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7-Eleven is launching first fully-automated stores 7-Eleven Express in South Korea. Currently under trial, four vending machine-style convenience stores are being operated: two at the headquarters of 7-Eleven in downtown Seoul, one at Lotte E&M in Incheon, and one at the headquarters of Lotte Rent-a-Car in Anyang, Gyeonggi Province. The store is designed as a 10-metre long express train, and consists of five vending machines with 200 products, which are divided into five categories for which there is high consumer demand: drinks, snacks, prepared meals, processed food and non-food products. Consumers can make a purchase by inputting the product number...

There could be a future where robots will do most of your grocery shopping for you. And for some Walmart shoppers, that future is getting even closer. Walmart (WMT), the world’s largest seller of groceries, will begin piloting a robotics system for its fast-growing online grocery pickup (OGP) service in one of its stores. The retailer has teamed up with Massachusetts-based Alert Innovation to deploy its Alphabot, a first-of-its-kind technology, in its supercenter store in Salem, New Hampshire just off of Interstate 93. “This is about the evolution of retail,” Alert Innovation CEO John Lert told Yahoo Finance. “So, we...

The company said this week it is shuttering 46 more stores in November. The locations are spread across the United States (See a full list below.) "We continue to evaluate our network of stores, which is a critical component to our integrated retail transformation, and will make further adjustments as needed," the company said in a statement. Liquidation sales at the 33 Sears stores and 13 Kmarts are expected to begin next week, according to Sears. The company also said that eligible workers will receive severance and be able to apply for openings at other nearby stores. Sears said in...

Plans for a sprawling "high-tech-meets-retail" metropolis have been unveiled in Dubai. The mega mall will be the largest leasable retail space in the world, spanning over 100 soccer fields in size. Called Dubai Square, the $2 billion project in the Dubai Creek Harbour development will boast over 8 million square feet of retail space -- more than twice the size of Dubai Mall -- and will also be home to the Middle East's largest Chinatown. Designed as a destination outright, the ground floor will host celebrity performances, concerts and theater shows in a futuristic entertainment arena with 3D projection mapping,...

If Amazon selects Dallas for its second headquarters, it will be adding to the region’s already rich retail DNA. While Dallas-Fort Worth is known for its business diversity, retailing represents a big slice — maybe one it’s not getting much credit for in the ongoing speculation about where the largest online retailer will decide to put its HQ2. When analysts size up the 20 cities that Amazon said it would pick from this year, they have looked at where each stands in regards to affordable housing, tech talent, quality of life and other measures Amazon says it’s looking for. That...

Walmart’s ongoing battle with Amazon for the retail crown is expanding well beyond retail, and it’s forcing one of the largest companies in the world to reexamine its DNA. In the last six months alone, Walmart has partnered with scores of tech firms to better compete with Amazon and make progress in markets that may become pivotal years down the line. It’s also begun rethinking how it views itself: a traditional big-box retail giant that now hopes it can be nimble enough to compete with one of technology’s most powerful players. Following its purchase of Jet.com to advance its e-commerce...

The incident was jarring for those who saw it in person, but it didn't even register a blip in the Capital Region at large Friday: An unidentified man wearing a T-shirt with the Nazi swastika was seen walking in downtown Albany and inside Crossgates Mall. But after the owner of Jay St. Video Games in the mall posted a message on Facebook saying he refused to sell a book to the man and ordered him out of the store, the topic exploded on social media platforms, generating thousands of comments on Reddit, and hundreds of retweets on Twitter. Pictures of...

I’m going to miss Lord & Taylor like mad when the Fifth Avenue flagship closes next year. It isn’t only because of the unlikely bargains I scored on its often-deserted men’s floors — a red vinyl Perry Ellis-label jacket, marked down from $79.95 to $39.95 that strangers hilariously mistake for Armani, and a wool winter coat as good as any for $49.99. I won’t miss the once-charming but more recently cheap-looking holiday windows that weren’t worth waiting on line for. But Lord & Taylor, like every big department store, offered a welcoming civility that softened the city’s rough edges. New...

A cheap teddy offer which left shoppers with young children queuing for up to eight hours amid chaotic scenes has been abandoned over "safety concerns". Build-A-Bear Workshop was offering UK customers a chance to buy any bear, which can cost up to £52, for the price of their child's age. At Leeds' White Rose Shopping Centre police were called when queues of "about a mile long" formed. The company said the response had been "overwhelming and unprecedented". There have also been reports of long queues in US shopping centres, where the American company was also putting on the same promotion...

Toys “R” Us, which closed the last batch of its U.S. stores just over a week ago, has left behind not only nostalgia but also hundreds of empty stores across the country. But you’d be mistaken if you think this paints a gloomy picture of brick-and-mortar retail. As much as consumers mourn the death of Toys “R” Us, their sad and sweet memories may soon be replaced by curiosity and even excitement over who’s moving into the bankrupt retailer's old homes. Arts and crafts retailer Hobby Lobby, off-price chains Burlington Stores and T.J. Maxx and Marshalls parent TJX are just...

