News Briefs

Costco Wholesale Corp. is giving some app users a sneak peek at in-stock items.

According to Fox Business, the membership-based warehouse club retailer is beta testing a tool on its mobile app that lets customers click a "warehouse" button, located between the "account" and "cart" buttons at the bottom of the app, to bring up a search bar.

The search bar enables customers to enter the names and/or descriptions of items they wish to buy to see if they are in stock at a selected store. Costco reportedly began testing mobile store inventory search in June 2024, and there have been a number of posts from customers on X (the social network formerly known as Twitter) referring to the new app feature.

Read more Fox Business coverage here.

Other recent moves from Costco include installing membership scanning devices at the entrances to all its stores and increasing its annual membership fees by $5 in the U.S. and Canada.

Costco currently operates 884 warehouses, including 611 in the United States and Puerto Rico, 108 in Canada, 40 in Mexico, 33 in Japan, 29 in the United Kingdom, 18 in Korea, 15 in Australia, 14 in Taiwan, seven in China, four in Spain, two in France, and one each in Iceland, New Zealand and Sweden.

Costco also operates e-commerce sites in the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Mexico, Korea, Taiwan, Japan and Australia.

Walmart will soon feature hundreds of pre-verified sneakers from online marketplace StockX directly on its site.

According to Yahoo Finance, StockX has selected Walmart as its first strategic marketplace channel, with inventory from StockX to be offered for sale via the Walmart Marketplace third-party e-commerce and mobile commerce platform starting the week of Sept. 9, 2024.  The partnership is the first time StockX has  integrated its inventory into an outside marketplace. 

Walmart told Yahoo Finance that thousands of items from StockX, including sneakers, fashion and collectible products, will become available via Walmart Marketplace during 2025.  The StockX marketplace allows buyer and sellers to place bids on items in real time at prices line with current demand. Shoes are verified new and come in their box.

According to the retailer, Walmart Marketplace has achieved more than 30% sales growth in each of the past four quarters and is helping drive double-digit U.S. e-commerce growth for six consecutive quarters. The number of sellers listing items on Walmart.com grew 20% during fiscal 2023.

"Walmart’s vast customer base — many of which are new to StockX — will get to experience the platform in a way that is convenient for them," StockX said to Yahoo Finance in a statement. “StockX sellers can also reach this built-in audience of loyal Walmart customers without sacrificing their current volumes on StockX, as products will be listed across both platforms at scale, delivering massive demand to StockX sellers."

Read more Yahoo Finance coverage here.

Walmart has been expanding the scope of Walmart Marketplace. At its annual "Let’s Grow! 2024 Walmart Marketplace Seller Summit," the discount giant announced new offerings including a resale storefront, expanded categories, and several fulfillment and logistics services.

Other recent examples include offering third-party sellers of Chinese products a new avenue to sell directly to Walmart customers and connecting tire sales on its online marketplace to its in-store auto care centers.

Rally House has arrived in one of Texas’ major cities.

The sports merchandise and gifts retailer is continuing to grow its footprint in the Lone Star State by opening its first store in the Austin area. The location at Lakeline Mall in neighboring Cedar Park is the company’s 30th store in Texas. 

Rally House’s entry into the Austin market follows the retailer’s recent entrance into Houston over the summer. Earlier this year, Rally House reached the milestone of its 200th store after openings in Philadelphia, Louisville, West Virginia, Chicago and Buffalo.

"We are always looking to expand in Texas and extend our reach to some of the most passionate sports fans in the country,” said Aaron Johnson, VP of marketing strategy at Rally House. “Rally House Lakeline Mall provides students, alumni and residents in Austin the outlet to shop the best selection of officially licensed sports apparel and merchandise around. Rally House is ready to go for the [University of Texas] Longhorns' first season in the SEC!"

Rally House stores offers a large selection apparel, hats, gifts and home décor representing local NCAA, NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL and MLS teams in addition to locally inspired apparel, gifts and food. The Austin store will carry Texas fan-favorite teams including the Dallas Cowboys, Houston Texans, Austin FC, San Antonio Spurs, and other various Texas college teams.

