Daily Archives: November 16, 2016

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Activehours and Shop Your Way announces partnership

PALO ALTO, CALIF., 2016-Nov-17 — /EPR Retail News/ — Activehours and Shop Your Way, a business unit of Sears Holdings (NASDAQ: SHLD), announced a strategic partnership today (November 14, 2016) that integrates the Shop Your Way rewards program into the Activehours mobile application. The Activehours application allows people to access their pay the day they earn it, rather than waiting for a paycheck.

“Activehours offers a unique benefit for our Shop Your Way members. This partnership allows us to make a difference in our members’ financial lives by providing instant access to their pay the day they’ve earned it,” said Terry Rolecek, president, Shop Your Way Financial Services for Sears Holdings. “By integrating the Shop Your Way program with Activehours, we provide our members with the convenience of purchasing products and services when they need them rather than having to wait for a paycheck which has already been earned.”

As Shop Your Way members and associates within the Sears Holdings family of companies access their pay through Activehours, they will receive Shop Your Way points which may be redeemed online or in-store at Sears and Kmart. Existing Shop Your Way members can take advantage of this new benefit starting today by linking their accounts to the Activehours app at shopyourway.com/activehours/earn-at-activehours or activehours.com/shopyourway. Existing Activehours customers who sign up for a free Shop Your Way membership at activehours.com/shopyourway will automatically earn points on their next Activehours cash out.

“The Activehours app makes paychecks lightning fast, intelligent and now, they are even worth more,” said Ram Palaniappan, founder of Activehours. “It’s refreshing to strategically partner with a company such as Sears Holdings that understands the benefit of offering their associates and Shop Your Way members a service that allows them to receive wages in real-time. We’re excited to welcome the tens of millions of Shop Your Way members to the Activehours community.”

With Activehours, users get more power and flexibility in how and when they’re paid. Additionally, employers benefit as employees report improved attendance and reduced stress. Activehours is currently working with people employed by more than 10,000 companies, including Sears Holdings.

To download the free Activehours app and get paid when you want, please visit Google Play Store or the Apple Store.

About Activehours
Activehours is the new, faster way to get paid. Unlike the traditional two-week pay cycle, Activehours unlocks your pay by giving you the money you’ve already earned when you need it most — any time, any day. With Activehours, you choose when to get paid for the hours you’ve already worked, finally giving you control over your finances. Founded in 2013, Activehours is driving consumer-empowered finance through mobile technology by breaking open more than $1 trillion held up in America’s pay cycle. For more information on Activehours or to download the app, please visit www.activehours.com.

About Shop Your Way
Shop Your Way® is a free social shopping destination and rewards program offering millions of products, personalized services, and advice. The program rewards members for buying the products and services they want every day. Through an extensive network, members can shop thousands of top brands and earn points to use on future purchases. Members also have access to special pricing, sales and digital coupons that can be loaded directly into their account. It’s free and easy to become a Shop Your Way member and begin enjoying benefits immediately when you visit shopyourway.com. Download the free Shop Your Way app on iTunes or Google Play.

MEDIA CONTACT:

Sears Holdings Public Relations
(847) 286-8371

Source: Sears Holdings

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Kmart unveils exciting Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday deals

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill., 2016-Nov-17 — /EPR Retail News/ — The holidays only come once a year, so Kmart is making those gifts and experiences count. Today (Nov. 14, 2016), Kmart unveils some of its exciting Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday deals that will make Shop Your Way® members and shoppers want to start getting their elf on.

Whether you want to set the mood with a great deal on 1,000 thread count sheets, cozy up with BOGO apparel, whip up deliciousness with $4 Proctor Silex appliances or zoom in on holiday memories with a $39.99 Super X Drone with camera, shoppers can expect the retailer to be the one-stop shop for ridiculously awesome savings, joyful shopping experiences and spectacular ways to save.

HOTTEST ELFIN’ DEALS IN TOWN
Kmart is kicking off its elfin’ awesome holiday deals with exclusive doorbusters on Thanksgiving Dayand Black Friday, followed by a three-day sale beginning Black Friday through Sunday, Nov. 27**.  Shoppers can take advantage of numerous hot holiday deals without breaking the bank, including:

THANKSGIVING DAY DOORBUSTERS

  • Essential Home comforter set (any size); sale price $9.99, reg. price $49.99-$59.99
  • Fleece throws; sale price $1.99, reg. price $7.99
  • Juvenile plush pillows; sale price $8.99, reg. price $12.99
  • 1000 thread count sheet sets; sale price $19.99, reg. price $59.99
  • Slipper Booties; sale price $8, reg. price $16.99
  • BOGO $1 Family footwear; reg. price $7.99-69.99
  • BOGO Family apparel; reg. price $1.99-89.99
  • Barbie®; sale price $2.99, reg. price $6.99-$8.99
  • Non-brand board games; sale price $4.99, reg. price $10.99-$16.99

Offers valid from 6 a.m. on Thanksgiving Day until 5 p.m. (local time).

 BLACK FRIDAY DOORBUSTERS

  • Virtual reality goggles; sale price $8, reg. price $12.99
  • Boxed costume jewelry; sale price $5, reg. price $9.99-$16.99
  • Attention Table Sweaters; sale price $10, reg. price $19.99
  • BOGO $1 Family Footwear; reg. price $7.99-69.99
  • 50% off Christmas lights, reg. price $2.99-$99.99
  • Character Bikes; sale price $19.99, reg. price $49.99
  • Select Proctor Silex appliances; sale price $4, reg. price $9.99

Offers valid from 7 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day until 2 p.m. (local time) on Black Friday.

 BLACK FRIDAY THREE DAY SALE

  • Air Hogs Axis 200 Helicopter; sale price $9.99, reg. price $19.99
  • Super X Drone with camera; sale price $39.99, reg. price $79.99
  • Spiderman 20″ Action Figure; sale price $9.99; reg. price $24.99
  • Minecraft exclusive case; sale price $29.99; reg. price $39.99
  • BOGO $1 Family footwear; reg. price $7.99-69.99
  • BOGO Family apparel; reg. price $1.99-89.99

Offers valid from Black Friday until Sunday, Nov. 27.

SHOPPING MADE SUPER ELFIN’ EASY
Shoppers can still take advantage of No Money Down Layaway through Nov. 26. Plus, with a $50 or more purchase toward layaway, shoppers get an instant $10 discount*. To make it even easier, Kmart’s layaway can be done with the push of a button with ‘Layaway and Go™’ on the Kmart mobile app. For more information, please visit Kmart.com/Layaway.

Kmart also offers smarter, more flexible and dynamic ways to shop through seamless in-store and online shopping experiences such as Free Store Pickup (buy online, pickup for free In-Vehicle Pickup option); Pay-In-Store (reserve online, pay in store); Free Anyone, Anywhere (have a friend pickup purchases at any Kmart store); and Free Two-Day Shipping (Shop Your Way Max members get two-day free shipping on qualifying online orders).

ELFIN’ FUN FOR EVERYONE
Kmart is making the season sparkle for elves of all ages! With Kmart’s Fab 15 Toy List and 2016 Toy Book, kids can search for fun finds including exclusive toys, the hottest brands and licensed toys such as Star Wars, Barbie®, Fisher Price®, LEGO®, Hot Wheels®, NERF® and more. Member coupon deals are also included in the Kmart 2016 Toybook.

