INSIDER
Amazon says in a federal lawsuit that the NLRB's structure is unconstitutional
Read full article: Amazon says in a federal lawsuit that the NLRB's structure is unconstitutionalAmazon is challenging the structure of the National Labor Relations Board in a lawsuit that also accuses the agency of improperly influencing the outcome of a union election at a company warehouse more than two years ago.
Best Buy reports another drop in quarterly sales amid cautious buying but business is stabilizing
Read full article: Best Buy reports another drop in quarterly sales amid cautious buying but business is stabilizingBest Buy, the nation’s largest consumer electronics chain, reported another quarterly drop in sales due to Americans pulling back on purchases of appliances and consumer-electronics gadgets to focus on essentials.
Scammers impersonate these big brands the most to steal your money
Read full article: Scammers impersonate these big brands the most to steal your moneyGet an unexpected email or text from Best Buy or Amazon? Be careful. Those are two of the companies scammers impersonate the most, according to the Federal Trade Commission.
Best Buy and Kohl's extends streak of quarterly sales slumps as Americans focus on the essentials
Read full article: Best Buy and Kohl's extends streak of quarterly sales slumps as Americans focus on the essentialsThe earnings results from Best Buy and Kohl’s, announced Thursday, offer the latest evidence of consumers’ cautious spending amid a challenging economic environment.
Best Buy recalls over 287,000 air fryers due to overheating issue that can melt or shatter parts
Read full article: Best Buy recalls over 287,000 air fryers due to overheating issue that can melt or shatter partsBest Buy is recalling more than 287,000 air fryers and air fryer ovens due to an overheating issue that can cause the products’ parts to melt or shatter, posing fire and laceration risks.
Best Buy's shares up after chain posts smaller-than expected sales decline for 4Q
Read full article: Best Buy's shares up after chain posts smaller-than expected sales decline for 4QBest Buy’s shares rose on Thursday as the nation’s largest consumer electronics chain posted a smaller-than-expected sales decline for the fiscal fourth quarter, signaling that the bottom of spending for gadgets may be in sight.
American consumers more confident in November as holiday shopping season kicks into high gear
Read full article: American consumers more confident in November as holiday shopping season kicks into high gearAmerican consumers are feeling slightly more confident this month as the all-important holiday shopping season kicks into high gear.
Retailers are ready to kick off Black Friday just as shoppers pull back on spending
Read full article: Retailers are ready to kick off Black Friday just as shoppers pull back on spendingRetailers are kicking off the unofficial start of the holiday shopping season on Friday with a bevy of discounts and other enticements.
Best Buy recalls nearly 1 million pressure cookers after reports of 17 burn injuries
Read full article: Best Buy recalls nearly 1 million pressure cookers after reports of 17 burn injuriesBest Buy is recalling nearly 1 million pressure cookers and separate inner pots due to a defect that can cause hot foods to spew out, posing burn hazards.
July sales heat up as retailers launch summer events
Read full article: July sales heat up as retailers launch summer eventsJuly is fast becoming a month steeped in shopping deals. Amazon, Walmart, Target and other retailers launch summer events, and Consumer Reports finds top-tested products on deep discounts.
Quarterly results from Best Buy, Ralph Lauren and Dollar Tree show divergence in consumer spending
Read full article: Quarterly results from Best Buy, Ralph Lauren and Dollar Tree show divergence in consumer spendingAs inflation on necessities like groceries remains stubbornly high, the well-heeled consumer appears to still be spending, while the lower-income shopper continues to cut back their purchases, according to the latest batch of earnings reports.
Man used stolen credit card to buy $4,000 in electronics at Best Buy, New Braunfels police say
Read full article: Man used stolen credit card to buy $4,000 in electronics at Best Buy, New Braunfels police sayThe New Braunfels Police Department is asking for the public’s help in identifying a man who they say used a stolen credit card to buy items from Best Buy.
Macy's, Best Buy 4Q reports underscore consumer slowdown
Read full article: Macy's, Best Buy 4Q reports underscore consumer slowdownThe latest earnings reports from Macy’s and Best Buy show that consumers are still cutting back their spending on clothing and gadgets as inflationary pressures on everything from food to gas are straining household budgets.
Best Buy Q2 results fall amid softening demand for gadgets
Read full article: Best Buy Q2 results fall amid softening demand for gadgetsBest Buy posted declines in fiscal second-quarter profits and sales as the nation’s largest consumer electronics chain struggled with weakening consumer demand for gadgets and high costs that rippled through its supply chain.
Best Buy reports Q4 sales miss hurt by supply chain clogs
Read full article: Best Buy reports Q4 sales miss hurt by supply chain clogsBest Buy reported a shortfall in sales for the holiday quarter as the nation’s largest electronics chain struggled with limited supplies of holiday products and was forced to reduce store hours because of a shortage of workers due to omicron.
Recognize him? San Antonio police searching for man who robbed Best Buy on North Side
Read full article: Recognize him? San Antonio police searching for man who robbed Best Buy on North SideSan Antonio police are asking for the public’s help to identify a suspect accused of robbing a Best Buy on the North Side.
Consumer prices up 5.7% over past year, fastest in 39 years
Read full article: Consumer prices up 5.7% over past year, fastest in 39 yearsU.S. consumer prices rose 5.7% over the past year, the fastest pace in 39 years as a surge in inflation battered Americans as the holiday shopping season was getting under way.
Here’s how to navigate Amazon’s Prime Day to maximize savings
Read full article: Here’s how to navigate Amazon’s Prime Day to maximize savingsAmazon is promising two days of epic deals during its Prime Day, and competitors are getting in on the summer sales. It's a win for shoppers as long as you look for the real deals and don't just follow the hype.
