News Briefs

Advance Auto Parts — which operates more than 4,000 centers in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands — is parting with 83 of them.

The company has retained Gordon Brothers to dispose of the owned and leased sites, which span 38 states. The available spaces range in size from 4,000 to 16,000 square feet.

“We are excited to work with such a great partner and assist the exceptional in-house real estate team at Advance Auto Parts as they right size their portfolio for the future,” said Michael Burden, co-head of North America Real Estate at Gordon Brothers.

“This portfolio of properties offers a fantastic opportunity for growth-minded retailers who are looking to expand their portfolio in a strategic manner,” Burden added. 

As of Oct. 4, Advance operated 4,297 stores. The company also runs 814 independently-owned Carquest branded stores across these locations. 

Walmart holiday shoppers can now place orders right up to the wire.

The retail giant is extending its holiday delivery deadline with one-hour Express Delivery now available on orders placed until 5 p.m. Christmas Eve. To make it easier to get items fast, Walmart is introducing a new “Get it Now” ordering option in its app.

With the new option, customers can view an estimated number of minutes until an order arrives at their doorstep, and in one tap, place the order instantly, eliminating guesswork, speeding up decision-making and streamlining the entire shopping experience, Walmart said. 

“More people are using Express Delivery to get their items faster, and December is when it truly shines,” said David Guggina, chief e-commerce officer, Walmart U.S.

[READ MORE: Walmart brings shoppable ‘WhoKnewVille’ holiday campaign to new channel]

Shoppers using Walmart’s same-day pickup & delivery option can order until 12 p.m. local time on Dec. 24. For standard shipping, orders can be placed until 12:30 p.m. local time on Dec. 23 for arrival by Christmas Day.

Coborn’s Inc. is obtaining a unified view of prices and promotions.

The Midwest grocer is implementing the Revionics AI pricing platform in an effort optimize its pricing strategy across its portfolio of supermarket brands. Coborn’s operates approximately 80 grocery stores across Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Michigan and Illinois under the Coborn’s, Cash Wise, Marketplace Foods, Hornbachers, Kessler’s Food and Grocery, and Sullivan’s Foods banners.

In recent years, Coborn’s has been pursuing a growth strategy focused on expanding its core grocery business, acquiring new locations and developing differentiated retail experiences such as its new Coborn’s Market & Table prototype. 

To maintain competitive price perception and support its assortment across different store banners, Coborn’s is migrating from traditional manual pricing practices to an AI-based pricing approach. This will include optimizing prices at levels including product, key value item groups, zones, and categories, with reporting on the impact and value generated by price changes.

"As we accelerate our growth journey — which includes operating more banners in expanded markets — our pricing strategy must be agile, localized and customer-centric," said Scott Winburn, senior director of pricing strategy at Coborn’s. "With Revionics’ AI Pricing Platform, we can tailor our pricing strategies to reflect guests’ unique preferences and buying patterns across all our banners and communities."

[READ MORE: Coborn’s customizes promotions at scale]

Costco Wholesale continues to expand a format that’s targeted to meet the needs of businesses of all sizes.

The membership warehouse giant has opened a Business Center in East Gwillimbury, Ontario. The 137,000-sq.-ft. facility — Costco’s 10th business-oriented store in Canada — is a conversion of a traditional Costco, which was recently relocated.

The new location is part of a national expansion plan, with additional  business center locations planned to open across Canada in the near future. The company operates approximately 25 Business Center locations in the U.S., and reportedly plans to expand the format here too. 

Open to all Costco members, Costco's  business centers are different from the traditional Costco warehouse, with more than 70% of the product offerings unique to the format. The assortment includes 3,000 items targeted at restaurants, convenience/grocery stores and offices — from bulk food items, to commercial kitchen wares and cleaning supplies, to office furniture, coffee needs and everything in between. It also has a gas station with 12 pumps.

The facility has a large cooler, at almost 9,500 sq. ft., and a designated indoor loading area. With its own fleet of eight trucks, the new center in Ontario offers next-day delivery inside of a designated delivery zone extending across the city.

Costco currently operates 931 warehouses worldwide and 114 warehouses across Canada. 

Pet Supplies Plus and Wag N’Wash have reorganized to separate from the Franchise Group Inc. 

The move, effective immediately, provides the franchise brands the autonomy to operate as an independent corporate entity. The transition, which has no operational impact on the franchise or corporate locations,  was completed through an inaugural securitization financing. The low fixed-rate debt will reduce the entity's overall interest expense.

"Even though we were already operating as an independent business, this decision allows us to formally chart our own course," said Chris Rowland, CEO of Pet Supplies Plus and Wag N' Wash. "The separation empowers us to accelerate our franchise development goals, simplify our operational structure, and ensure we are all working toward a shared goal."

[READ MORE: Pet Supplies Plus debuts first-ever customer app]

Pet Supplies Plus has over 725 locations, with stores designed to make it easy to navigate a wide assortment of natural pet foods, goods and services. With 26 locations, Wag N’ Wash provides full-service grooming, self-wash facilities, baked dog treats, natural food, supplements and toys. 

Price is top of mind for toy shoppers this holiday season.

New data from Numerator reveals that toy buyers are mostly purchasing for children, whether their own or grandchildren (63%) or friends’ and relatives’ children (19%), while 15% of toy shoppers buy toys for themselves or another adult. Top factors influencing toy shoppers’ purchase decisions include price or affordability (59%), the child’s or adult’s interest or request (58%), and educational or developmental value (43%).

Among those buying for children, purchases continue to center around celebrations such as birthdays (82%) and holidays (80%). However, Numerator noted that everyday play (“just because”) remains an important driver for 40% of shoppers. Those buying toys for adults are centering purchases around personal enjoyment (44%), hobbies or creative activities (40%), collecting or display purposes (38%), and nostalgia or sentimental value (36%).

[READ MORE: How AI, mobile devices and deals helped Cyber Week 2025 break records]

Numerator’s survey found that toy shoppers are leaning towards certain categories this year, such as Lego/building sets (50% purchase), plush toys (47%), board games and puzzles (42%), and cars or other toy vehicles (40%). The top licensed brands or franchises from which shoppers purchase or collect toys include Lego (51%), Disney/Pixar (47%), Hot Wheels (43%), Barbie (32%) and Marvel (31%).

Numerator’s data is based on a survey of more than 300 verified toy buyers who have purchased three or more toys in the past three months.