Don’t forget that our youngest shoppers (kids 12 and younger) also receive free goodies every Saturday as part of FREEBIE Saturdays throughout the holiday season.

In addition, Kmart stores will host visits with Santa from 1 p.m. – 3 p.m. local time every Sunday leading up to Christmas. Santa visits begin Sunday, Nov. 27.

For more information, visit your local Kmart store, Kmart.com or use the Kmart Mobile App.

*Receive $10 off your layaway with a $50 or more down layaway commitment.
**Stores in some jurisdictions may have different hours of operation if required by local law. Select stores will also have reduced hours closing at midnight or 2 a.m.

About Kmart
Kmart is making shopping fun again. The retailer, a subsidiary of Sears Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ: SHLD), is bringing back the iconic Bluelight Specials, hosting Freebie Saturdays and in-store family events for its Shop Your Way members and customers. Kmart offers customers thrilling deals and amazing finds on quality products and exclusive brands including Jaclyn Smith, Joe Boxer, Route 66 and Smart Sense.

Media Contacts:

Hallie Herrmann
Zeno for Kmart
312-527-2SHC (2742)
Hallie.Herrmann@zenogroup.com

Tricia Perrotti
Kmart
551-226-0488
Tricia.Perrotti@searshc.com

SOURCE: Kmart

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Cedar Crest Specialties recalls its Pirate’s Bounty ice cream due to possible contamination of Listeria

St. Louis, MO, 2016-Nov-17 — /EPR Retail News/ — Cedar Crest Specialties, Inc. is recalling its Pirate’s Bounty ice cream from six Schnucks stores because cookie dough pieces contained in the product may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.

Listeria monocytogenes is an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and other with weakened immune systems. Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, Listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women. To date, there have been no consumer complaints or reports of illness related to this product.

Customers of the six Schnucks stores listed below are urged to check their freezers for:

Cedar Crest Pirate’s Bounty

48 oz.

UPC: 20652-00752

Schnucks customers may return the affected product to their nearest store for a full refund. Those with questions should contact Cedar Crest at 1-888-628-0730 or the Schnucks Consumer Affairs department at 314-994-4400 or 1-800-264-4400.

These products are carried at the following six Schnucks Stores:

Illinois:

Rockford Plaza     2642 Charles Street     Rockford, IL 61108

Rockton     3150 North Rockton Ave.     Rockford, IL 61103

11th Street     3134 11th Street     Rockford, IL 61109

Mulford     2601 North Mulford     Rockford, IL 61114

Loves Park     1810 Harlem Road     Loves Park, IL 61111

Wisconsin:

Janesville     1501 Creston Park Drive     Janesville, WI 53545

Media Contact:

Paul Simon
314-994-4603
psimon@schnucks.com

Source: Schnucks

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Overstock.com launches rights offering with maximum subscription price of $15.68 per share

SALT LAKE CITY, 2016-Nov-17 — /EPR Retail News/ — Overstock.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:OSTK) launched its previously announced rights offering today (Nov. 15, 2016) with a maximum subscription price of $15.68 per share. The actual subscription price may be lower and will be determined at the end of the subscription period on Dec. 6, 2016.

Overstock CEO Patrick M. Byrne said, “Issuing history’s first public blockchain security is to the world of finance what Chuck Yeagerbreaking the sound barrier was to aviation. This is the start of a new age for global capital markets.

“The rights offering will allow Overstock shareholders to purchase shares of its preferred stock, including shares to be issued using t0’s blockchain technology. In addition, the blockchain shares will trade exclusively on a registered alternative trading system using the t0 blockchain technology.”

The rights offering is being made pursuant to Overstock’s effective shelf registration statement on Form S-3 (Reg. No. 333-203607) on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) and the related prospectus supplement filed with the SEC on Nov. 14, 2016. Investors should consider the information in the base prospectus and in the prospectus supplement carefully before making any decision to participate in the rights offering. Copies are being sent to holders of record on the record date of Nov. 10, 2016. Requests for copies of these documents and questions from stockholders relating to the rights offering may be directed to the information agent, as follows:

Information Agent:

Georgeson Inc.
1290 Avenue of the Americas
9th Floor
New York, NY 10104
(866) 432-2791
overstock@georgeson.com

Source Capital Group, Inc. is acting as dealer-manager for the rights offering. Source Capital invites any broker dealers interested in participating to contact Source Capital’s syndicate department at ostk@sourcegrp.com.

About Overstock.com
Overstock.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:OSTK) is an online retailer based in Salt Lake City, Utah that sells a broad range of products at low prices, including furniture, rugs, bedding, electronics, clothing, and jewelry. Additional stores within Overstock include Worldstock.com, dedicated to selling artisan-crafted products to help developing nations around the world and Main Street Revolution, supporting small-scale entrepreneurs in the U.S. by providing them with a national customer base. Other community-focused initiatives include Farmers Market and pet adoptions.  Forbes ranked Overstock in its list of the Top 100 Most Trustworthy Companies in 2014. Overstock sells internationally under the name O.co and regularly posts information about the company and other related matters under Investor Relations on its website.

O, Overstock.com, O.com, O.co, Club O, Main Street Revolution, Worldstock and OVillage are registered trademarks of Overstock.com, Inc.  O.biz and Space Shift are also trademarks of Overstock.com, Inc.  Other service marks, trademarks and trade names which may be referred to herein are the property of their respective owners.

About Source Capital Group, Inc.
Source Capital Group, Inc. was founded in 1992 as a boutique investment banking firm specializing in small to medium-sized transactions, and continues to focus its investment banking activities in those segments of the market. Source Capital has grown to include businesses in general securities, emerging market securities, distressed and high yield debt securities, investment management, mortgages and business lending. Source Capital’s mission is to provide excellent service and independent, unbiased and tailor-made advice. Source Capital is registered as a broker-dealer with the SEC and in 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, and is a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and the Securities Investor Protection Corporation.

Forward-Looking Statements:
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such forward-looking statements include all statements other than statements of historical fact. These forward-looking statements are inherently difficult to predict. Actual results, including all matters relating to the rights offering and all matters relating to our future financial results, could differ materially for a variety of reasons. Information about factors that could potentially affect our financial results is included in our Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2016, which was filed with the SEC on November 3, 2016. These and our other subsequent filings with the SEC identify important factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those contained in our projections, estimates and other forward-looking statements.

Overstock.com, Inc. has filed a registration statement (including a prospectus) with the SEC for the offering to which this communication relates. Before you invest, you should read the prospectus in that registration statement and the prospectus supplement Overstock.com, Inc. has filed with the SEC for the securities offered pursuant to the registration statement, and other documents that Overstock.com, Inc. has filed or files in the future with the SEC for more complete information about Overstock.com, Inc. and the offering. You may get these documents for free by visiting EDGAR on the SEC Web site at www.sec.gov. Alternatively, Overstock.com, Inc. will arrange to send you the prospectus if you request it by calling 1-801-947-5409.

Media Contact:
Kirstie Burden
Overstock.com, Inc.
+1 (801) 947-3564
pr@overstock.com

Investor Contact:
Mark Harden
Overstock.com, Inc.
+1 (801) 947-5409
ir@overstock.com

Source: Overstock.com, Inc./globenewswire

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Kohl’s announces donation of $10 million in grants to nonprofits following 15th anniversary of its associate volunteer program

Associates donate nearly 115,000 service hours in October to celebrate 15th anniversary of Kohl’s volunteer program

MENOMONEE FALLS, Wis, 2016-Nov-17 — /EPR Retail News/ — Today ( November 15, 2016), during a town hall meeting with associates from across the country, Kevin Mansell, Kohl’s chairman, chief executive officer and president, announced a donation of more than $10 million in grants to nonprofits following a month-long volunteer challenge celebrating the 15th anniversary of Kohl’s (NYSE: KSS) associate volunteer program. Throughout October, thousands of Kohl’s associates donated their time to take part in a record-breaking number of volunteer events, spending more than 115, 000 hours serving communities nationwide.

