law prohibiting most businesses in the country from opening on Sundays, CNN reports. The 1906 measure was intended to ensure a day of rest for the populace, and parties on the left and the right have been vocal in their...

Microsoft Ad Campaign Gets Under Apple's Skin

Laptop-browsing spot may be boosting Microsoft's 'value perception'

(Newser) - Apple demanded Microsoft ditch TV ads featuring shoppers mulling the relative value of PCs and Macs, CNET reports. In the ads, which Microsoft’s chief operating officer calls “completely unscripted,” shoppers get to keep money they save by choosing a PC over a Mac. “We got a...

Wal-Mart Plans Eco-Rating Labels

(Newser) - Wal-Mart plans to begin asking suppliers to provide info on the environmental impact of their operations so the store can put so-called green rating labels on its products, the Wall Street Journal reports.The first cards probably won't appear for a few years, but given Wal-Mart's clout as the world's...

Desperate in July, Sears Looks to Santa for Bailout

(Newser) - Sears is taking the “Christmas in July” trope to a whole new level. With June retail sales tumbling, the company is looking for a boost by selling actual Christmas products, Time reports. Soon, 372 Sears stores will roll out displays hawking tree ornaments, stocking stuffers, and other decidedly off-season...

Manufacturers Drop Plasma TVs as LCD Takes Over

Pioneer, Vizio axe plasma production lines; retailers slash prices

(Newser) - TV buyers are increasingly choosing liquid-crystal-display over plasma as LCD manufacturers beef up the technological capabilities of their sets, the Wall Street Journal reports. With 30 million LCDs sold in North America in 2008, compared with 4 million plasmas, Pioneer and Vizio are discontinuing their plasma lines. The shift means...

Retailers Slash Selection in Response to Recession

(Newser) - A fundamental shift is going on in the consumer product world as retailers decide that less is more, the Wall Street Journal reports. Big national retailers are expected to slash selection by at least 15%, analysts say. Gone will be 30% of Kroger’s cereals, 20 of the 24 tape...

Eddie Bauer Goes Bankrupt
 Eddie Bauer Goes Bankrupt 
UPDATED
Jun 17, 2009 1:36 PM CDT

Eddie Bauer Goes Bankrupt

Formal announcement expected today

(Newser) - Eddie Bauer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy today, the Wall Street Journal reports. The clothing retailer lost $44.5 million in the first quarter and has $187.9 million in long-term debt. Shares plummeted on rumors of the bankruptcy after it failed to convert part of that debt into equity...

Retail Exodus Speeds Detroit's Fall

Retailers jump ship as recession, auto industry's collapse hit city hard

(Newser) - The auto industry's woes have sped up the long decline of retail in Detroit, the Wall Street Journal reports. America's 11th-largest city now lacks a single outlet from any national grocery chain downtown. Starbucks has just four stores in the city of 900,000, and as of last week, Motor...

Recession, Competition Imperil Malls

100 shopping centers could be 'dead' by year's end

(Newser) - A half-century-old American standby is ailing as shopping malls around the country struggle to stay afloat, the Wall Street Journal reports. Same-store sales in shopping centers fell 6.5% in the year ending March 31, and the biggest mall operator has seen sales drop 7.3%. Some 100 malls could...

UK Shop Ends Bra-Size Discrimination

Surcharge for large-chested women corrected after public uproar

(Newser) - British retailer Marks & Spencer has agreed to standardize prices across bra sizes so bustier women won’t pay more for their undergarments, the BBC reports. The store ran advertisements in UK newspapers admitting it had “boobed” by adding an extra $3 for bras over DD size. It was...

Old Days&mdash;Good and Bad&mdash;Are Back: Noonan
Old Days—Good and Bad—Are Back: Noonan
OPINION
Apr 17, 2009 10:36 AM CDT

Old Days—Good and Bad—Are Back: Noonan

In slump, simple pleasures are chic as traditional values gain

(Newser) - Reading about a Michigan family that shed modern excess in favor of a self-sufficient farm life didn't strike Peggy Noonan as shocking in these economic times. Her fellow New Yorkers have already begun responding to the same forces, causing Noonan to predict the rise of "a certain authenticity chic,...

Dow Drops 138
 Dow Drops 138 
MARKETS
Apr 14, 2009 3:26 PM CDT

Dow Drops 138

Retail report also drives declines

(Newser) - Stocks sank today on a 1.1% drop in retail sales for March, and losses deepened after both President Obama and Ben Bernanke gave speeches cautioning against undue economic optimism, the Wall Street Journal reports. Both acknowledged “tentative signs” of recovery but stressed the long road ahead. The Dow...

March Retail Sales Show Surprise 1.1% Drop

Blow to hopes that economy has hit trough

(Newser) - Retail sales fell unexpectedly in March, delivering a setback to hopes that the economy's steep slide could be bottoming out. The Commerce Department cited a 1.1% drop, the biggest decline in 3 months and a much weaker showing than the 0.3% increase that analysts expected. Falling auto sales...

Retailers Gain; Dow Climbs 48
 Retailers Gain; Dow Climbs 48 
MARKETS
Apr 8, 2009 3:28 PM CDT

Retailers Gain; Dow Climbs 48

Investors overcome grim FOMC minutes

(Newser) - Stocks posted gains today after dipping into the red after the release of minutes from the Fed open market committee’s March meeting, during which forecasts were lowered, the Wall Street Journal reports. Family Dollar Stores' strong earnings report encouraged investors, and the consumer and retail sectors saw broad advances....

Wal-Mart Gives Workers $2B in Bonuses, Rewards

(Newser) - The recession has been kind to Wal-Mart, and it’s decided to share the wealth with the wage slaves. The mega-discounter will dole out about $2 billion in financial incentives to its hourly workers, Reuters reports, including $933.6 million in bonuses and $788.8 million in profit-sharing and 401(k)...

Retail Giants Likely to Shrink in '09

(Newser) - Retailers are fighting to survive in 2009, some more successfully than others. Some 73,000 stores could close their doors by year’s end. Forbes breaks down which chains are shrinking the fastest:
  • Ann Taylor: Catering to working women isn’t so great when unemployment’s at 8.1%. Expected
...

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