Mass Merchant

The Walgreens Boots Alliance/Rite Aid deal can pass Federal Trade Commission scrutiny with as little as 170 retail store divestitures, according to a proprietary analysis conducted by Credit Suisse, but the company will more likely be required to sell off some 950 stores.

Dishonest employees and shoplifters pushed shrink rates to record levels and earned the United States the distinction of leading the world in the least desirable of retail metrics.

According to retailers surveyed for the Global Retail Theft Barometer, shrink rose in the U.S. from 1.28% of sales in 2013-2014 to 1.97% during 2014-2015. Globally, this compares to 1.42% , a figure also up from the previous .94% average of all common retailers surveyed the previous year.

The Walgreens Boots Alliance/Rite Aid deal can pass Federal Trade Commission scrutiny with as little as 170 retail store divestitures, according to a proprietary analysis conducted by Credit Suisse, but the company will more likely be required to sell off some 950 stores.

Breaking the cycle of promotional ridiculousness at Jos. A. Bank is proving to be a far worse drag on sales and profits than parent company Men’s Wearhouse expected.

Men’s Wearhouse revealed the cost of breaking the promotional cycle at the acquired Jos. A. Bank stores on Nov. 6 when CEO Doug Ewert announced a huge downward revision to the combined company’s third quarter and full-year sales and profit outlook.

Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th will open a store at Newcity, the newly opened mixed-use development located in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood.

The 40,000-sq.-ft. store, which will be the seventh Off 5th location in Chicago, is scheduled to open in May 2016. The off-price retailer recently announced another spring 2016 store opening in Chicago, on State Street at the corner of State and Madison.

Amazon.com just picked up an improved rival in the burgeoning home shopping button market, which it provided mainstream attention with the launch of its Dash remote ordering device earlier this year.

San Jose-based technology vendor Hiku just launched version 2 of its eponymous shopping button tool. Ironically, Hiku actually released version 1 of the button shortly before Amazon launched its Dash button, but was overshadowed.

Another larger-than-life retail showcase is coming to the Big Apple.

Victoria’s Secret plans to open a 64,000-sq.-ft. store on the corner of Fifth Avenue and 51st Street. The space was formerly occupied by Forever 21, which moved out after just seven months of operation.

“It’s a very big deal from a brand standpoint,” Stuart Burgdoefer, CFO, L Brands, parent of Victoria’s Secret, said at the company’s annual investor conference.

October was a good month for Costco, which reported growth in same-store and total sales.

The club retailer posted a 4% increase in U.S. same-store sales for October, excluding gasoline price deflation and currency fluctuation. sThe comp increase was 5% for the whole company.

For the month, the company saw $8.78 billion in net sales and $19.53 billion over the four weeks. Though Costco’s U.S. sales saw a slight increase, its Canadian stores saw an 8% decrease in same-store sales for the month and a 9% decline over four weeks.