“Kohl’s purpose is to empower and inspire families to lead fulfilled lives and our associates live and act on this mission every day. We are committed to service both in our stores and in the community, which is why we started Kohl’s volunteer program 15 years ago,” said Mansell. “We know our associates are passionate about giving back to organizations that matter to them. Our volunteer results surpassed our expectations and we are proud of the Kohl’s associates who made it all happen.”

During the month of October, Kohl’s associates volunteered for nearly 8,000 events, an average of more than 250 events per day, to support a variety of nonprofit organizations, including:
• Remodeling kennels for an organization that provides veterans with service dogs in Flemington, N.J.
• Participating in a volunteer event per day for the entire month of October in St. Marys, Ohio
• Holding beach clean-ups and garbage collection in and around local waterways in West Melbourne, Fla.
• Hosting a Halloween party at a residential childcare facility with 150 associates from 27 stores in Northern Illinois
• Assembling blankets for an organization that distributes them to critically ill children in McKinney, Texas
• Planting trees at a local park to create more green space in Kansas City, Kan.
• Aiding an annual race supporting the fight against cancer in San Diego, Calif.
• Partnering with an organization to build a home for a local family in Billings, Mont.
• Assisting with animal adoption clinics for homeless pets in Anchorage, Alaska
• Sorting nearly 24,000 pounds of food for those in need in Milwaukee, Wis.

Kohl’s deploys a network of 140,000 associates who make time to support organizations that matter to them through volunteerism year-round. Through Kohl’s volunteer program, more than 1 million associates have donated nearly 4 million hours of their time in the 15 years of the program, and Kohl’s has donated more than $112 million to nonprofit organizations served. This program is part of Kohl’s overall philanthropic platform, Kohl’s Cares®, which is committed to supporting children’s health initiatives nationwide. To inquire about coordinating a Kohl’s volunteer program event, contact your local Kohl’s store and ask to speak with the store manager about the event. Find your nearest Kohl’s by visiting Kohls.com/stores

About Kohl’s

Kohl’s (NYSE: KSS) is a leading specialty department store with more than 1,100 stores in 49 states. With a commitment to inspiring and empowering families to lead fulfilled lives, the company offers amazing national and exclusive brands, incredible savings and inspiring shopping experiences in-store, online at Kohls.com and via mobile devices. Committed to its communities, Kohl’s has raised nearly $300 million for children’s initiatives nationwide through its Kohl’s Cares® cause merchandise program, which operates under Kohl’s Cares, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kohl’s Department Stores, Inc. For additional information about Kohl’s philanthropic and environmental initiatives, visit http://www.Kohls.com/Cares. For a list of store locations and information, or for the added convenience of shopping online, visit www.Kohls.com.

Connect with Kohl’s:
Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/Kohls)
Twitter (http://twitter.com/Kohls)
Google+ (http://plus.google.com/+Kohls)
Pinterest (http://pinterest.com/Kohls)
Instagram (http://instagram.com/Kohls)
YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/kohls)

Contact:

Ale DesJean
262.703.2985
Ale.DesJean@Kohls.com

Lyra O’Brien
262.703.5186
Lyra.OBrien@Kohls.com

Source: Kohl’s

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Raley’s Family of Fine Stores to offer healthier choices at checkout stands

Raley’s Family of Fine Stores to offer healthier choices at checkout stands
Raley’s Family of Fine Stores to offer healthier choices at checkout stands

 

“Let’s Begin to Offer Healthier Choices at Checkout”

Fair Oaks, CA, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — In an ongoing effort to enhance life with health and wellness, Raley’s Family of Fine Stores has implemented “Better for You” check stands throughout the chain.  This includes removing all artificially sweetened sodas from the check stand cold cases, while also upgrading the selection of snacks and treats- enlarging offerings such as granola bars, nutrition bars and improving the quality of certain candy options.

“We know impulsive choices happen at the check stand,” said Keith Knopf, Raley’s Chief Operating Officer. “We are proud to take a brave next step by making it easier for shoppers to choose healthy, more nutritious options.”

‘Better For You’ check stands are another first step toward helping customers make affordable, nutritious choices.  Last month, Raley’s began offering free fruit for kids. In August, they eliminated Raley’s private label brand soda that contained high-fructose corn syrup and artificial colors and flavors, including diet soda varieties. In 2015, Raley’s eliminated tobacco products from stores. These decisions are in response to customers’ increased interest in food and greater concerns about their health than ever before. These improvements in the shopping experience are based on Raley’s commitment to customers.

In addition to these changes in the store experience, Raley’s has launched their “Let’s Begin” campaign in stores and on Raleys.com that helps educate customers on how to make more informed decisions when purchasing food.

For information about our stores, please contact:
Chelsea Minor
Director of PR and Public Affairs
CMinor1@raleys.com.

Source: Raleys

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Bartell Drugs teams up with Amazon to offer Prime Now one-hour delivery service in Seattle

SEATTLE, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — Amazon Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) announced today (Nov. 15, 2016) its Prime Now one-hour delivery service adds its first drugstore to the service with local, family-owned store, Bartell Drugs. Prime members in Seattle can now shop thousands of health, beauty, grocery, snacks, local products and much more from Bartell Drugs and have those items conveniently delivered right to their door for free in two hours.

Starting today through 11:59 p.m. on November 21, Amazon Prime members will get $10 off their first orders of $20 or more with the promo code BARTEL10.

“Bartell Drugs has always stressed convenience as well as quality of products and service,” says Brian Unmacht, President/CEO of Bartell Drugs. “We are excited to leverage Prime Now’s unparalleled delivery speeds to meet customers’ day-to-day needs while honoring the exemplary service and products that our customers have come to know and love.”

Bartell Drugs delivery is available in select zip codes and expanding rapidly. The service is available Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. and Sunday from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.

“We’re proud to team up with fellow Seattle-based company, Bartell Drugs, to offer more than 85% of its inventory for superfast delivery right to the customer’s door,” said Simoina Vasen, director of Amazon Prime Now. “Whether you don’t want to leave your couch to get cold medicine, need a last-minute beauty fix, or want to embrace the holiday spirit with festive seasonal supplies, Bartell Drugs’ wide selection of local merchandise adds to the growing variety of product offerings available for one-and two-hour delivery in our home town.”

About Bartell Drugs:

Family-owned since 1890, Seattle-based Bartell Drugs is proud of its more than 125-year history based here in the Northwest. Four generations of the Bartell family have continuously focused on the future – and how the drugstore chain could better serve its customers. Operating 65 locations in King, Snohomish and Pierce counties, it is the nation’s oldest family-owned drugstore chain. For more information on Bartell Drugs, visit www.bartelldrugs.com.

Media Contact:

Ric Brewer
Senior Communications Manager
Bartell Drugs
206-933-9416
ric.brewer@bartelldrugs.com

Source: Bartell Drugs

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Popeyes® announces free Red Beans & Rice with any purchase on November 16

ATLANTA, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — Popeyes® Louisiana Kitchen thinks our guests might need a little comfort food right about now. So, for one day only on November 16th, guests will receive a free regular side of our Red Beans & Rice with any purchase at participating restaurants nationwide.

