Pilot Pen G2 Edge

Issue 09-17-2018

Amazon reaches new heights

SEATTLE — Amazon’s stock market valuation briefly topped $1 trillion this month, vaulting the online retailer into the exclusive club of $1 trillion companies alongside Apple Inc., which had hovered just below that valuation before a strong third quarter earnings report on August 2 pushed its share price to $207.04. Amazon hit the $1 trillion

Thorn named Big Lots CEO

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Big Lots Inc. has named Bruce Thorn as president and chief executive officer. He is expected to officially take the positions by the end of September, when he will also be appointed as a director. Thorn succeeds David Campisi, who retired from his positions as board member, president and CEO in April.

Retailers focus on last mile

NEW YORK — Walmart and Kroger Co. — the nation’s two largest grocery retailers, in terms of sales — have each launched experiments aimed at bringing down costs associated with the final leg or “last mile” of delivery to consumers. Kroger last month announced a pilot program to test driverless grocery delivery. The supermarket chain

Walgreens buys pharmacy files from 185 Fred’s stores

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens and Fred’s have entered into a definitive asset purchase agreement, where Walgreens will purchase pharmacy patient prescription files and related pharmacy inventory of 185 Fred’s stores located across 10 Southeastern states. Under the terms of the agreement, the aggregate consideration to be paid by Walgreens to Fred’s is $165 million, subject

NACDS stays on the offensive

DENVER — The emerging trade war that the White House is waging against much of the world could jeopardize gains retail pharmacy leaders have made in transforming their businesses and the industry, Steve Anderson, president and chief executive officer of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, said last month in welcoming retailers and suppliers

New store formats put to test by Meijer

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Meijer Inc. has introduced two store concepts that the retailer is testing as it seeks new ways to reach shoppers. The smaller-format outlets are part of an expansion drive that also produced two traditional supercenters that opened in its home state earlier this summer. Company officials said results of the experiment

Food Lion enhances store base

SALISBURY, N.C. — Food Lion last month unveiled remodeled stores in the Norfolk, Va., the latest of the chain’s markets to get store upgrades as part of an initiative called “Easy, Fresh and Affordable … You Can Count on Food Lion Every Day!” The strategy involves improvements throughout the stores, from the expansion of product

Retail remains a job creator

WASHINGTON — Retail industry employment last month increased by 89,100, unadjusted for seasonal fluctuations, compared to the same month in 2017, the National Retail Federation (NRF) ­reported. The August retail employment figure represents a seasonally adjusted decline of 9,700 jobs from the previous month, NRF said. Seasonal distortions are common in August. NRF’s jobs figures

Study eyes customer satisfaction in Rx

COSTA MESA, Calif. — Customer satisfaction with pharmacies continues to score high in the 10th annual U.S. Pharmacy Study from J.D. Power and Associates. Key factors include the availability of health and wellness services in brick-and-mortar pharmacies and the timeliness of delivery for mail order pharmacies, the firm announced last month. On the brick-and-mortar side,