Holiday trends to watch: Adult Play-Doh; stores that ship
Read full article: Holiday trends to watch: Adult Play-Doh; stores that ship(AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)NEW YORK – The pandemic is turning this into a holiday shopping season like no other. And with more people shopping online, stores are doing double duty as shipping centers to try to get gifts to doorsteps as fast as possible. Meanwhile, Best Buy says that 340 of its stores are being specially designated to handle a higher volume of online orders, though all its stores ship e-commerce packages. Its goal: to have the 340 stores ship more than 70% of its ship-from-store units during the holiday quarter. Typically, 25% of holiday shopping is based on impulse, according to Marshal Cohen, chief industry advisor at NPD Group, a market research firm.
Weak 0.3% US October sales gain spreads some holiday unease
Read full article: Weak 0.3% US October sales gain spreads some holiday uneaseNEW YORK – Retail sales in the U.S. grew a sluggish 0.3% in October, even as retailers offered early holiday discounts online and in stores. Economists had expected sales to rise 0.5%, already a significant tail off from September's gain of 1.6%. Sales rose at home and garden stores, electronics and appliance stores, and online retailers. Nationwide, spending fell to 7.4% below a year ago, JPMorgan said, a drop of about 2.5 percentage points from two weeks earlier. Yet at clothing stores and sporting good shops, sales fell more than 4%.
Pandemic pushes start of holiday shopping earlier than ever
Read full article: Pandemic pushes start of holiday shopping earlier than ever(AP Photo/David Zalubowski)NEW YORK – Add last-minute holiday shopping to the list of time-honored traditions being upended by the coronavirus pandemic. Black Friday has long been the unofficial start to the U.S. holiday season, though retailers have been pushing holiday shopping earlier for the last decade or so. The first big holiday push will come from Amazon, which is positioning its mid-October Prime Day as a kickoff to the holiday shopping season. Even with the early start to the season, holiday sales are expected to deliver smaller gains than in recent years. Joel Bines, who runs the retail practice at AlixPartners, thinks the earlier shopping will stick even when the pandemic is over.
Walmart latest retailer to require customers to wear masks
Read full article: Walmart latest retailer to require customers to wear masksLast week, Starbucks announced that customers who visit its company-owned café locations in the U.S. will be required to wear face coverings. Costco Wholesale Club was one of the first major retailers to require face coverings for customers at all of its stores. “I think Walmart's decision will give cover to other retailers to require masks," said Michael J. Hicks, an economist at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. Social media is full of videos capturing clashes between those who are asked to wear masks, and employees who are under orders to make sure people wear them. About half of U.S. states require masks in public places, according to the RILA.
Best Buy will require customers to wear masks in its stores
Read full article: Best Buy will require customers to wear masks in its stores(CNN) -- Best Buy said Tuesday that it will require all shoppers coming into its stores to wear face masks. Starbucks said last week that it will require customers to wear facial coverings or masks in all of its 9,000 company-owned US stores beginning Wednesday. Costco began requiring its members to wear masks in stores beginning in May. On Monday, Walmart CEO Doug McMillon told Bloomberg that a mandate requiring customers to wear masks in the company's stores is something "that's on our minds." Right now, Walmart customers must wear a mask before entering one of 3,700 Walmart locations "where either a governor or someone else has mandated it," according to McMillon.
Businesses weigh reopening - or close again - as cases rise
Read full article: Businesses weigh reopening - or close again - as cases riseBusinesses reopening across states after months of shutdown have been met with fanfare. Its not the reopening businesses were hoping for. Apple, which started reopening its stores May 11, has closed at least 32 stores in hot spots like Florida and Texas. Some businesses have been requiring customers and employees to sign a waiver saying they wont sue if they get sick. Adam Orman, who runs LOca dOro Italian restaurant in Austin, Texas, may delay a planned July 30 reopening for outdoor seating.
US consumer spending up 8.2%, partly erasing record plunge
Read full article: US consumer spending up 8.2%, partly erasing record plunge(AP Photo/Jim Mone)WASHINGTON American consumers increased their spending by a sharp 8.2% in May, partly erasing record plunges the previous two months, against the backdrop of an economy thats likely shrinking by its steepest pace on record this quarter. In May, those stimulus checks were no longer counted as income for most people. Besides whatever unemployment aid states are providing to the 30 million jobless Americans, the federal government is providing $600 a week in additional benefits. Without the stimulus checks or an extension of unemployment aid, it's unclear whether consumers will keep spending freely. It shows that consumers have gradually but consistently increased their spending since the government distributed the stimulus checks in mid-April.
Analysis: In some places in Texas, sales tax revenues have risen during the pandemic
Read full article: Analysis: In some places in Texas, sales tax revenues have risen during the pandemicThe latest state sales tax distribution to cities based on Aprils taxable sales was down 11.1%. At the same time, the sales tax allocation to San Marcos rose 51% for the same period. Some local governments will be taking bigger hits in sales tax revenue than others, and a few are prospering because of changes in shoppers habits. Round Rock gets the local Dell taxes from online sales even if the buyer is in Fort Stockton. San Marcos gets the Best Buy local taxes even if the buyer is in Corpus Christi.
These big-name stores are reopening in Texas
Read full article: These big-name stores are reopening in TexasSAN ANTONIO – Best Buy has started allowing customers into 11 San Antonio stores by appointment only. Burlington stores in San Antonio reopened May 15. There are seven Burlington stores in the area; for more information, click here. Ross will reopen its nearly 20 stores in the San Antonio area on May 20, according to its website. TJ Maxx has reopened its stores in San Antonio, New Braunfels, Austin, Cedar Park, and Georgetown, according to its website.