Red Beans and Rice – a Louisiana tradition and the most famous of all Popeyes’ Signature Sides – features velvety-smooth red beans served with seasoned rice.

“There is nothing that brings people together like real comfort food so we are celebrating our Popeyes community by offering one free Red Beans & Rice with any purchase all day on November 16th,” said Hector A. Muñoz, Chief Marketing Officer – US, Popeyes. “Red Beans & Rice is a Louisiana staple and a Popeyes specialty. Come on over and join us for this special occasion!”

Like recent Free Biscuit Days, Free Red Beans & Rice day will join the ranks of delicious Popeyes events this November 16th!

For more information please visit us at www.popeyes.com and join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

About Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen

Founded in 1972 in New Orleans, Popeyes is a leader in the New Orleans segment of the foodservice industry and is the world’s second largest quick-service chicken concept based on the number of units. As of October 2, 2016, Popeyes had 2,631 operating restaurants in the United States, the District of Columbia, three territories, and 26 foreign countries. For more information, visit the Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen Web site at www.popeyes.com.

Media Contact:
Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, Inc.
Renee Kopkowski
404-459-4630
Vice President, Brand Communications
renee.kopkowski@popeyes.com

Coltrin & Associates (on behalf of Popeyes)
Jennifer Webb
212-221-1616
Jennifer_webb@coltrin.com

Source: Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen

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Colruyt Group the first retailer to launch training programme for young graduates with leadership potential

Halle, Belgium, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — Colruyt Group is the first retailer to launch a customised training programme for young graduates with leadership potential. During “Start2Re-Tale”, sixteen young graduates will spend ten weeks from March 2017 learning about leadership, their own skills and talents, and the retail sector. Colruyt Group wants to bridge the gap between education and the labour market. The group is constantly in need of prospective managers, whilst many young graduates have difficulty finding their way around the labour market and do not always immediately think of retail. The programme requires full-time commitment from the participants. Afterwards, anyone who wants to can apply for a job within the group.

Added value for entering the labour market
Start2Re-Tale is a high quality, very wide-ranging training programme, with a combination of theory, lessons, workshops, internships and out of the box assignments in sales, logistics and support services. The participants acquire intensive knowledge about management and the retail sector within the context of Colruyt Group. They also get to know themselves better and experience whether management is for them via their talents and real life pitfalls. Either way, they are richer for this unique experience, with great added value for their first venture into the labour market. “Start2Re-Tale is an innovation in this market,” says Jan Van Holsbeke, sales division manager at OKay and the driving force behind the programme. “The programme positions itself as being somewhere between non-compulsory academic training such as postgraduate courses, and compulsory company traineeships. But it’s not necessarily a direct route to a job with us. At the end, successful participants will receive a certificate. Anyone who wants to can, of course, apply for a job within the group.”

Tailored to a specific target group
Colruyt Group has developed this route tailored to Bachelors and Masters who have the talent and ambition to lead. They must have graduated no more than two years earlier than January 2017. The group is also thinking about graduates with less obvious qualifications for the current labour market, such as in human rights for example. “They often don’t find a job immediately and also don’t really know which direction they want to take,” explains Van Holsbeke. “And they’re certainly not ready to consider possibilities within the retail sector in general or Colruyt Group in particular. With Start2Re-Tale, we want to show young people that retail is a fascinating sector with a lot of opportunities for the future, and to enhance their potential by giving a new twist to their story.”

Commitment required
The training is optional but demands strong commitment from participants. They pay €350 and must be able to make themselves available full-time for ten weeks between March 27th and June 2nd 2017. Candidates must either be Dutch-speaking or very bilingual and must be able to travel easily to Leuven. After evaluating the pilot, the group wants to roll out the programme to several locations in autumn 2017 and also offer it in French. Candidates can enroll online at https://start2retale.colruytgroup.com and, after thorough screening, they may be invited for an interview to assess their motivation and skills.

A special vision about leadership
With nearly 1,750 managers currently employed and annual vacancies for some 150 managers, Colruyt Group is ideally placed to develop a training course for prospective young managers. “We have a clear vision about leadership. Furthermore, our Colruyt Group Academy has a lot of expertise in educating and training employees. Because of this, the Academy has been able to create a unique, high quality programme for young people with leadership potential. It offers clear added value for the participants and, in the longer term, for the attractiveness of the sector,” concludes Jan Van Holsbeke.

Contact:
Patti Verdoodt
press@colruytgroup.com
Tel: +32 (0)2 363 55 45
Fax: +32 (0)473 92 45 10

Source: Colruyt Group

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The Home Depot® announces 6.1 percent sales increase for the 3Q FY2016 from same period the previous year

ATLANTA, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — The Home Depot®, the world’s largest home improvement retailer, today (Nov. 15, 2016) reported sales of $23.2 billion for the third quarter of fiscal 2016, a 6.1 percent increase from the third quarter of fiscal 2015. Comparable store sales for the third quarter of fiscal 2016 were positive 5.5 percent, and comp sales for U.S. stores were positive 5.9 percent.

Net earnings for the third quarter of fiscal 2016 were $2.0 billion, or $1.60 per diluted share, compared with net earnings of $1.7 billion, or $1.35 per diluted share, in the same period of fiscal 2015. For the third quarter of fiscal 2016, diluted earnings per share increased 18.5 percent from the same period in the prior year.

“We experienced balanced sales growth in the quarter driven by an increase in both ticket and transactions, and our continued focus on productivity drove double-digit earnings-per-share growth,” said Craig Menear, chairman, CEO and president. “I would like to thank our associates and suppliers for their hard work and dedication to our customers throughout the quarter, and particularly in the face of Hurricane Matthew and the flooding in Louisiana.”

Updated Fiscal 2016 Guidance

The Company reaffirmed its fiscal 2016 sales guidance and expects sales will be up approximately 6.3 percent and comp sales will be up approximately 4.9 percent. The Company raised its diluted earnings-per-share guidance for the year and now expects diluted earnings per share to grow approximately 15.9 percent from fiscal 2015 to $6.33.

The Home Depot will conduct a conference call today at 9 a.m. ET to discuss information included in this news release and related matters. The conference call will be available in its entirety through a webcast and replay at earnings.homedepot.com.

At the end of the third quarter, the Company operated a total of 2,276 retail stores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, 10 Canadian provinces and Mexico. The Company employs more than 385,000 associates. The Home Depot’s stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: HD) and is included in the Dow Jones industrial average and Standard & Poor’s 500 index.

Certain statements contained herein constitute “forward-looking statements” as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may relate to, among other things, the demand for our products and services; net sales growth; comparable store sales; effects of competition; state of the economy; state of the residential construction, housing and home improvement markets; state of the credit markets, including mortgages, home equity loans and consumer credit; demand for credit offerings; inventory and in-stock positions; implementation of store, interconnected retail and supply chain initiatives; management of relationships with our suppliers and vendors; the impact and expected outcome of investigations, inquiries, claims and litigation, including those related to the 2014 data breach; issues related to the payment methods we accept; continuation of share repurchase programs; net earnings performance; earnings per share; dividend targets; capital allocation and expenditures; liquidity; return on invested capital; expense leverage; stock-based compensation expense; commodity price inflation and deflation; the ability to issue debt on terms and at rates acceptable to us; the effect of accounting charges; the effect of adopting certain accounting standards; store openings and closures; guidance for fiscal 2016 and beyond; financial outlook; and the integration of Interline Brands, Inc. into our organization and the ability to recognize the anticipated synergies and benefits of the acquisition. Forward-looking statements are based on currently available information and our current assumptions, expectations and projections about future events. You should not rely on our forward-looking statements. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to future events, risks and uncertainties – many of which are beyond our control or are currently unknown to us – as well as potentially inaccurate assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from our expectations and projections. These risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to those described in Item 1A, “Risk Factors,” and elsewhere in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for our fiscal year ended January 31, 2016 and in our subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q.

Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and we do not undertake to update these statements other than as required by law. You are advised, however, to review any further disclosures we make on related subjects in our periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Contact:

Email: investor_relations@homedepot.com
IR Coordinator: 770-384-2871

SOURCE: The Home Depot

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Irvine can now enjoy free one-delivery from Amazon Restaurants

Prime members in Irvine can now enjoy delivery from popular restaurants, Mick’s Karma Bar, Rockfire Grill, 3-Thirty-3 Waterfront, Pick Up Stix and many more.

SEATTLE, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) today (Nov. 15, 2016) announced that Prime members in Irvine can now enjoy free one-hour delivery from popular restaurants, including Mick’s Karma Bar, Rockfire Grill, 3-Thirty-3 Waterfront, Pick Up Stix and many more.

“We are excited to continue rapidly expanding our ultra-fast delivery service of hot foods from popular, quality restaurants,” said Gus Lopez, general manager of Amazon Restaurants. “Irvine marks the sixth city in California, third to launch this month, to enjoy free one-delivery from Amazon Restaurants.”

Using the Prime Now app or by visiting www.primenow.com, Prime members in Irvine can order from participating restaurants, browse menus, track the status of their delivery, and watch as their delivery driver travels from the restaurant to the delivery address in real time.

Once an order is placed, Amazon delivery partners deliver the food in an hour or less. Amazon Restaurants offers customers transparent pricing—there are no menu markups or hidden service fees and delivery on all orders is free for Prime members. If a customer finds a restaurant item on Prime Now that is priced higher than the regularly priced item on the restaurant’s current online menu within 24 hours of placing the order, Amazon will refund that customer the price of the item.

“Amazon Restaurants is changing the food delivery game,” said John Cao, owner of East Borough in Costa Mesa. “As a restaurant owner, I’m excited to leverage Amazon’s reputation for quality and dependability so our customers can enjoy our foods conveniently at work or at home.”

Participating Restaurants in Irvine include:

  • 17th Street Deli
  • 3-Thirty-3 Waterfront
  • Adya
  • Al Amir Bakery
  • Arriba Baja Grill
  • Beach Pit BBQ
  • Cafe International Catering
  • Cappy’s Cafe
  • Carnitas La Villa
  • Caspian Restaurant
  • Champagnes Bistro and Deli
  • Crocker’s The Well Dressed Frank
  • Darbari Persian Grill
  • Doner G Turkish & Mediterranean Grill
  • East Borough
  • El Chinaco
  • Euro Caffe
  • Firehouse Subs
  • Flame Broiler
  • Flippin’ Pizza
  • Golden Dragon
  • Il Farro Restaurant
  • Il Gelato Caffe
  • Krave Asian Fusion & Restaurant
  • Lotus Bistro
  • Main Street Pizza & Cafe
  • Maizuru
  • Mezzet Mediterranean Cuisine
  • Mick’s Karma Bar
  • Momo’s Grill Hookah
  • Mother India
  • Mustard Cafe
  • Newport Beach Brewing Co.
  • North Shore Poke Co.
  • Pacifico Fish Company
  • Patty Macs
  • Pho Top Noodle 2
  • Pick Up Stix
  • Pizza Bar
  • Pizza D’Oro
  • Poke Works
  • Pokenoya
  • Pom & Olive
  • Rockfire Grill
  • Roman’s Mexican Restaurant
  • SAAGAR Fine Indian Cuisine
  • Sambazon Acai Cafe
  • Sandwich World
  • Square One Pizza Cafe
  • The Beach Barrel
  • The Flame Broiler
  • The Lighthouse Bayview Cafe
  • Tom’s Place
  • Tortillaz: Healthy Mexican Grill
  • Tropical Smoothie Cafe
  • Urban Kitchen Fresca Mediterranean Grill
  • Vitaly
  • Wild Taco
  • Yokohama Sushi & Grill

Prime members can download the Prime Now app or visit the Prime Now website to enter their zip code and see if the service is available in their area. In zip codes where restaurant delivery is available, customers will see Restaurants on the home page.

To learn more about Amazon Restaurants or to download the Prime Now mobile app, visit primenow.amazon.com/restaurants. For restaurants interested in working with Amazon Restaurants, please visit amazon.com/restaurants-merchants.

About Amazon

Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping, personalized recommendations, Prime, Fulfillment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle, Fire tablets, Fire TV, Amazon Echo, and Alexa are some of the products and services pioneered by Amazon. For more information, visit www.amazon.com/about. Learn more about Amazon Prime Now, Shop, or Download the App at www.primenow.com.

Media Hotline:

206-266-7180
Amazon-pr@amazon.com
www.amazon.com/pr

Source: Amazon.com, Inc.

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Prime Now adds Bartell Drugs to its service in select Seattle metro areas

Starting today in select Seattle Metro areas, Prime Now offers one- and two-hour delivery of thousands of products from Bartell Drugs, the nation’s oldest family-owned drugstore

SEATTLE, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — Amazon Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) announced today (Nov. 15, 2016) that its Prime Now one-hour delivery service has added its first drugstore with local, family-owned store, Bartell Drugs. Prime members in Seattle can now shop thousands of health, beauty, grocery, snacks, local products and much more from Bartell Drugs and have those items conveniently delivered for free in two hours. Delivery from Bartell Drugs is available in select Seattle metro areas including Capitol Hill, Columbia City, Mercer Island, Renton, Sammamish, and University of Washington starting today and will be expanding soon. Starting today through 11:59 p.m. on November 21, 2016, Prime members will get $10 off their first Bartell Drugs order of $20 or more with the promotional code BARTEL10.

“We’re proud to team up with Bartell Drugs to offer customers free delivery on 90% of Bartell’s in-store products,” said Simoina Vasen, director of Amazon Prime Now. “Whether you need cold medicine, a last minute beauty fix, or holiday items, Prime Now will deliver it right to your door for free in two hours.”

“Bartell Drugs has always stressed convenience as well as quality of products and service,” says Brian Unmacht, President/CEO of Bartell Drugs. “Bartells is excited to leverage Prime Now’s service to offer the large number of local online shoppers our diverse and quality product selection, along with the added convenience of quick delivery.”

In Seattle, Prime Now offers tens of thousands of items from Amazon, PCC, Uwajimaya, All the Best Pet Care, and popular local restaurants. Prime members can order everything on their grocery list from PCC’s made-daily, prepared foods and organic, local produce to Uwajimaya’s huge selection of Eastern-inspired products from cuts of meats to Asian snacks. Similarly, All the Best Pet Care affords customers the convenience of heavy pet food delivery, toys, pet beds and more. Prime Now is available neighborhoods spanning Everett to Normandy Park to Issaquah. With Prime Now, one-hour delivery is $7.99 and two-hour delivery is free. Prime Now is available from 8 a.m. to midnight, seven days a week in the Seattle area. Bartell Drugs is available through Prime Now Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Learn more about Amazon Prime Now at www.amazon.com/primenow.

