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☆ Aldi plans to open 800 new locations in the next five years
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-07 | by ( Jordan Valinsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Some of the 800 new locations will be store conversions from its now-complete acquisition of Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarkets, with a “significant number” of those locations — largely located in the Southeast — ditching their respective names and being remodeled into an Aldi. Approximately 50 stores will be converted later this year, with a majority of those reopening under the Aldi name in 2025. However, the Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarkets names won’t completely disappear: Aldi said that a “meaningful amount” of locations will retain that branding. Aldi’s newest plan brings its store count to nearly 3,000 US locations, a notable expansion but still trailing against its rivals. If their merger is approved, Kroger and Albertson’s will have about 4,500 locations and Walmart, the nation’s largest grocer, has nearly 5,000.

Persons: Aldi, Winn, Neil Saunders, Saunders, ” Saunders, Albertson’s Organizations: New, New York CNN, Winn, Dixie, Harveys, Aldi, GlobalData, Kroger, Walmart Locations: New York, Northeast, Midwest, West, Southern California, Phoenix, Las Vegas

☆ It's not just you – stores are cutting back on product variety and how many choices you can make
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-03 | by ( Katie Balevic | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Stores are cutting back on how many varieties of products they opt to offer. Retailers are shifting to offering customers less variety on products with questionable success and doubling down on bestsellers, instead, Axios reported. Some chains like Macy's and Kohl's are slimming down their in-store product options and offering a wider variety of products online, Axios reported. Some retailers reported that customers didn't seem to mind that slashed products never returned to the shelves, The Wall Street Journal reported. Experts believe the slimmed-down choices could also help reduce stress for shoppers, Axios reported.

Persons: —, Axios, Coke, Cherry, Neil Saunders Organizations: Service, Daily, Business, Street Journal

☆ DC and Marvel are reprinting coveted crossover comics
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-01 | by ( John Towfighi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —Comic-book store owner Jermaine Exum couldn’t believe his ears when a customer asked to reserve a copy of the upcoming 960-page “DC versus Marvel” comics collection. The "DC Versus Marvel Omnibus," to be released August 6, 2024, is a collection of various crossover comics, and just the second collaboration by DC and Marvel in two decades. From 1976 to 2003, crossovers between the DC and Marvel universes (“Superman vs. Uslan recalled similar “interplay” among the companies, citing a regular DC vs. Marvel softball match in Central Park as evidence of camaraderie. The comic "Marvel and DC Present Featuring the Uncanny X-Men and the New Teen Titans #1", will be reprinted in the upcoming collection.

Persons: Jermaine Exum couldn’t, “, ”, Lex Luthor –, ” Marvel, Exum, Michael Uslan, Carmine Infantino, Stan Lee, ” Uslan, Marvel, DC Walt Simonson, I’m, ” Simonson, Uslan, Walt Simonson, DC Ben Saunders, Denny O’Neil, George Pérez, Chris Claremont, John Romita Jr, Batman, Simonson, ” Saunders, Saunders, Federico Parra, James Gunn, Marvel’s, Peter Safran, Kevin Feige, ” Ethan Sacks, “ Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, Jerry Siegel, Joe Shuster, Bob Kane, Bill Finger, William Moulton Marston Organizations: CNN, Marvel, DC, Warner Bros, Discovery, Disney, Hollywood, ” Comics, Teen Titans, New Teen Titans, University of Oregon, Acme Comics, “, Marvel Studios, Guardians, Galaxy, DC Studios Locations: Greensboro, North Carolina, Central, Greensboro , North Carolina, Venezuela, Caracas, AFP, Greece, Rome, Egypt

☆ How America’s once great department stores became a dying breed
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-27 | by ( Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

But department stores, focused on America’s middle class, are fading. The victims of shifting consumer tastes were not the department stores that anchored the local mall, it was the small, locally owned stores along downtown shopping districts that were closing their doors. And possibly even more than the big box competitors, department stores have suffered from consumers shifting to buying items online rather than in person. The steady closing of the department stores that once served as “anchors” of malls across suburban America has been another nail in the coffin of many malls, hurting the department stores that remained in hollowed-out malls with a fraction of their earlier traffic. Saunders said one of the primary problem for Macy’s is that its holding company, formerly known as Federated Department Stores, spent much of its resources on buying other department store brands, such May’s Department Stores, and Filene’s, rather than investing in the stores its held.

