Traub Weekly News Roundup // September 12, 2023

Here's our weekly roundup of recent consumer and retail news. This week, Banana Republic enters the home category, Apple's iPhone expands its dominance, and more. 

WORDS FOR THE WEEK

For more inspiration, visit @dailystoic and @dailyphilosopher on Instagram. 

M&A and INVESTMENTS

• WestRock, Smurfit Kappa in talks to create company with combined value of ~ $20 billion WSJ
• Smucker agrees to buy Twinkies maker Hostess Brands for $5.6 billion CNBC
• Nestle buys Brazil chocolate maker Kopenhagen for $602.8M Reuters
  
• SkinnyDipped Closes $12 Million Series A Funding Round WWD
• Reese Witherspoon’s Draper James Sells Majority Ownership to Consortium Brand Partners WWD
• Warner Music and Elliot Grainge’s 10K Projects Strike Joint Venture Billboard
• Change Capital Partners Sells Frette WWD
• Comcast and Disney Agree to Speed Up Hulu Deal NYT
• Pinault Family’s Holding Company Buys Majority Stake in Talent Agency CAA WWD
• NRF Acquires the Reverse Logistics Association WWD
• Bacardi Acquires Ilegal Mezcal Bacardi

INDUSTRY NEWS

CPG

Birchbox restarts fulfillment under new ownership

The beauty subscription company raised membership prices and started shipping monthly boxes to existing customers. Retail Dive

Why non-pet retailers like Lowe’s and Kohl’s are making more room for pet products in stores

As people cut back spending in discretionary categories like home goods and apparel, some retailers are opting to allocate more space in stores for pet products to push people to visit stores more often. Modern Retail

Shoppers Say They Want Sustainable Goods, but Won’t Pay More

Consumer goods makers and retailers investing in sustainably made products after years of shopper outcry say they face an uphill struggle convincing people to switch when those products cost more or look inferior. BoF

Getir value ‘drops to $2.5bn’ as shoppers move away from convenience

Value of fast-track grocery delivery service believed to be quarter of the $11.8bn it was worth 18 months ago. The Guardian

Betting on pumpkin fatigue, some brands see apple as the next big fall flavor

Pumpkin spice may seem to dominate the flavors and fragrance of fall, but some brands are seeing gains with apple alternatives. Modern Retail

Coca-Cola launches beverage created with the help of artificial intelligence

Coca-Cola Y3000 is the latest flavor to launch under the company’s Creations platform designed to highlight its signature soda while drawing in younger consumers. Food Dive

RETAIL

Department stores are rethinking their in-house contemporary brands 

This category that grew to feel stuffy, yet still omnipresent at retail is transforming. Fashionista

Banana Republic’s Home Run

The Gap Inc. division has been steadily building a stylish home assortment this year paralleling its upscale fashion business. WWD

Forever 21 Launches Barneys Collection

Fast fashion chain Forever 21 has released a new co-branded collection with Barneys. The 32-piece collection is designed to be unisex and includes monochromatic basics such as leggings, blazers and denim, priced between $30 and $130. BoF

Walmart Brings Its New Look to New Jersey

As the retailer’s “store of the future” moves from the testing phase to a broader rollout, its priorities are clear at its newly transformed store in Secaucus, N.J., one of the more than 300 doors due to be remodeled this year. WWD

Party City set to exit bankruptcy with $1 billion debt reduction

A U.S. bankruptcy judge approved Party City's Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan, which will cancel about $1 billion in company debt and turn all of its equity value over to the retailer's lenders. Reuters

It’s Not Your Imagination—Shopping in Person Is Getting Worse

Stores have fewer workers than they used to, and are resorting to keeping more of their products locked up. WSJ

Kohl’s to Add 45 Smaller Sephora Shop-in-Shops this Fall

Kohl’s will add 45 new 750-square-foot Sephora shop-in-shops in stores across 29 states in the next few months, bringing the total to 910 Kohl’s stores by the end of 2023. Retail Touchpoints

Fast Fashion’s Bright Present and Cloudy Future

Results from Zara owner Inditex are likely to reflect rising sales, but regulatory challenges loom. BoF

Macy’s quietly began selling Brooks Brothers sub-brand in August

“B by Brooks Brothers” is priced lower and features wool-polyester blends, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing for the centuries-old menswear brand. Retail Dive

US Retail Workers Are Fed Up and Quitting at Record Rates

To be a US retail worker in 2023 means fielding an onslaught of growing American anxieties about everything from high prices to politics. Increasingly, some workers say the job isn’t worth the wages. Bloomberg

EBay Launches Consignment Offering for Luxury Fashion Sellers

eBay is launching a new fashion consignment service that will connect users with expert sellers to list and sell pre-owned pieces on their behalf. The move would allow eBay to compete with other consignment-driven apparel resellers such as The RealReal and ThredUp. BoF

A Mall Owner’s About-Face: Bet on America’s High-End Malls

Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield will hold some of its top-performing malls but still plans a “radical reduction” of its U.S. exposure. WSJ

TECH

Pinterest’s new body technology aims to increase plus-size representation

In an ongoing effort to make Pinterest the happiest social media site on the internet, the visual search platform is making its content more body-positive. Glossy

Roblox is letting game creators sell 3D virtual goods as it looks for ways to boost revenue

Roblox users who are subscribers of the company’s upper-tier premium plans will be able to create and sell 3D goods along with the more conventional 2D assets that they were previously only allowed to sell on the platform’s marketplace. CNBC

As Smartphone Industry Sputters, the iPhone Expands Its Dominance

Apple, which is set to release a new iPhone on Tuesday, has increased its share of smartphone sales by converting Android customers and adding teenagers. NYT

TikTok Popularizes Products. Can It Sell Them, Too?

The company is beginning to introduce TikTok Shop to all of the app’s users in the U.S., hoping to add a major new revenue stream. NYT

RESTAURANTS & HOSPITALITY

New York City cracks down on Airbnb, other short-term rentals

A city law went into effect this week that bans rentals for less than 30 days, leaving a good part of the 36,000 short-term tourist apartments in the city out of the rental game. Yahoo

Popeyes Overhauls Its Kitchens to Win the Chicken Sandwich Wars

Popeyes began a multiyear overhaul to boost growth and profitability with new restaurants, a broader menu, intuitive workstations, add automatic batter makers and even redesign boxes. Bloomberg

COMINGS & GOINGS

• NPR CEO to Retire at Year’s End NYT
• Virginia Ritchie Named Global Chief Marketing Officer of Tommy Hilfiger WWD
• Aura Blockchain Consortium Has a New CEO BoF
• Sweetwater names CEO Retail Dive
• Nordstrom vet tapped for Honest CFO seat Retail Dive
• Mansur Gavriel Names Former Thakoon Executive Maria Borromeo CEO BoF
• Quentin Roach Appointed as SVP and Chief Procurement Officer at Estée Lauder Cos Global Cosmetics News
• Alibaba’s Daniel Zhang Steps Down Unexpectedly WWD
• Express, Inc. Appoints Stewart Glendinning as CEO Business Wire
• Fanatics Commerce Names Andrew Low Ah Kee Its New CEO WWD
• Bloomingdale’s Next CEO: Olivier Bron WWD

GOOD READS

• How the Internet Changed Menswear BoF
  
• Mattel’s Windfall From ‘Barbie’ NYT
• Why Gucci is a GGood investment Financial Times