About Amazon

Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping, personalized recommendations, Prime, Fulfillment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle, Fire tablets, Fire TV, Amazon Echo, and Alexa are some of the products and services pioneered by Amazon. For more information, visit www.amazon.com/about. Learn more about Amazon Prime Now, Shop, or Download the App at www.primenow.com.

About Bartell Drugs: Family-owned since 1890, Seattle-based Bartell Drugs is proud of its more than 125-year history based here in the Northwest. Four generations of the Bartell family have continuously focused on the future – and how the drugstore chain could better serve its customers. Operating 64 locations in King, Snohomish and Pierce counties, it is the nation’s oldest family-owned drugstore chain. For more information on Bartell Drugs, visit www.bartelldrugs.com.

Media Hotline:

206-266-7180
Amazon-pr@amazon.com
www.amazon.com/pr

Source: Amazon.com, Inc.

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Colson Whitehead’s novel The Underground Railroad tops Amazon’s list of Best Books of 2016

Amazon book editors reveal the 100 best books of the year, selecting titles in over two dozen categories from Literary Fiction and Mystery to Children’s & Young Adult

SEATTLE, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — Amazon.com today (Nov. 15, 2016) announced its selections for the Best Books of 2016, naming Colson Whitehead’s novel The Underground Railroad the Best Book of the Year. The annual list features the Top 100 books of the year plus Top 20 lists across various categories. All lists are hand-selected by Amazon’s team of editors who read hundreds of thousands of pages throughout the year—choosing the best books of every month and then, finally, the best books of the year. To see the full list of the Best Books of 2016 and buy the print or Kindle editions, visit: http://amazon.com/bestbooks2016

“The editorial team had a handful of books that we seriously considered for the top pick but in the end our choice of The Underground Railroad was unanimous,” said Chris Schluep, Amazon Senior Book Editor. “Colson Whitehead’s novel is timely, important, and a great work of literature.”

Here are the Amazon Editorial Team’s Top 10 picks this year:

  1. The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead: A brilliant, wise, fantastical yet grounded portrayal of a young slave seeking her freedom on a real underground railroad.
  2. The Wolf Road by Beth Lewis: Part literary thriller, part western, this is a debut novel about a young tomboy trying to survive a post-apocalyptic wilderness as she searches for her parents.
  3. Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance: A very personal tour of a segment of our culture that’s losing its way in modern America.
  4. The Nix by Nathan Hill: A big, smart novel about so many things: family, politics, revolution and the things we choose to remember (and forget).
  5. Mischling by Affinity Konar: Affinity Konar’s beautiful novel about twin sisters who survive Auschwitz is precisely crafted, acutely sensitive and ultimately uplifting and hopeful.
  6. Lab Girl by Hope Jahren: An inspiring and entertaining memoir about work, life and love from a plant scientist who is just as adept at analyzing the natural world as she is at illuminating human relationships.
  7. Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson: A poetic, breathtaking novel about growing up female and black in the 1970s—a time of conflicting pressures and sometimes crushing assumptions.
  8. Pumpkinflowers by Matti Friedman: An unforgettable nonfiction account of men changed by war, told in a voice that is both straight forward and undeniably literary.
  9. Before the Fall by Noah Hawley: From the award-winning creator of Fargo, a thrilling page-turner about an airplane crash and its seemingly heroic survivors.
  10. Swing Time by Zadie Smith: A masterful novel that tackles big issues—race, class and the ups and downs of long term friendship—told with a dancer’s grace and ease.

Here are some interesting facts about this year’s Best Books of the Year list:

  • Number of debut authors in the Top 20: 3
  • Number of science-related books in the Top 100: 6
  • Number of memoirs in the Top 100: 26
  • Number of entertainers who have authored books in the Top 100: 2
  • Number of books that were considered for the #1 spot on the list before the editors selected Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad: 4

The top picks in Children’s categories include The Night Gardener (Picture Books), The Secret Keepers (Middle Grade – ages 9-12) and The Sun is Also a Star (Young Adult). Topping the list in other popular categories is Anthony Bourdain’s Appetites (Cookbook) and David Yarrow’s Wild Encounters (Arts & Photography).

About Amazon

Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping, personalized recommendations, Prime, Fulfillment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle, Fire tablets, Fire TV, Amazon Echo, and Alexa are some of the products and services pioneered by Amazon. For more information, visit www.amazon.com/about.

Media Hotline:

206-266-7180
www.amazon.com/pr

Source: Amazon.com, Inc.

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Apple Pay kicks off support for charitable donations

Apple Pay kicks off support for charitable donations
Apple Pay kicks off support for charitable donations

 

Cupertino, California, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — Apple Pay is making it easier and more secure to donate to your favorite nonprofit organizations with just a touch. Apple Pay support for charitable donations kicks off today with nonprofits ranging from global organizations such as UNICEF to startups like charity: water, and more nonprofits will offer Apple Pay over the coming months so their supporters can make easy, secure and private payments.

Giving has never been so simple — by eliminating the need to enter billing and contact info, create an account or fill out long forms to check out, Apple Pay gives nonprofit supporters a way to donate instantly.

“We’re making it incredibly easy to give back with Apple Pay,” said Jennifer Bailey, Apple’s vice president of Apple Pay. “Websites and apps tell us they see twice as many people actually completing a purchase with Apple Pay than with other payment methods. We think offering such a simple and secure way to support the incredible work nonprofits do will have a significant impact on the communities they serve.”

Nonprofits bringing Apple Pay to supporters today include:

Nonprofits soon to offer Apple Pay include:

Press Contacts:

Katie Clark Alsadder
Apple
kclarkalsadder@apple.com
(408) 974-9976

Apple Media Helpline:

media.help@apple.com
(408) 974-2042

Source: Apple Inc.

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Amazon announces the sponsorship of 12 teams to participate in the Alexa Prize university competition

Twelve university teams from across the globe will compete to build a socialbot on Alexa that converses coherently and engagingly on popular topics for 20 minutes

SEATTLE, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — Today (Nov. 14, 2016), Amazon announced the sponsorship of 12 teams to participate in the Alexa Prize, an annual university competition dedicated to accelerating the field of conversational artificial intelligence (AI).

“The response to the Alexa Prize challenge has been incredibly positive. With applications from over 100 incredibly well-qualified teams from 22 countries, we were unable to pick just 10 to sponsor,” said Rohit Prasad, Vice President and Head Scientist, Amazon Alexa. “We are eager to see what students from the 12 sponsored teams around the world—including one team of undergrads—create with Alexa.”