Persons: New York CNN —, Neil Sauders, ”, JC Penney, It’s, “, Neil Saunders, Shannon Stapleton, Saunders, ” Saunders, Al Bello, Sunny Zheng, Macy’s, Tony Spring, Taylor, Brian Snyder, Eddie Lambert, Michael Brown, Kearney, ” Brown, Mike Segar, Richard W, Sears, Alvah Roebuck, Sears Roebuck, Bettmann, PhotoQuest, Jack Manning, Frank Scherschel, Owen, Lucille Jagusch, Arlene Hardt, Martin Luther King Jr, Michael Ochs, Ron Frehm, Ralf, Finn Hestoft, Mark Peterson, Seth Meyers, Hugh Jackman, NBCUniversal, Kaylin Wilson, Jim Cole, Rene Johnston, Maria Alejandra Cardona, Scott Olson, Cesar Villasenor, Mel Melcon, Sarah Blesener, Paul Hennessy, Patti Naleck, Naleck, Stacey Wescott, Brown Organizations: New, New York CNN, American, Walmart, Company, Department, Sears, Target, GlobalData, JCPenney, Research, RadioShack, Reuters Sears, Federated Department Stores, May’s, Reuters, Chicago History, Sears Roebuck, Roebuck, Hulton, AP, AP Soldiers, Michael Ochs Archives, Getty, Bettmann, Kmart, Bloomberg, Toronto Star, Reuters Residents, Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Chicago Tribune, Tribune, Service Locations: New York, GlobalData, America, Nanuet , New York, North Redwood , Minnesota, Chicago, El Paso , Texas, Jackson , Mississippi, Tucson , Arizona, Caracas, Venezuela, Niles , Illinois, Morton Grove , Illinois, Baltimore, White Plains , New York, Woodfield , Illinois, Hicksville , New York, Nashua , New Hampshire, Mentor , Ohio, Mississauga , Ontario, Hialeah , Florida, Janesville , Wisconsin, Santa Monica , California, Rockaway , New Jersey, Leesburg , Florida, Schaumburg , Illinois

☆ Christopher Saunders: Former Australian bishop charged with historical sex offenses
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-22 | by ( Hilary Whiteman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Brisbane, Australia CNN —A senior Australian Catholic clergyman has been charged with historical sex offenses allegedly committed while he was serving as the bishop of Broome, a remote diocese in Western Australia. Emeritus Bishop Christopher Saunders was arrested on Wednesday at his home in Broome, where he became bishop in 1996, according to CNN affiliate Seven News. Saunders is the highest-ranking Australian Catholic official charged with historical sex abuse charges since Cardinal George Pell faced court over historical assaults allegedly committed in the late 1990s. Of the survivors who reported being abused in a religious institution, 61.4% said the abuse occurred in a Catholic organization. The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse reported that 7% of Australian Catholic priests had been accused of abusing children.

Persons: Australia CNN —, Bishop Christopher Saunders, Saunders, Timothy Costelloe, ” Costelloe, ”, Costelloe, Cardinal George Pell, Pell Organizations: Australia CNN, Australian Catholic, CNN, Seven News . Police, Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, Catholic Bishops Conference, WA, Police, Australian, Australia’s, Catholic, Royal Commission Locations: Brisbane, Australia, Broome, Western Australia, Rome

☆ It looks like high-income shoppers are becoming increasingly loyal to Walmart
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . Walmart is cutting prices on essentials like eggs and breadInflation has cooled in recent months after soaring during the pandemic. "Some of this is the result of customer acquisition becoming more modest, and some is because of the continued financial pressure on core Walmart shoppers which is seeing them cut back on non-essential spending," he wrote. Saunders noted that lower levels of inflation would make it harder for Walmart to acquire new customers. "This essentially puts Walmart in the position of having to work far harder and more creatively to generate growth," he wrote.

