Category Archives

Well someone needs to fill the void… that we all have in our hearts from the downfall of Toys ‘R’ Us. Walmart would like to be that void-filler, and they will be expanding their toy selection significantly. Not a bad idea either, considering this is the first holiday season we’ve seen without Toys ‘R’ Us in a long time. More interestingly, the now-defunct toy giant has left behind $7 billion in sales.

They are dead serious… Walmart announced that they will be increasing their toy selection by 30% in some stores and by 40% online. The expansion will include hundreds of exclusive brands and even in-store demos for specific toys. In short, Walmart is making sure that they have the biggest and the baddest toy selection you have ever seen.

Walmart isn’t the only one… that has realized the opportunity. JCPenney and Kohl’s will be enhancing their toy selection, and Party City will open somewhere around 50 pop up toy shops. However, a larger problem for Walmart could come against familiar foes Target and Amazon, as both are eyeing the same market. Ah, what a great time to be a six-year-old.

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Best Buy has… sales that increased by 6% from a year ago, online sales up 10.1%, and a share price up 32% over the past year – pretty sweet, right? Furthermore, the company has not become Circuit City or Radio Shack…or even Sears (die already, won’t you?). And business is booming in spite of the recent-ish shift from brick-and-mortar to online sales.

They have made a smooth transition… into the “digital shopping era” by closing underperforming stores, offering free shipping on orders over $35, and allowing customers to buy online and pick-up in store. Additionally, Best Buy offers in-store customer support and provides customers the ability to preview their next several thousand dollar purchases, such as a television or speakers, before buying. Best Buy’s hands-on experience and in-store expertise are things you just can’t get on the internet.

But none of that is enough… for Wall Street, and Best Buy shares were down 7% on Tuesday. Investors wanted to see more online sales growth and were disappointed with the company’s profit outlook for next quarter. Many are also skeptical of the retailer’s results because people are blowing money everywhere right now and ballooning retail sales. So maybe they’re not the ‘Best Buy’ right now, but we’ll see, Wall Street – ya big babies.

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But we do want autonomous vehicles… and we just got closer with Toyota announcing a $500 million investment in Uber to accelerate the process of getting these things on the road. Uber will outfit the Toyota Sienna minivan with autonomous driving tech and start testing in 2021 (we’re not that close, okay). However, Toyota now has a partner for autonomous vehicles – although who will want a self-driving minivan remains to be seen.

Why this partnership is good… because the $500 million will help Toyota move into the “mobility market.” There are many people out there that see cars as a service, rather than an asset you buy, in the future. Ride-share companies need partners that can build cars and automotive companies need partners that are well versed in transportation services – that is what we have here.

And there you have it… Toyota really wants to bring you autonomous technology..In 2015, the car-maker also announced a $1 billion investment in the Toyota Research Institute artificial intelligence lab. Also, in January, Toyota and Uber announced e-Palette, an autonomous vehicle service that does everything from delivering pizza to transporting you to your destination. So mark it on your calendars – you will have self-driving cars minivans by 2021.

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Disney World Resort workers… got a little richer as the company announced starting pay of $15 per hour for amusement park workers. The pay increase is the result of negotiations between Disney and union members. The $15 per hour wage marks a 50% increase in minimum pay.

Not a done deal… but really, it is a done deal. The pay increase still needs to be voted on by the union, but really, that is just a formality, and the answer will be a resounding ‘yes.’  Workers will also get $1,000 bonuses that they were promised earlier in the year and retroactive pay of .50 cents per hour for all hours worked since September 2017.

So who gets this money… mostly food service, custodial, hotel, and park employees. This deal has been in the works for quite some time; however, the details still had to be ironed out. Some of the details included scheduling and paid time off which are rather important, as well. However, it seems that everything was figured out and Disney just got a little happier (if that was even possible).

Musk shocked investors again… after announcing that the “better path” for Tesla is to remain a public company. Musk came to find that taking a company private would be more work than originally thought. Oh, and the consensus from shareholders was ‘please don’t do this’ according to Musk himself.

Eh, they didn’t need the distraction… because Tesla is a company with enough of those. First, Tesla must focus on Model 3 production – they need to produce more of those. The ability to produce more of these cars is an important test- Also, the company is trying to become profitable (that’s why we’re in business, right?). And don’t forget that Musk has called this year “excruciating” in part due to 120 hour work weeks.

But it’s not over… not yet, at least. If you recall, Musk tweeted out that Tesla had funding secured to take the company private – he is still on the hook for that statement. Although he further explained his tweet, the SEC is still trying to determine if investors were misled. It looks like the Tesla CEO will be dealing with even more ‘bull-sh#t’ thanks to reckless tweeting.

