Free Republic

Retail trade is one of the biggest job sectors in America, and the vast majority of those workers still clock in at brick-and-mortar stores. But the big growth is coming from e-commerce, which happens to pay a lot better, too. This is a promising development for retail workers who worry about thousands of store closings and the march of automation. E-commerce also offers a potential antidote to years of low productivity growth and income stagnation. “If this new pattern continues, it will raise real wages across the economy and rejuvenate the middle class,” said a report by economist Michael Mandel...

Walking the aisles of your local supermarket may feel like a pretty mundane task. But 100 years ago, it was downright revolutionary. On September 6, 1916, hundreds of curious shoppers came out for the opening of a new grocery store at 79 Jefferson Avenue in Memphis, Tennessee. A festive atmosphere greeted them, complete with a beauty contest and a brass band. Smartly dressed employees handed out flowers to the ladies and balloons to children. The store—located on a busy commercial stretch just three blocks east of the river—was the perfect excuse for some afternoon shopping, and maybe a stroll along...

This list is just a day old, so if you would like to add a few addresses, that would be great, and I can update as I get time ... *****Call/Email/Write!***** HELP COMBAT DAVID BROCK!! WE ARE GRASSROOTS ACTIVISM!!

With more than half of 2017 still ahead, the retail industry is seeing a record-setting pace for bankruptcy filings and store closings — and more are expected in the not too distant future, despite what most consider a healthy consumer. This tipping point for retail is the result of a number of compounding reasons, but the inability to pay looming, massive debt bills is dealing the final death blow to many. More online shopping Yes, more shopping is shifting online in general, and to Amazon specifically, as in-store shopping traffic and sales trends fall for many retailers and shopping...

Target’s declining sales and tumbling stock price, which dropped from a high of $82.76 in April of 2016 to a low of about $54.78 in April of this year, has spurred its board of directors to slash CEO Brian Cornell’s salary by nearly a third to $11.3 million. “Cornell’s compensation was based on the performance of two financial metrics: incentive EBIT (earnings before income and taxes), which makes up 75 percent of Cornell’s stock component, and the rest on adjusted sales,” Reuters reported. “Target said it missed its 2016 incentive EBIT goal of $5.74 billion by $623 million and fell...

With unemployment low and economic growth expected to bounce back from a slow first quarter, consumers are not in bad shape. But it has been an especially terrible year so far for retailers. Nine U.S. chains have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Store closures are accelerating, and almost 90,000 retail workers have lost their jobs since October. Experts say the industry's troubles are just beginning. "The disruption is just unfolding," says Mark Cohen, a former CEO of Sears Canada who now directs retail studies at Columbia Business School. "I think the number of store closings will continue at an...

Yesterday was a trying day. The kids woke up early and it was early release. The laptop wasn’t working and I really didn’t want to do anything. And then, midway through my afternoon, the local wives’ page started hopping. You see, clothing store Forever 21 has some new products for sale. . . the military wives just couldn’t believe their eyes. You’re not going to believe it–and you’re probably not going to run to the store, either. Here’s a peek...

Kevin Johnson, who succeeded Howard Schultz as CEO this month, on Thursday presided over an earnings call where the company cut its full-year profit target on the heels of disappointing second-quarter sales and stalling growth from its main business in the United States. Shares in the company fell 4.9 percent to $58.30 after Starbucks also announced that it was reviewing its Teavana business after that chain's mall stores dragged down overall sales.

Ever feel like your job in Hollywood or your large trust fund has left you out of touch with the working class in America? Well, now there’s a new way to reconnect with the hoi polloi: Buy a pair of $425 jeans that promise to show “you’re not afraid to get down and dirty.” Luxury fashion retailer Nordstrom was previously best known for dropping Ivanka Trump’s brand back in February—unofficially out of political spite, officially because of declining sales. The company is now desperate to ruin its own brand further by selling a pair of working class-inspired pants, so that...

A $425 pair of men's heavily-distressed, straight-leg blue denim jeans sold at Nordstrom, which according to the retailer's website, has "seen some hard-working action with a crackled, caked-on muddy coating that shows you're not afraid to get down and dirty." ... Finally - a pair of jeans that look like they have been worn by someone with a dirty job…made for people who don't.

This morning, for your consideration, I offer further proof that our country’s war on work continues to rage in all corners of polite society. Behold the latest assault from Nordstrom’s. The “Barracuda Straight Leg Jeans.” Finally - a pair of jeans that look like they have been worn by someone with a dirty job…made for people who don't. And you can have your very own pair for just $425.00. Here’s the official description, from their website. “These heavily distressed medium-blue denim jeans embody rugged, Americana workwear that's seen some hard-working action with a crackled, caked-on muddy coating that shows you're...