Persons: Walmart's, —, John David Rainey, Rainey, Neil Saunders, Saunders, Doug McMillon, McMillon, John Furner, Furner Organizations: Walmart, Service, GlobalData, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Shoppers

☆ Bausch + Lomb CEO Brent Saunders goes one-on-one with Jim Cramer
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Jim Cramer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Bausch + Lomb Chairman and CEO Brent Saunders joins 'Mad Money' host Jim Cramer to talk earnings. Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via Email

Persons: Bausch, Brent Saunders, Jim Cramer

☆ Jim Cramer says buy this data center equipment firm despite its weak guidance
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Kevin Stankiewicz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Vertiv Holdings : The data center equipment maker, whose shares have roughly quadrupled over the past year, issued guidance that didn't live up to Wall Street's lofty expectations. "Data center still strong. Teladoc Health : Shares tumbled 24% after the telehealth provider's quarterly revenue missed estimates and offered soft guidance. Bausch + Lomb : Shares jumped more than 8% after the Canadian eye-care company delivered a better-than-expected quarter alongside an upbeat sales forecast. SolarEdge Technologies : While the solar company's quarterly loss was smaller than anticipated, its current quarter guidance was weak, sending the stock sliding more than 15%.

Persons: Jim Cramer, Jim, Bausch, they've, Brent Saunders, SolarEdge Organizations: Vertiv Holdings, Teladoc, SolarEdge Technologies

☆ Home Depot forecasts a weak 2024
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Nathaniel Meyersohn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

New York CNN —Home Depot, a bellwether of the housing market and US economy, said sales dropped over the winter and it’s a expecting a slow 2024. Sales at stores open for at least one year fell 3.5% last quarter, and Home Depot projects that sales will continue to decline 1% in 2024. “2023 was a year of moderation,” Home Depot CEO Ted Decker said in a news release Tuesday. Demand for home improvement has fallen due to high mortgage rates and a slowdown in new home construction. “One of the main issues [for Home Depot] continues to be a very sluggish housing market,” Neil Saunders, an analyst at GlobalData Retail, said in a note to clients Tuesday.

Persons: Ted Decker, ” Neil Saunders Organizations: New, New York CNN, Depot, GlobalData Locations: New York

☆ Free Shipping and Free Returns From Online Shopping Are Dying. Good.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-18 | by ( Emily Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Well, if you’ve ever bought stuff online and received free shipping or returns, you’ve also been a little bit of a jerk — and now it’s time to pay up. Fast, free shipping and easy, no-cost returns have become a baseline expectation in the modern online shopping experience. Instead of fighting for market share by offering free shipping and no-hassle returns, retailers are trying to squeeze more money out of every transaction. Free shipping is not actually free . Returns are a necessary and inevitable part of online shopping.

Persons: you’ve, —, ASOS, ” Neil Saunders, hasn’t, Emily Stewart Organizations: National Retail Federation, Appriss, Urban Outfitters, Saks, Amazon, Retailers, Business Locations: Zara, J.Crew, what’s

☆ Walmart shrunk by at least 101 locations last year — a smart move for what's next
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-18 | by ( Dominick Reuter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Walmart quietly reduced its store count in 2023 even though the company was doing really well. In addition to closing underperforming stores, the retailer sold at least 79 small-format locations. Given what Walmart has planned for the next few years, the move away from smaller locations makes sense. "Walmart has always struggled with smaller stores," Saunders said. In addition to new stores, many existing locations are being upgraded to Walmart's "store of the future" concept, including 650 projects this year.

Persons: —, spokespeople, Doug McMillon, Scot Ciccarelli, Ciccarelli, Neil Saunders, Saunders, it's, Walmart's Organizations: Walmart, Service, BI, Goods, Truist Securities

☆ Target creates its cheapest in-store brand as spending dips
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-15 | by ( Jordan Valinsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —Target is taking aim at budget-conscious customers with a new value brand with prices for everyday basics that start at less than $1. Most of the items cost less than $10, with the cheapest coming in under $1. The entrance of Dealworthy means a shakeup of two other Target budget-focused brands that it produces: Smartly and Up&Up. The former, which largely focused on household essentials like soap and trash bags, will be discontinued and replaced by Dealworthy items. Up&Up, another affordably priced Target brand, is getting a redesign and will be priced slightly higher than Dealworthy.