The Walmart.com marketplace is teeming with MAGA hats and coffee mugs, but the company has just pulled an anti-Trump shirt with the slogan “Impeach 45” from its website. Late last night, Ryan Fournier, the chairman of the political group Students For Trump, tweeted about the shirt (that also came in adorable onesie form), asking Walmart, “What kind of message are you trying to send?” ... It appears that Walmart has now taken down the listing for the shirt, caving in to the pressure. Another shirt that said “45 You’re Fired” has also been removed from the site. ...

It was discovered that the superstore was selling “Impeach 45” clothing on its website Walmart search results: impeach 45 t-shirt To be fair they also sell Make America Great Again hats, They are playing BOTH sides for money. God bless 'em. From Fox News: Walmart drew outrage Monday after it was discovered that the superstore was selling “Impeach 45” apparel on its website. The outcry sparked a #BoycottWalmart trend on Twitter as users expressed their distaste for Walmart promoting the impeachment of President Trump, echoing some Congressional Democrats.

Walmart drew outrage Monday after it was discovered that the superstore was selling “Impeach 45” apparel on its website. ....sparked a #BoycottWalmart trend on Twitter as users expressed their distaste for Walmart promoting the impeachment of President Trump, echoing some Congressional Democrats. Ryan Fournier, chairman of the group Students for Trump, was one of the first to discover Walmart was selling the clothing...

Despite some slowdown in the pace of growth, solid economic indicators, like a rise in consumer spending, point to positive signs for the U.S. economy. The Bureau of Economic Analysis reported Friday that disposable personal income (DPI), a key gauge for retail spending, rose 0.4 percent, or $63.2 billion, in May. Personal consumption expenditures (PCE) grew 0.2 percent, or $27.8 billion, and was up 2.3 percent from May 2017. Real DPI, income adjusted for taxes and inflation, increased 0.2 percent in May, and real PCE decreased less than 0.1 percent, the BEA said. The PCE price index was up 0.2...

This month some important Walmart news did not get the attention it deserved. The news wasn't some flashy announcement about virtual reality or about some new service for busy Manhattanites. It was something much more subtle and much more substantive. It was the hire of Valerie Casey. Google "Valerie Casey" even today and only two listings make mention of her newfound connection with Walmart on the first page of the returned search results. This amount of attention is unjustifiably slight. Let this piece then serve as the hire's coming out party. Shrewdly, Walmart has made Valerie Casey, formerly of Frog,...

Jerry Storch, a former CEO of bankrupt Toys R Us, is reportedly considering reviving the toy retailer and has been working with investors and bankers to stitch his plan together. Bloomberg reported Monday afternoon that Storch has been working with Credit Suisse Group as a financial advisor, based on the news outlet's conversations with people familiar with the situation. Talks have also included Fairfax Financial Holdings, the investment firm that acquired the Canadian unit of Toys R Us, those sources told Bloomberg. Storch declined CNBC's request for comment. Toys R Us, Credit Suisse and Fairfax didn't immediately respond to CNBC's...

PHOENIX — Korean-inspired cooking sauces made by a Mesa grandmother will soon be on Walmart shelves. Kay Weldon cooked up the first sauce in the 1990s when she owned a restaurant in Albuquerque, New Mexico. A favorite among customers was her chicken wings because of her sauce. She started out serving the chicken wings as part of a Friday lunch special. “It was sweet, tangy and spicy,” she said. “It was a big hit. My lunch line was 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. nonstop on Fridays.” Ten years later, she sold the restaurant, got married and moved to Arizona with...

The Gangnam district is known as "South Korea's Beverly Hills" for its exorbitant real-estate prices and wealthy residents. •Property in Gangnam is three and a half times as expensive as South Korea's real-estate average. •The Gangnam neighborhoods of Cheongdam and Apgujeong are full of luxury fashion houses, plastic-surgery clinics, high-end real estate, and the homes of many Korean celebrities. •PSY's international song "Gangnam Style" famously lampooned the wealthy district, which has an outsized reputation in Korean culture. Ever since PSY's international mega-hit "Gangnam Style" in 2012, people all over the world have heard the name of Seoul's most affluent district....

GOODLETTSVILLE, TN - Dollar General is looking to make a dollar go a long way, quite literally. The company is revving up for a 7,000 person hiring spree over the course of the next 10 days, with management roles to fill in 44 states, to boost the organization’s continued growth—an initiative that supports its FY 2018 plans. The positions range from roles at retail operations to those at distribution centers and corporate and can be found online here. “It’s an exciting time to join Dollar General as we seek qualified candidates to support our tremendous growth,” said Bob Ravener, Executive...

Business News June 14, 2018 / 7:34 AM / Updated an hour ago U.S. retail sales surge in May; weekly jobless claims fall Lucia Mutikani 5 Min Read WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. retail sales increased more than expected in May as consumers bought motor vehicles and a range of other goods even as they paid more for gasoline, the latest indication of an acceleration in economic growth in the second quarter. FILE PHOTO: A woman shops at an H&M store in New York City, U.S. December 23, 2017. REUTERS/Stephanie Keith/File Photo Other data on Thursday showed a further tightening in...