[READ MORE: Rally House expands into a new state]

Based in Lenexa, Kas., Rally House operates more than 225  locations across 21 states.

Sierra Trading Post opened its 100th store this spring and is fast moving on to its second hundred.

The TJX Companies brand that offers top-brand apparel and gear for outdoor and athletic pursuits at 20%-to-60% discounts and gear top-brand outdoor has signed leases for five locations with Cafaro Company, owner of the 3 million-sq.-ft. Eastwood Mall Complex in Niles, Ohio.

Its first openings are set to take place this year in a 17,000-sq.-ft space at Millcreek Mall in Erie, Pa., and an 18,000-sq.-ft. store still under construction in Kentucky Oaks Mall in Paducah, Ky.

The third store will be a 24,000-sq.-ft. stand-alone building now under construction at Eastwood that will open its doors in 2025.

Sierra started as an online seller in the mid-1980s and quickly became popular with outdoor enthusiasts, offering low prices on market-leading brands such as Carhartt, The North Face, Merrell, Bogner, Mountain Hardwear, and Keen. 

It opened its first brick-and-mortar location in 1990 and was acquired by TJX, owner of T.J. Maxx and HomeSense, among other value brands, in 2012.

Health-focused fast-casual chain Sweetgreen has entered the Buckeye State.

The chain opened its first Ohio store in Columbus on Sept. 4 in the Short North neighborhood, just miles away from The Ohio State University. The 3,605-sq.-ft. store features an open kitchen concept and holds space for up to 46 patrons. Sweetgreen says Columbus was one of the most requested cities for the chain to expand to.

“With local ingredients sourced from across the midwest, we’re excited to bring the Sweetgreen flavor to Columbus’ iconic food scene,” said Jonathan Neman, co-founder and CEO of Sweetgreen. “It’s been a long time coming, and we are so grateful to the Columbus community for embracing us with open arms!”

Sweetgreen recently said that for fiscal year 2024, it expects to open between 24 and 26 new restaurants. The entry into Ohio comes just weeks after the chain added Christopher Tarrant to its C-suite as senior VP and chief development officer, who will oversee real estate development, design and construction.

Founded in 2007, Sweetgreen operates more than 230 restaurants across the United States, selling salads and bowls that prioritizes organic, regenerative and locally-sourced produce.

Sweetgreen saw positive growth in its most recent quarter. For the fiscal period ended June 30, 2024, total revenue was $184.6 million, compared to $152.5 million in the prior year period, an increase of 21%. Same-store sales grew 9%, an increase of 6% from the second quarter of 2023.

REI Co-op is providing members with additional benefits during an 11-day event.

The specialty outdoor retailer is hosting “Member Days” from Friday, Sept. 6 – Monday, Sept. 16. During the promotion, REI members will receive 20% off one items from the retailer’s Re/Supply omnichannel used gear and trade-in program. 

Members will also be eligible to save $100 on all 2025 hosted REI Adventures active travel trips, as well as $2 off a screening of curated films from the Mountainfilm festival in Telluride, Colo. At select AMC Theaters locations the weekend of Sep. 28-29.

Other special Member Days offers include:

• Get 20% off member pricing on bike service packages for mountain, road, hybrid and e-bikes. Every REI store across the country has a full-service bike shop.
• Receive a $5 bonus card when redeeming $50 or more of REI gift card(s) value on a full price purchase.
• Earn double rewards (10% versus 5%) on all REI purchases made with the REI Co-op Mastercard.  

Anyone can shop at REI Co-op, but members who join the co-op for a one-time fee of $30 gain access to a range of benefits. In another recent member promotion, REI hosted more than 300 members-only free classes and day tours on Saturday, June 15.

[READ MORE: REI to host free classes, events on June 15]

Headquartered in Kent, Wash., REI has 24 million members nationwide and operates approximately 185 stores.