Persons: Rick Gomez, ” Neil Saunders, ” Saunders, “, Smartly Organizations: New, New York CNN, Target, Walmart, GlobalData, CNN, “ Locations: New York

☆ ‘The Love Boat’: How a TV show transformed the cruise industry
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-13 | by ( Tamara Hardingham-Gill | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

‘Greatest product placement’"The Love Boat" centered around the adventures of the crew and passenger on board a luxury cruise ship. “‘The Love Boat’ really created the cruise industry,” Michael L. Grace, who worked as a scriptwriter on the program during the 1980s, told CNN Travel in 2022. During the 1980s, almost 40 new cruise ships were constructed, including Tropicale, from Carnival Cruise Lines and Royal Princess, Princess Cruises’ first purpose-built cruise ship. Princess Cruises“The Love Boat” may also have played a part in the heavy entertainment focus we see on modern-day cruise ships. Outlandish musical performances were often featured on “The Love Boat,” and they proved to be a big hit with viewers.

Persons: we’re, Aaron Spelling, Princess Cruise, Jeraldine Saunders, “, Merrill Stubing, Gavin MacLeod, ” Michael L, Grace, Princess, Caribbean's, ”, Carolyn Spencer Brown, Captain Stubing, Adam Bricker, Bernie Kopell, Julie McCoy, Lauren Tewes, Isaac Washington, Ted Lange, Vicki, Jill Whelan, ” Grace, Everett, Peter Knego, Spencer Brown, Dittrich, Keen, Cruises ’, Princess “, Cruises, Della Reese, Ethel Merman, Carol Channing, Ann Miller, Judi Patterson, Andy, Oriana, Patterson, Greer Garson, Howard Duff, Jill Whelan –, Princess Cruises – Bernie Kopell, Fred Grandy, Ezra Freeman, he’s, ” MacLeod, Joe Raedle, Caribbean’s, Isaac, Ted Lange's, Bret Hartman, Knego, ” Spencer Brown, ” Whelan, Cruise Organizations: CNN, Paramount Plus, Princess Cruises, Princess, Everett, CNN Travel, Cruise Media, Cruises, Carnival Cruise Lines, Entertainment, CBS, Knego, “, Disney Cruise, world’s, Princess Cruises Pacific Locations: Mexico, Royal Caribbean, India, New York, Canada, New England

☆ Why direct-to-consumer darlings such as Casper, Allbirds and Peloton are now struggling
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-10 | by ( Devan Burris | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

A once-bustling group of companies, backed by billions in venture capital funding, saw a record year for IPOs in 2021. Now, three years later, most of those direct-to-consumer, or DTC, companies still struggle with profitability. "One of the problems with a lot of direct-to-consumer companies is they're not profitable and a number of them don't really have a convincing pathway to profitability. With the cohort came a huge wave of venture capital funding, propped up by low interest rates. As the Covid-19 pandemic moved most shopping online, venture capital funds were all-in on digital native direct-to-consumer companies.

Persons: GlobalData Retail's, Neil Saunders, Warby Parker, Casper Organizations: IPOs, CNBC, Wonder Group Locations: ThredUp

☆ New Macy's CEO Tony Spring looks to revive a 166-year-old retailer fighting for relevance
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-04 | by ( Melissa Repko | In Melissa-Repko | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Spring is former CEO of Bloomingdale's and begins as Macy's CEO in February 2024, succeeding longtime Macy's CEO Jeff Gennette, right. Spring will step onto a bigger stage and inherit the iconic department store's issues when he takes over the role of Macy's CEO on Sunday. He said after leading "the better-run part of the business" in Bloomingdale's, Spring needs to bring those "softer skills" to Macy's. Wooing investors and brandsIn his new role, Spring will have to charm investors, shoppers and hot brands. Macy's struggles have turned the retailer into a target for the activist investors Spring will face down as he becomes CEO.

