Mass Merchant

Bentonville, Ark. -- Wal-Mart Stores said Tuesday it will launch a “My Local Walmart” Facebook application, which will allow more than 3,500 Walmart stores to interact direct with their local customers and some 9 million total Facebook fans.

The "My Local Walmart" Facebook application will provide locally relevant information on everything from new products and sales information, to details on in-store events.

Commerce, Calif. -- Discounter 99 Cents Only Stores said Tuesday it has agreed to be acquired by a group of investors including its founding family, Ares Management and Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board for $1.6 billion in cash.

The announcement ends a months-long sales process, which started with a takeover offer from Leonard Green & Partners in March.

NEW YORK — Supermarket chain Stop & Shop will work with Foodshare to sponsor events at its stores in Hartford, Conn., to help qualifying residents access the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefit.

About 70% of Connecticut residents who qualify for SNAP, formerly known as the food stamp program, actually receive the benefit, Stop & Shop said. This is because of such issues as language barriers, lack of transportation or lack of knowledge of the program.

The NPD signed a point-of-sale cooperation agreement with Sam’s Club, the Wal-Mart Stores division, to receive and analyze sales information from Sam’s Club U.S. clubs and SamsClub.com.

Under the agreement, NPD will receive point-of-sale data from Sam’s Club, increasing NPD’s tracking coverage for clubs and e-commerce and providing its clients with a more robust view of market activity in these channels. NPD will also become Sam’s Club’s primary provider of point-of-sale and consumer panel information in the General Merchandise categories.

Americans spent lots of money on apparel in September, and Target was among the beneficiaries, reporting that the category’s performance exceeded the total company same-store sales increase of 5.3%. Target didn’t elaborate on any key merchandising initiatives that may have influenced the results, such as the launch of the Missoni collection, but it was hardly alone in reporting strong apparel sales.

NEW YORK — An overwhelming majority (72%) of U.S. consumers expect their holiday spending to be “careful” or “controlled” in 2011, according to Accenture’s annual consumer holiday shopping study. Discounts, sales and prices are still top of mind this holiday, with 40% of consumers saying an item being on sale is the single most important factor in their decision to purchase.

The relaunch of Target.com did not go as smoothly as the retailer and its customers would have like judging from the persistent backlash a month and a half after the site went live. Ad Age piled on last week with a piece about how friction between marketing and technology teams contributed to a wide range of functionality and customer service issues.

The departure last week of Target chief marketing officer and spearhead of the retailer’s entry into Canada, Michael Francis, was a significant development in the retail world, but someone forgot to tell the company’s suppliers.

It is still very early in the holiday season and anything could happen from a pricing perspective. However, with that as a caveat, it appears Target and Walmart are in a virtual dead heat when it comes to toy pricing, according to a survey by Citigroup’s senior retail analyst Deb Weinswig.

Target’s toy catalog is set for release on Nov. 1 and will feature an expanded assortment displayed across eight additional pages with discount coupons for savings of more than $350.

To help busy parents stay organized during the holiday season, the toy catalog focuses on list building and includes checkboxes next to every item, and a special tear-out list for kids to complete. According to the company, it is offering nearly 7,000 toys online and in stores and will offer discounts on 2,000 of those items throughout the season.