Weekly Consumer News Update // January 31, 2023

Here's our weekly roundup of recent consumer and retail news. This week, Nike and Tiffany tease collab, Bed Bath & Beyond closes 87 stores, and more. 

 M&A and INVESTMENTS

• Emperia Gets $10 Million in Funding for Growth WWD
• Robert Iger, Henry Kravis to Buy Minority Stake in Thrive Capital WSJ
• Walgreens Weighs $2 Billion Sale of Automation Unit iA Bloomberg
• Rupert Murdoch scraps merger of Fox and News Corp after investor pushback Financial Times
• Justin Bieber Sells Music Catalog to Blackstone-Backed Hipgnosis for $200M Bloomberg
• QR code platform Beaconstac raises $25 million Retail Brew
• Juul in Deal Talks With Three Tobacco Giants WSJ
• Penske Media Eldridge Acquires Dick Clark Productions WWD
• Goldman Considers Financing Italy’s Top Football League Bloomberg
• Amass Brands acquires operating assets of wine company Winc RetailDive
• Nissan and Renault agree to overhaul alliance, this time as equals Reuters
• LVMH, L’Oréal Among Suitors for Stake in Aesop BoF
• Matchesfashion Secures £60m Support Package From Apax BoF

INDUSTRY NEWS

U.S. Slaps Google With Lawsuit Over Ad Tech Monopoly

Joined by eight states — California, Colorado, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Tennessee and Virginia — the DOJ accused Google of anticompetitive practices by wielding its ad tech tools to eliminate threats to its market dominance. WWD

Inflation is cooling, but prices on many items are going to stay high for months

Commodity and freight costs are falling, but won’t immediately trickle down to consumers in part due to supplier contracts and some companies’ desire to boost profit margins. CNBC

Wealthy boomers are buying more Skechers — and it's a problem for Nike

Skechers is seemingly taking customers away from Nike and Adidas, as high inflation prompts consumers to buy more affordable shoes, Cowen said. Business Insider

Following a wave of retail IPOs, delisting notices hit the industry

More retailers are failing to meet the minimum requirements of the stock exchange they are on — and are receiving delisting notices. ModernRetail

Walmart to Raise Starting Hourly Wages to $14 From $12

Country’s largest private employer seeks to close pay gap with rivals as workers remain scarce. WSJ

Show the Love: Americans to Spend $25.9B on Valentine’s Day

Despite getting pinched by inflation and recession fears, spending by Americans is expected to hold up reasonably well for Valentine’s Day. WWD

Meta bringing Trump back to Facebook, Instagram

Meta said it's bringing Trump back with "new guardrails to deter repeat offenses." Seeking Alpha

Chipotle is staffing up ahead of ‘burrito season’

Chipotle Mexican Grill yesterday said it plans to add 15,000 workers ahead of its busiest part of the year running from March through May. NYT

E-retailers Saks, Saks Off 5th, The Bay resort to layoffs amid turmoil in tech

Less than two years after HBC split up the e-commerce and brick-and-mortar operations of its retailers, all three businesses are laying people off. RetailDive

Walmart's Sam's Club to add 30 stores in next few years

Walmart said Thursday it plans to open more than 30 Sam’s Club locations in the next few years, marking the first expansion since 2017. ABC News

Ralph Lauren Unveils a New Cashmere Recycling Program 

Ralph Lauren is underwriting a new recycling program as it ramps up its sustainability efforts. Will consumers use it? NYT

Hasbro warns of weak holiday quarter results, cuts 15% of its workforce

The layoffs come as the company seeks to save between $250 million and $300 million annually by the end of 2025. CNBC

Tiffany and Nike Tease Upcoming Collaboration After Sneaker Photos Leak

Tiffany & Co. and Nike released teasers to their social media accounts that confirm rumors of an upcoming collaboration between the two brands. WWD

BuzzFeed to Use ChatGPT Creator OpenAI to Help Create Quizzes and Other Content

CEO Jonah Peretti intends for artificial intelligence to play a larger role in the company this year. WSJ

Consumer Spending Fell 0.2% in December as Inflation Cooled

Underlying inflation slowed to its slowest pace since October 2021. WSJ

E-Commerce Retail Just Passed $1 Trillion For The First Time Ever

E-commerce hit $1.09 trillion in the U.S. in 2022, with the last quarter accounting for $332.2 billion. Forbes

Americans Are Gobbling Up Takeout Food. Restaurants Bet That Won’t Change.

America’s biggest chains test digital-only restaurants and more drive-throughs, gambling that heightened consumer demand for food to go will last well beyond the pandemic. WSJ

Bed Bath & Beyond closing more stores, all Harmon locations

Bed Bath & Beyond is closing 87 locations, including all of its Harmon beauty shops, after defaulting on its debt while not yet filing for bankruptcy. Axios

Why urgent care centers are popping up everywhere

A record 11,150 urgent care centers have popped up around the United States and they are growing at 7% a year. CNN

Whole Foods Asks Suppliers to Lower Prices as Costs Ebb

Grocery chain says it wants price tags to reflect easing inflation. WSJ

Showtime to combine with Paramount+, rebrand with new name

The company said Monday it plans to integrate Showtime’s streaming service fully into Paramount+, its marquee standalone streaming platform and response to the streaming wars. CNBC

Ford drops the price of its Tesla competitor

Ford is boosting production of its popular Mustang Mach-E electric SUV and dropping its sticker price weeks after Tesla dropped prices of its vehicles. CNN

Saks focuses on men with new ambassador program

Saks Fifth Avenue has introduced a 40,000-square-foot men’s shopping area on the seventh floor of its flagship store in New York City. RetailDive

Warner Music launching 'Rhythm City' experience on Roblox

Roblox users visiting Rhythm City will get a music/gaming experience that will allow them to choose from a variety of roles (music producer, DJ, or dancer among others) to compete in challenges. Seeking Alpha

COMINGS & GOINGS

• PVH Names Donald Kohler President of Calvin Klein Americas WWD
• Barclays Names Wright, Deasy as Investment Banking Co-Heads Bloomberg
• The RealReal Names New CEO WWD
• Ralph Lauren vet named president of West Elm RetailDive
• Lexus chief to take over Toyota as founder's grandson steps down Reuters
• Paula’s Choice CEO exits RetailDive
• Shopify CTO Allan Leinwand to depart company Business Insider
• Unilever names former Heinz exec Schumacher as CEO Reuters
• Salesforce appoints new board directors amid activist investor pressure Reuters
• Skims Taps Robert Norton as Chief Commercial Officer WWD
• Head of Penguin Random House Resigns NYT

GOOD READS

• What Happens When Digital Brands Have to Cut Back on Marketing BoF
• Get Used to Expensive Eggs The Atlantic
• Why are so many tech companies laying people off right now? The Verge

INSPIRATION