Persons: Spring, Jeff Gennette, Melissa Repko, Macy's, Tony Spring, Bloomingdale's, Neil Saunders, Gennette, Tony, I'm, Sandro, Alice, Olivia, GlobalData's Saunders, Saunders, Jan, Arkhouse, Gavriel Kahane Organizations: CNBC, Herald, Investors, Maxx, Walmart, Cornell University, Arkhouse Management, Brigade Capital Management Locations: New York, Macy's, White Plains , New York, Bloomingdale's

☆ Launch of new ETFs may not affect bitcoin the same way they did gold, Citi says. Here’s why
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Tanaya Macheel | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The launch of spot bitcoin ETFs in the U.S. has been widely anticipated for months, with many investors thinking they could revolutionize investing in the asset the way the SPDR Gold Shares ETF (GLD) did for gold in 2004. Bernstein recently said bitcoin could rocket to $200,000 by the end of next year with bitcoin ETFs. "It still took bullion ETFs several years to crystalize holdings and AUM that structurally impacted spot gold prices and lifted trading," Saunders said. Additionally, bitcoin is newer and less established than gold was before the introduction of gold ETFs, he added. Last year, that correlation fell to its lowest since 2021 , while bitcoin's correlation with gold has been climbing.

Persons: Bernstein, Alex Saunders, Saunders, they're, … bitcoin, bitcoin Organizations: Citi Locations: U.S

For instance, the U.S. has blocked shipments of cotton coming from China, a top manufacturer of popular clothing brands, because it was produced by forced or prison labor. While prison labor seeps into the supply chains of some companies through third-party suppliers without them knowing, others buy direct. Cargill acknowledged buying goods from prison farms in Tennessee, Arkansas and Ohio, saying they constituted only a small fraction of the company’s overall volume. For instance, about a dozen state prison farms, including operations in Texas, Virginia, Kentucky and Montana, have sold more than $60 million worth of cattle since 2018. “What for?”FOLLOWING THE MONEYThe business of prison labor is so vast and convoluted that tracing the money can be challenging.

Persons: it’s, Willie Ingram, “ They’d, billy clubs, they’d, ”, Ingram, didn’t, they’re, don’t, Andrea Armstrong, Frank Dwayne Ellington, Ellington, Koch, “ It’s, it’s somebody’s, Alishia Powell, Clark, “, Bunge, Louis Dreyfus, Archer Daniels, Cargill, ” McDonald’s, Mills, ” Bunge, Burger, Jermaine Hudson, ” Hudson, Calvin Thomas, Thomas, Ken Pastorick, Pastorick, Jennifer Turner, Faye Jacobs, Jacobs, ’ ” David Farabough, they’ve, Joshua Sbicca, Cliff Johnson, Jimmy Dean, Sara Lee, Tyson, Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey, that’s, ” Ivey, “ They’re, ’ ”, William “ Buck ” Saunders, Hickman’s, Brooke Counts, Counts, John’s, Jack Strain, Tammany Parish, Russell Stover, Curtis Davis, Robert Bumsted, Cody Jackson, Columbia University’s Ira A, Lipman Organizations: Louisiana State Penitentiary, The Associated Press, Walmart, Cargill, U.S, Kroger, Target, Aldi, Corrections, Loyola University New Orleans, Koch Foods, Occupational Safety, Health Administration, Washington, Archer Daniels Midland, Consolidated, AP, Foods, Dairy Farmers of, Big, Sam’s, Tyson Foods, U.S ., Civilian, OSHA, Fair Labor, American Civil Liberties, Colorado State University, MacArthur Justice Center, University of Mississippi, PepsiCo, Brevard County Sheriff, Arizona . Companies, Costco, Correctional, Prisons, Nut, Maine Foods, Taylor Farms, Transitional, Associated Press, Public Welfare Foundation, Columbia, Lipman Center for Journalism, Arnold Ventures Locations: ANGOLA, La, Southern, Louisiana, Texas, In Louisiana, Angola, United States, “, Ashland, U.S, China, Tennessee , Arkansas, Ohio, Dairy Farmers of America, Texas , Virginia, Kentucky, Montana, Baton Rouge, Mississippi, Manhattan, America, Alabama, American, Arkansas , Texas, Florida , Alabama, South Carolina, Georgia, Arkansas, In Alabama, Florida, Brevard County, Arizona, Wisconsin, California, Colorado, state’s St, Tammany, Idaho, In Kansas, Cal, St, Francisville , Louisiana, Feliciana, Investigative@ap.org

☆ Icon of the Seas: Why Americans Are Obsessed With Big Cruise Ships
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-25 | by ( Henry Wismayer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +17 min

Love them or loathe them, giant cruise ships are among the most remarkable success stories of the mass tourism age. Rechristened the Mardi Gras, the first Carnival cruise ship sailed out of Miami that March. Cruise ships like the Icon of the Seas will spend the majority of their trip at sea. Eight years later, cruise ships such as the Diamond Princess became early incubators for COVID-19. Cruise Market Watch forecasts there will be 360 cruise ships in service at the end of this year, comprising less than 1% of the global commercial fleet.