If you go to Stein Mart, a discount retail store with almost 300 locations across the United States looking for Ivanka Trump‘s clothing, you might want to ask where the “Adrienne Vittadini Studio” items are. According to a report from Business of Fashion (BoF), the company that makes her clothing, G-III, has changed the label on some items without the knowledge of the Ivanka Trump Brand. There are a lot of reasons this may have happened. In a statement to BoF, a spokesperson for G-III referred to it as a mistake, saying, “G-III accepts responsibility for resolving this issue, which...

More than 3,000 employees in 36 states will be laid off in the liquidation of one of the world’s largest Christian retailers. More than two years ago, suppliers forgave Family Christian Stores $127 million in debt so that it could remain open. Today, the chain—which bills itself as “the world’s largest retailer of Christian-themed merchandise”—announced it is closing all of its stores after 85 years in business. Family Christian, which employed more than 3,000 people in more than 240 stores across 36 states, blamed “changing consumer behavior and declining sales.” “We had two very difficult years post-bankruptcy,” stated president Chuck...

Dollar Tree Inc. will build a new $110 million, 1.2 million-square-foot distribution facility in Johnson County. Too bad for the Kansas City metro area that it will be in the Johnson County, Mo., city of Warrensburg — not in Johnson County on the Kansas side. The Missouri Department of Economic Development reported Tuesday that Dollar Tree (Nasdaq: DLTR) will create 375 jobs within three years at the new facility, which will support the retailer’s store network in the Midwest. Tim Cowden, CEO of the Kansas City Area Development Council, said Dollar Tree was “only considering rural markets within the KC...

If budget-cutters in Washington decided to eliminate food-stamp benefits to New Yorkers, the city’s politicians would be denouncing the cruelty of the “Republican war on the poor.” Yet Mayor Bill De Blasio and the city council are already inflicting the same sort of pain on low-income New Yorkers by denying them access to one of the nation’s most effective anti-poverty programs: Walmart.When he was mayor, Michael Bloomberg supported Walmart’s efforts to open a store in New York, but the company faced unremitting resistance from unions and elected officials, and it gave up the fight once de Blasio moved into Gracie...

From rural strip-malls to Manhattan’s avenues, it has been a disastrous two years for retail. There have been nine retail bankruptcies in 2017—as many as all of 2016. J.C. Penney, RadioShack, Macy’s, and Sears have each announced more than 100 store closures. Sports Authority has liquidated, and Payless has filed for bankruptcy. Last week, several apparel companies’ stocks hit new multi-year lows, including Lululemon, Urban Outfitters, and American Eagle, and Ralph Lauren announced that it is closing its flagship Polo store on Fifth Avenue, one of several brands to abandon that iconic thoroughfare. A deep recession might explain an extinction-level...

Wal-Mart is hoping to gain ground against online rivals by rolling out new discounts for buying items online for in-store pickup. Starting April 19, the Bentonville, Ark.-based retailer “will launch what it calls the Pickup Discount,” Fox Business reported Wednesday. Customers will be able to get lower prices on about 10,000 different items if they order them ahead online for shipment to a local store.

Bed Bath & Beyond used to sell Ivanka Trump’s diaper bags in various prints on its vast online store. Suddenly, in March, the listings disappeared. A customer service representative said at the time that the retailer no longer sold the first daughter’s merchandise. Despite it being a single, vaguely humorous product, activists who despise her father declared victory. Meanwhile, Donald Trump’s supporters (and those of his daughter) lashed out. Bed Bath & Beyond decided to walk back the rep’s statement, assuring shoppers that although Ivanka’s wares were no longer available online, they could still be found in some stores. Versions...

Ya think? Oh yes, many people beat up on Target for this bit of nonsense. Ourselves included. They deserved it, and they couldn’t deny it was happening. But they tried to insist at the time that it didn’t affect their business. That seemed implausible at the time, and now even they aren’t trying to pretend any longer. You simply can’t announce a policy that is guaranteed to upset at least half your customer base, and then expect to suffer no conquences for it. So when Target brashly announced last summer that it would allow everyone to use the bathroom corrersponding...

OKLAHOMA CITY – Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, is looking for Oklahoma entrepreneurs to pitch their made-in-the-USA products to the company’s buyers in a daylong event at Walmart’s global headquarters in Bentonville, Ark. on June 28. Registration has begun at walmart-jump.com and the deadline is May 18. “We are excited to once again invite businesses from all 50 states to meet with Walmart buyers who have one goal in mind: to buy more American products for our stores, clubs and Walmart.com,” Cindi Marsiglio, Walmart’s vice president of U.S. Manufacturing said. “By investing in products supporting American jobs, we are able...