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Big box retailers

As higher-income households do more shopping at Walmart, the store is stocking fancier brands

by Kristin Schwab
Mar 22, 2024
The fluorescent lit aisles of big box stores don’t scream luxury. But for certain items, consumers just don’t care.
The fluorescent lit aisles of big box stores don’t scream luxury. But for certain items, consumers just don't care.
Scott Olson/Getty Images
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Macy's isn't facing a retail apocalypse. It's facing a shrinking middle class.

by Kristin Schwab
Mar 6, 2024
Department stores were created to serve an income group that's declining while the poorer and wealthier cohorts expand.
Macy's is one of the retailers that have downsized in recent years. Gap, Foot Locker and Bed Bath & Beyond have also struggled. 
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
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Costs have been falling for retailers — some retailers, at least

by Justin Ho
Nov 16, 2023
While supply chain costs have fallen over the last year, some retailers are still facing wage pressure and inventory costs.
Walmart has tried to cut freight costs by expanding the size of its private fleet.
George Frey/Getty Images
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Big box stores go big on renovations to tempt shoppers

by Kristin Schwab
Nov 7, 2023
They're trying to stay ahead of what customers, now used to online convenience and speed, expect from a retailer.
Endless aisles are Walmart’s strength — but also its weakness.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
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Members-only retailers are a status symbol in China

by Jennifer Pak
Sep 18, 2023
While regular supermarkets are struggling in China, aspirational consumers keep Sam’s Club, Costco and its Chinese competitor Freshippo X expanding.
A shopper walks out with a full shopping cart from a Sam's Club in Shanghai. Membership retailers are expanding in China despite traditional supermarkets struggling.
Charles Zhang/Marketplace
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Walmart’s store closures in Chicago highlight the challenges of urban big box retail

by Stephanie Hughes
Apr 13, 2023
Walmart says that, collectively, its Chicago stores aren’t profitable. But academics point out they’ll still leave a hole when they’re gone.
A worker collects shopping carts at a Walmart store in Chicago. The company announced the closure of half of its stores in the city this week.
Scott Olson/Getty Images
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COVID-19

CEOs call on Washington to help small businesses

by Marielle Segarra
Aug 4, 2020
Over 100 current and former corporate leaders sign a letter urging Congress to provide more relief to a huge sector that includes many of their suppliers and customers.
A shuttered small business in Brooklyn. Large corporations want small businesses to be kept afloat because the two sectors are interdependent.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
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Home Depot reports earnings this week

by Marielle Segarra
Aug 19, 2019
Some things are looking up for the retailer. Others, however ...
A sign for a Home Depot store in 2018 in El Cerrito, California.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
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