Seasonal

Amazon's Echo is in expansion mode just in time for the holiday rush.   The online giant on Wednesday announced five new Echo products, along with several other new gadgets. And none of the items cost more than$150, TechCrunch reported. The new items include Echo Plus, which will do double duty by also serving as a hub for smart home devices.  

In an important vote of confidence in its brand from key lenders, Toys "R" Us closed on crucial financing just in time for the holiday crunch.   The retailer announced that it has closed on $3.1 billion of financing facilities that will support its operations during its restructuring process. The financing was from a group of lenders led by JP Morgan.  

This holiday season offers retailers something they haven't experienced in five years.   For the first since 2012, there will be four Saturdays in December prior to Christmas Day, according to Shoppertrak, which noted that the busiest shopping day of the year will fall on Black Friday, Nov. 24. Saturday, Dec. 23 and Saturday, Dec. 16 are expected to be the second and third busiest shopping days, respectively. (The full list is at the end of the article.)  

Black Friday is still No. 1 when it comes to setting sales records.   Black Friday, which falls on Nov. 24 this year, will be the busiest digital shopping day in U.S. history, exceeding Cyber Monday (Nov. 27) for the second year in a row, according to a report by Salesforce.  

As Hurricane Irma moved northward up the Florida peninsula, Butler Enterprises was ready with a plan to use social media to keep beleaguered Gainesville residents supplied with necessities.  

Target Corp. is raising the stakes in the battle for retail store talent — and giving its employees a holiday surprise in the process.   The discounter on Monday announced plans to raise its minimum hourly wage for all associates to $11 in October. It also pledged to increase the rate to $15 by the end of 2020. The retailer said the move will help it better recruit and retain top-quality staff and provide a better shopping experience for customers.  

More and more Americans plan to get an early start on their holiday shopping. And they also plan on spending more.    Nearly half (45%) of Americans plan to start holiday shopping before November, with one in four starting before October, according to RetailMeNot's 2017 Holiday Retail Trends and Guide. Retailers are capitalizing on this earlier start: Nearly 80% indicated they will begin holiday marketing efforts earlier this year.   

Hurricanes Harvey and Harvey had a similar impact on retail sales and the toll was significant on online spending as well as spending in physical stores.