More than one hundred teams from leading universities across 22 countries applied to participate in the Alexa Prize competition. The selected teams are:

  • Carnegie-Mellon University—Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Team Name: CMU Magnus
  • Carnegie-Mellon University—Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Team Name: TBD
  • Czech Technical University in Prague—Prague, Czech Republic; Team Name: eClub
  • Heriot-Watt University—Edinburgh, Scotland, UK; Team Name: WattSocialBot
  • Princeton University—Princeton, NJ, USA; Team Name: Princeton Alexa
  • Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute—Troy, NY, USA; Team Name: BAKAbot
  • University of California, Berkeley—Berkeley, CA, USA; Team Name: Machine Learning @ Berkeley
  • University of California, Santa Cruz—Santa Cruz, CA, USA; Team Name: SlugBots
  • University of Edinburgh—Edinburgh, Scotland, UK; Team Name: Edina
  • University of Montreal—Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Team Name: MILA Team
  • University of Trento—Trento, Italy; Team Name: Roving Minds
  • University of Washington—Seattle, WA, USA; Team Name: HuskyBot

The goal of the inaugural competition is to have university teams build socialbots on Alexa that will converse with humans on popular topics and news events. The team with the highest-performing socialbot will win the $500,000 prize. Additionally, an award of $1 million will be granted to the winning team’s school if their socialbot achieves the grand challenge of conversing coherently and engagingly for 20 minutes. In addition to receiving a $100,000 stipend for participating, the 12 teams selected for Amazon sponsorship will receive Alexa-enabled devices, free Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud computing services, and support from the Amazon Alexa Skills Kit (ASK) team. Students will build their socialbots using ASK, which tens of thousands of developers are already using to build new skills on Alexa.

Beginning in April 2017, as part of the research and judging process, millions of Alexa customers will have the opportunity to converse with the socialbots on popular topics. The feedback from Alexa users will be a factor in selecting the best socialbots to advance to the finals. The winning university team will be announced at AWS re:Invent in November 2017.

For Official Rules for the Alexa Prize please visit https://developer.amazon.com/alexaprize/contest-rules.

About Amazon

Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping, personalized recommendations, Prime, Fulfillment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle, Fire tablets, Fire TV, Amazon Echo, and Alexa are some of the products and services pioneered by Amazon. For more information, visit www.amazon.com/about.

Media Hotline:

206-266-7180
Amazon-pr@amazon.com
www.amazon.com/pr

Source: Amazon.com, Inc.

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Amazon Studios announces 2nd season of One Mississippi to premiere exclusively on Prime Video in 2017

  • The second season is scheduled to premiere in 2017 exclusively on Prime Video in the US, UK, Germany, Austria, and Japan
  • Created by Emmy Award nominated comedian Tig Notaro and Diablo Cody, the first season received rave reviews including Rolling Stone calling it “a brilliant series” and Entertainment Weekly dubbing the show a “must watch”

SEATTLE, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — Amazon Studios today (Nov. 14, 2016) announced One Mississippi, the critically acclaimed comedy, has been greenlit for a second season. Starring Emmy Award nominated comedian Tig Notaro (Transparent), created by Notaro and Diablo Cody (Young Adult), with Kate Robin (Six Feet Under) serving as Showrunner, One Mississippi follows Tig’s return to her hometown in Mississippi when her mother passes away unexpectedly. As she copes with the tragedy and deals with events from her past, the series becomes a poignant and surprisingly humorous exploration of family. The second season of One Mississippi is scheduled to premiere in 2017 exclusively on Amazon Prime Video in the US, UK, Germany, Austria, and Japan for Amazon Prime members to watch as part of their Prime membership via the Amazon Video app for TVs, connected devices including Fire TV, and mobile devices, or online at Amazon.com/originals.

“Making a show as comic and tragic as One Mississippi is a risk. Pulling it off with such intelligence and nuance is rare,” said Joe Lewis, Head of Comedy and Drama, Amazon Studios. “We’re grateful for the audience response and we’re excited to bring them more of Tig and Kate’s brilliance in season two.”

The first season of One Mississippi received wide critical acclaim including Variety calling it “one of the best new shows of the year” and The Hollywood Reporter dubbing the series “comedic modern art.” The New York Times touted the show as “tender, occasionally funny, often moving entertainment about the grieving process” and the Los Angeles Times said the content is “hilarious, tragic and exquisitely human.” Entertainment Weekly pronounced the show “brave and honest…finding humor in the saddest of circumstances” while The Week described it as “intelligently lyrical.”

One Mississippi stars creator Notaro, Noah Harpster (Transparent), John Rothman (Law & Order), and Stephanie Allynne (Comedy Bang! Bang!). Notaro, Cody, Robin, M. Blair Breard (Better Things), Dave Becky (Master of None), and Louis C.K. (Louie) will be Executive Producers for season two.

The entire first season of One Mississippi can be viewed on Prime Video: https://www.amazon.com/onemississippi. One Mississippi is part of Prime Video’s line-up of award-winning and critically acclaimed Original Series and Movies—to see more originals available exclusively for Prime members visit www.amazon.com/originals.

About Amazon Video

Amazon Video is a premium on-demand entertainment service that offers customers the greatest choice in what to watch, and how to watch it. Amazon Video is the only service that provides all of the following:

  • Prime Video: Thousands of movies and TV episodes, including popular licensed content plus critically acclaimed and award-winning Amazon Original Series and Movies from Amazon Studios like Transparent, The Man in the High Castle, Love & Friendship, and kids series Tumble Leaf,available for unlimited streaming as part of an Amazon Prime membership
  • Add-on Subscriptions: Dozens of subscriptions to networks like SHOWTIME, STARZ and more, available to Amazon Prime members as add-ons to their membership
  • Rent or Own: Hundreds of thousands of titles, including new-release movies and current TV shows available for on-demand rental or purchase for all Amazon customers
  • Instant Access: Instantly watch anytime, anywhere through the Amazon Video app on TVs, mobile devices, Amazon Fire TV, Fire TV Stick, and Fire tablets, or online. For a list of all compatible devices visit www.amazon.com/howtostream
  • Premium Features: Top features like 4K Ultra HD, High Dynamic Range (HDR) and mobile downloads for offline viewing

In addition to Prime Video, the Prime membership includes unlimited Free Two-Day Shipping on millions of items across all categories, more than one million songs and thousands of playlists and stations with Prime Music, early access to select Lightning Deals all year long, free secure, unlimited photo storage in Amazon Cloud Drive with Prime Photos, one free pre-released book a month with Kindle First, and more. To sign up for Prime or to find out more, visit: www.amazon.com/prime.

About Amazon

Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping, personalized recommendations, Prime, Fulfillment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle, Fire tablets, Fire TV, Amazon Echo, and Alexa are some of the products and services pioneered by Amazon. For more information, visit www.amazon.com/about.

Media Hotline:

206-266-7180
Amazon-pr@amazon.com
www.amazon.com/pr

Source: Amazon.com, Inc.

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Starbucks announces Buy One, Give One Power Lunch offer during National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week

Starbucks announces Buy One, Give One Power Lunch offer during National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week
Starbucks announces Buy One, Give One Power Lunch offer during National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week

 

Seattle, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — Hunger exists in every county in the U.S., affecting 42 million Americans including 13 million children according to a 2016 report by the United States Department of Agriculture.

During National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week, Starbucks is inviting customers to purchase a Power Lunch and in return, the company will donate a Power Lunch to the Feeding America® network of local food banks.* This Buy One, Give One Power Lunch offer will be available from November 15-21 in participating Starbucks® stores across the U.S.

“Every day all around us there are people who don’t know where their next meal is coming from,” said John Kelly, senior vice president, Global Social Impact.“This offer to provide a nourishing meal to someone in need is part of a multi-year national effort by Starbucks and Feeding America to close the hunger gap.  It’s part of our role and responsibility to our communities.”

“People are more likely to give during this time of year and Starbucks support is particularly important because it amplifies and reinforces our message about hunger in our community,” said Nicole Suydam, CEO, Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County, a Feeding America member food bank.