Persons: Ted Arison, Arison, Pieter De Boer, Costa, Diamond, Aaron Saunders, We've, Sue Bryant, Z, sass, Emma Le Teace, YouTuber, David Foster Wallace, Harper's, Sarah Knorr, Bryan Comer, Karla Hart, Hart, Saunders, it's, Henry Wismayer Organizations: Port, Passengers, Mardi Gras, Mardi, Gras, Cruise, Royal Caribbean, Costa Concordia, Cruise Lines International Association, Broadway, CivicScience, Royal, Virgin, Business, Transport & Environment, Getty, International Council, Global Cruise, Global Cruise Activist Network, Cruise Market, Royal Caribbean International, New York Times, National Geographic, Financial Times Locations: Port of Miami, Caribbean, Miami, The Port, Tuscany, Italy, Royal Caribbean, TikTok, Panama, Bahamas, Brussels, Netherlands, Douarnenez, Venice, Dubrovnik, Croatia, Amsterdam, Juneau , Alaska, Skagway , Alaska, CocoCay, London

☆ JCPenney has become TikTokers' unlikely beauty obsession
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-24 | by ( Jennifer Ortakales Dawkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

JCPenney has replaced its Sephora shops with JCPenney Beauty sections. JCPenney's revamped beauty department has become a destination for finding beauty brands TikTokers can't get at other beauty stores. Last summer, the retailer launched KimChi Chic Beauty in more than 600 stores, beauty trade publication Happi reported. JCPenney replaced Sephora shops with JCPenney Beauty. Beauty retailer Ulta hit $2.5 billion in net sales last quarter, an increase of more than 6%.

Persons: —, JC, Kailey, JCPenney, JCPenney's, Adam Ryan, Alexis Androulakis, @thelipsticklesbians, y’all, @JCPenney, ike, orth, Penney Organizations: JCPenney, Service, JC Penney, Sephora, Black, Black Enterprise, Alpha Locations: JCPenney, Staten Island

☆ Bitcoin ETFs aren't giving crypto a big boost just yet. Here's where the new funds stand
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-22 | by ( Jesse Pound | In Jesse-Pound | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The newly launched bitcoin exchange-traded funds are showing early signs of success, but they have so far fallen short of being the massive boost for crypto some bulls predicted. BTC.CM= YTD mountain Bitcoin has retreated since the launch of the bitcoin ETFs. This fall comes after some crypto investors had cited the ETF launches as a catalyst that could propel bitcoin to $100,000 in 2024. That discount likely attracted arbitrage players who used the ETF launch as an opportunity to close out their trade. Yesterday, all Bitcoin ETFs combined traded $2.2Bn, IBIT traded $340Mn.

Persons: Alex Saunders, Benjamin Budish, Aniket Ullal, Ullal, It's, Bernstein, Gautam Chhugani Organizations: U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, Fidelity, Citi, Barclays, CFRA Research, IBIT Locations: bitcoin, GBTC

☆ I went to 3 Gap stores in New York City and saw firsthand why the 'tired' company needs a revamp
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-21 | by ( Jennifer Ortakales Dawkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Once known as a staple American mall brand, Gap lost its relevance among consumers who traded shopping centers for e-commerce. "Gap brand, as you know, has tremendous heritage as a pop culture brand," Dickson told investors. Jennifer Ortakales Dawkins/Business InsiderGap's design team is playing it too safe for today's competitive market. Jennifer Ortakales Dawkins/Business InsiderOn that note, Gap could be doing a lot more to market to younger generations. Jennifer Ortakales Dawkins/Business InsiderBriggs suggests brands like Gap go where their younger customers spend much of their time: TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram.