Lowe’s is shutting down… its Orchard Supply Hardware stores and plans to lower inventory at stores, as well. This announcement seems odd, especially after the company just reported better-than-expected earnings and saw their stock rise more than 7%. Despite the strong results, Lowe’s still cut their sales and profit outlook for the rest of the year.

Home Depot is just better… because although sales at Lowe’s were good, up 5.3%, sales at Home Depot were better, up 8%. To keep pace with Home Depot, significant changes (mentioned above) are in store for the company. Closing all of the Orchard Supply Hardware stores is one way they will accomplish this – a company they acquired just five years ago for $205 million.

Shaking it up… Lowe’s announced that they will be hiring David Denton, the current CFO of CVS. The company also eliminated the COO and CCO position last July. Lately, we have seen companies grabbing the ‘bull’ by the horns and taking control of their future – not a bad idea, and looks like Lowe’s will follow suit.

When you think election meddling… I bet you think of Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube as the primary vehicles for disinformation. However, Microsoft presents another target for hackers to, well, hack. Our friends at Microsoft have realized this and created their “Defending Democracy Program” as a solution.

Free security for ALL… just kidding, it is free security for some. That ‘some’ being election candidates and relates parties; they will be protected with the Microsoft’s AccountGuard. AccountGuard is a service that alerts organizations when attacks are detected and also offers education on cybersecurity. Microsoft isn’t the first of its kind to do this – Google has a similar product in their ‘Advanced Protection’ program.

Don’t be like Facebook… and companies are trying to avoid the bad news that has followed FB since the 2016 election issues. Additionally, AccountGuard will probably be an excellent form of marketing for Microsoft because most people forget they even offer cybersecurity. And while this effort is nice, it probably won’t make much of a difference because the problem is too big for Microsoft alone. But we appreciate the effort to stop those damn Russian hackers.

Sales are waaay up… Target reported that sales were up 6.5% at stores open for at least one year this week. To put this in perspective, Target hasn’t done that well since 2005. Customers ran to Target this quarter for clothing, toys, electronics, home goods, and probably to avoid the people of Walmart. Shares of the retail giant are up 47% over the past year.

Target is mixing it up… by redesigning stores, creating more exclusive brands, and lowering prices. They are also building smaller stores in big cities and near college campuses. And, of course, the retailer improved the online side of things. Digital sales for Target were up 41% compared to last year.

Don’t count brick-and-mortar out… especially in the case of Target, because the company’s same-store sales growth beat that of Walmart – and people thought Walmart had a great quarter. Target also capitalized on the downfall (or impending downfall) of many retailers like Toys R Us, Bon Ton, JCPenney, and Sears. When is everyone else going to get with the program?

Well, this is nice… of Goldman Sachs because the company will pay for women to ship breast milk back home while they are away on business trips. The service is MilkShip, and they send breast milk overnight in a refrigerated shipping kit. While this benefit is rare, it has been done before – notably by the accounting firm EY back in 2007.

Being a parent is hard… but being a parent and working for Goldman Sachs is another level of hard.  Programs, such as this one, are becoming more common as employers realize that successful home lives often lead to better work results. So if breast milk shipping will make you happy – why not?

Not everything is so great… at other companies where some women aren’t even guaranteed paid maternity leave. Not only that, but it can be impractical to breastfeed while on the job (duh), and employers aren’t always understanding. Women are not getting the support they need from health care providers, family, or employers. But GS has the last part covered – 16 weeks

Pepsi is looking healthy… and they are adding to that look with a $3.2 billion deal to buy seltzer-maker SodaStream. This deal is Pepsi’s latest effort to move away from high-calorie soda to healthier options. Apparently, the word is out that soda is unbelievably bad for you and you should not drink it – just kidding, we knew that, and most of us don’t care.

Here’s how SodaStream fits… with a soda company like Pepsi. SodaStream has always marketed themselves as a “healthy alternative to sugary sodas” which coincides with Pepsi’s goal of making [more] nutritious products while limiting their environmental footprint. Currently, Pepsi products are split into three categories: Fun For You (Pepsi), Better For You (diet Pepsi), and Good For You (Naked Juice smoothies).

SodaStream rebranded itself… as a sparkling water company, rather than a soda company. The rebranding paid off because SodaStream stock is up 320% since and now they have a multi-billion dollar deal with Pepsi. The deal has been unanimously approved by both companies and is expected to close in January. And if you aren’t seeking a healthy alternative, surely you will be able to make your own Pepsi with your new SodaStream.