Persons: —, Richard Dickson, Dickson, Ellyn Briggs, Barbie, Neil Saunders, Jennifer Ortakales Dawkins, Briggs, Gen Zers, Gen, Gen Z, Piper Sandler's Organizations: Service, Mattel, Morning, New York City, Grand Central, Free, Nike, Alpha, Teens, Times, YouTube Locations: New York City, New York, Grand

☆ Davos: A mountain of debt and a wave of elections. World leaders are hamstrung
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-14 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

London CNN —World leaders are flocking to Davos this week to pontificate on the planet’s most pressing problems. Even in the absence of a new crisis, soaring debt servicing costs will constrain efforts to tackle climate change and care for aging populations. Mortgage rates and other borrowing costs soared as investors demanded much higher premiums for owning UK debt. Mounting debt and political brinksmanship have already taken their toll on America’s credit rating, which typically affects borrowing costs for the government, businesses and households. And that would increase the government’s borrowing costs.

Persons: worryingly, Michael Saunders, ”, Saunders, that’s, Liz Truss, Dave Ramsden, Fitch, Moody’s, Raghuram Rajan, “ It’s, ” Rajan, Anna Cooban Organizations: London CNN —, Bank, CNN, Oxford Economics, Bank of England, AAA, States ’, Reserve Bank of India, Labour Party, Treasury Department, Federal, University of Chicago Booth School of Business Locations: Davos, Kingdom, Argentina, States, United States, Switzerland

☆ I'm a millennial who visited Abercrombie to see firsthand why my generation is falling back in love with the brand and helping boost sales
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-12 | by ( Jennifer Ortakales Dawkins | Mary Hanbury | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Wooden blinds covered the windows, and the store was so dimly lit that you could barely see what was inside. Under the leadership of Fran Horowitz, who's been the brand's CEO since 2017, Abercrombie has undergone drastic changes. AdvertisementIn January, Abercrombie increased its fourth-quarter sales and its 2023 outlook. I've visited Abercrombie and Fitch stores to see why millennials have fallen back in love with the clothing brand.

Persons: —, Fitch, Abercrombie, millennials, Fran Horowitz, who's, Neil Saunders, Horowitz, I've, Jennifer Ortakales Dawkins Organizations: Service, Abercrombie, Business, GlobalData, Revenues, Nvidia, Fitch Locations: cologne

☆ 6 retail brands ready for a comeback in 2024
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-29 | by ( Jennifer Ortakales Dawkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Business Insider asked analysts what brands have the most potential for turnaround in 2024. NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. "To reach new younger audiences, they've all struck a really good balance of nostalgia and novelty," Morning Consult analyst Ellyn Briggs told Business Insider. Business Insider asked analysts what brands have the most potential for turnaround and how each company can win over customers. AdvertisementHere are six brands ready for reinvention in 2024.

Persons: —, Abercrombie, Ellyn Briggs, Dana Telsey, Neil Saunders Organizations: Business, Body, Service, Abercrombie, Telsey Advisory, GlobalData, BI Locations: Bath

☆ While Black Friday and Cyber Monday did good, Giving Tuesday lagged
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-03 | by ( Sergio Padilla | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN —Americans seemed more willing to spend money on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, but less willing to donate money on Giving Tuesday. Giving Tuesday’s decline in participation is not an isolated incident, but rather, as its organization acknowledges, part of larger trends philanthropic organizations are experiencing. According to a report by Giving USA from this past June, Americans are giving the lowest percentage of their disposable income since 1995. Americans gave just 1.7% of their disposable income in 2022, with charitable giving declining from 2021 by 3.4% to $499.3 billion, which represents an even larger decline of 10.5% when adjusted for inflation. “I think the numbers are very interesting in terms of Black Friday and Cyber Monday but they don’t tell you the whole picture,” said Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData Retail.

Persons: “, ”, Asha Curran, Ebenezer Scrooge, Neil Saunders, ” Saunders, CNN’s Nathaniel Meyersohn, Elisabeth Buchwald Organizations: New, New York CNN, Black, CNN, GivingTuesday, United Nations Foundation, National Retail Federation, Adobe, Federal, GlobalData, Adobe Analytics, Charities Aid Locations: New York, New York City

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