Building on an Existing Relationship

In March 2016, Starbucks announced a collaboration with Feeding America to launch Starbucks® FoodShare, a program where partners (employees) can donate ready-to-eat meals to food banks from its 7,800 company-operated stores in the U.S. Since launching a successful pilot of the program in San Diego last summer, Starbucks has added new markets including Orange County, Las Vegas, Denver and Colorado Springs. The company is scheduled to complete its rollout of Starbucks® FoodShare by 2019 and build upon the more than 345,000 nourishing meals that have been delivered to people in need to date.

“Our partners understood how important it was for us to donate surplus food back to the local community and they were the catalyst behind the FoodShare program,” said Kelly. “We were so inspired by Feeding America and all of its network partners that spend each day trying to get food to the people who need it the most. Now we can help address hunger together.”

“Launching this partnership with Starbucks has been a watershed moment for our food rescue efforts,” said Diana Aviv, CEO of Feeding America. “We are committed to identifying innovative solutions for sourcing food. Programs like FoodShare are a step in the right direction. Thanks to Starbucks contributions, more families and children will have access to a variety of nutrient-rich food.”

The Power of Lunch

Based on its relationship with Feeding America, Starbucks determined that it could do even more to get food to those in need by introducing the Power Lunch Buy One, Give One offer and encouraging customers to participate.

“We have a quality lunch menu that we’re pleased to provide to our customers and with this offer, we can donate nourishing meals to families in need as well,” said Ka Bao Lee, product manager Starbucks Lunch. “With Thanksgiving upon us, we think this is a particularly impactful time for such an effort.”

Although the offer lasts for one week, the lunches will be donated over a 90-day period. This will allow for a continuous flow of nourishing Starbucks meals that will meet the needs of local food banks for several weeks. Starbucks anticipates donating at least 50,000 Power Lunches with the help of its customers.

“The additional food from the Power Lunches will help our agencies feed children, families and seniors at a time when there are many demands on financial resources and when people are often unable to find enough food for their next meal,” Suydam said.

*Donations will be distributed in California, New York, Arizona and Colorado. Learn more at www.feedingamerica.org.

Media contact:

Global
Phone: 206 318 7100
Email: press@starbucks.com

Source: Starbucks

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Carrefour Brazil opens its 50th Carrefour Express store in Sao Paulo

Carrefour Brazil opens its 50th Carrefour Express store in Sao Paulo
Carrefour Brazil opens its 50th Carrefour Express store in Sao Paulo

 

Sao Paulo,Brazil, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — On 10 November, Carrefour Brazil unveiled the latest branch of its convenience store format. The opening in Sao Paulo of the 50th Carrefour Express store reinforces the company’s investment in a sector that offers customers improved levels of flexibility and comfort, focusing on a daily range of fresh and ready-to-consume items. The new store is located within the Metrô Tucuruvi mall, in the city’s northern sector. It is the network’s fourth store to be opened in a shopping centre, following those already located in Shopping Metrópole (in São Bernardo do Campo, SP), and CENESP (Centro Empresarial São Paulo) and Mais Shopping in the state capital.

The Express brand further diversifies the services offered by Carrefour Brazil, enabling the group to meet the growing demand among customers for quicker visits to stores located in the vicinity of their homes or the workplace. The company’s first store in this format was opened back in the second half of 2014, in the district of Tatuapé. In addition to the stores in São Bernardo do Campo, Santo André (SP), São Caetano (SP), Osasco (SP) and Barueri (SP), the format is also now present in districts such as Jardim Paulista, Saúde, Moema, Santo Amaro, Vila Mariana, República, Itaim, Mooca, Pinheiros, Vergueiro and Tucuruvi, all located within the city of Sao Paulo itself.

To guarantee the most user-friendly shopping experience, the layout of Carrefour Express stores has been specially designed with customer shopping habits in mind, and the products are arranged in such a way as to make it easier for customers to find their desired items. As is the case for each branch of Carrefour Express, the Metrô Tucuruvi store has been adapted to respond to the characteristics and demands of the surrounding district, taking various factors into consideration such as the sales area and range of products on offer.

For all request about the Carrefour Group (sales, financial results, governance, international,…), please contact the Carrefour Group media relations office:

. By phone:

Switchboard: +33 (0)1 41 04 26 00

For journalists: +33 (0)1 41 04 26 17

. By e-mail: presse_groupe@

Source: Carrefour Group

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Macy’s launches The Santa Project, a nationwide movement to fill Internet with positive affirmations of belief

Macy’s launches The Santa Project, a nationwide movement to fill Internet with positive affirmations of belief
Macy’s launches The Santa Project, a nationwide movement to fill Internet with positive affirmations of belief

 

Macy’s aims to curtail Internet cynicism by filling it with optimistic expressions of belief this holiday season

NEW YORK, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — As part of its annual Believe campaign, Macy’s today (Nov. 14, 2016) launches The Santa Project, a nationwide movement to fill the Internet with positive affirmations of belief. Macy’s is calling on people of all ages to post a photo, message or video with #SantaProject via Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or YouTube to show their beliefs. A selection of responses will be featured in a Macy’s television commercial coming this December.

“The story of Virginia O’Hanlon and the importance of believing have been the inspiration behind our iconic holiday campaign for the past eight years,” said Joe Feczko, senior vice president of brand marketing for Macy’s. “This season, we want to do everything we can to boost the spirit of Santa for future generations. When you look at the Internet right now, there is a lot of negativity out there. We’re asking people to come together this Christmas to flood the Internet with a groundswell of positivity that preserves belief for kids everywhere.”

About The Santa Project

The magic of Santa has been shared by word of mouth for generations and then spread through books, film and television. Today, the Internet provides an influential channel to continue this legacy. Children have unparalleled access to the most expansive breadth of information of any generation at the touch of their fingertips, and they turn to the Internet for answers. When inquiring about Santa, the answer is not so nice.

Macy’s is on a mission to change that. Starting this month, Macy’s is encouraging people to flood the Internet with expressions of belief in Santa and the Christmas spirit. By sharing a response that captures the importance of believing and what Santa means to them, everyone can play a role in keeping the magic of the holidays alive and ensuring that the Internet is a place where Santa lives on for future generations.

The Santa Project comes to life in a short film featuring children as they discuss what it means to believe in Santa. In addition, a television commercial, inviting America to respond, will air during Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade®, the official kick-off to the holiday season.

About The Research

The Santa Project conducted national quantitative and qualitative research investigating the importance of belief in Santa and the current state of belief across the country.

According to a recent Ipsos survey, two out of three people with kids in the home (66 percent) think it is important to believe in Santa (54 percent for all U.S. adults). However, 44 percent of U.S. adults think that belief is decreasing, versus just 8 percent who think it is increasing.

According to Dr. Jacqueline Woolley, leading expert in the field of child psychology, studies have shown that belief improves creativity and imagination, while also strengthening critical thinking.

“The kind of thinking involved in imagining how reindeer could fly through the sky is the same kind of thinking required for imagining solutions to today’s biggest problems,” Woolley said. “This kind of thinking — engaging the border between what is possible and what is impossible — is at the root of all scientific discoveries and inventions, from airplanes to the Internet.”

An additional qualitative study, commissioned by Macy’s, was conducted with 40 children, ages six- to nine- years-old, to study belief in Santa. Interviews showed that belief in Santa can build family traditions and rituals, and instill ideas of morality and generosity.

Join The Santa Project

Here’s how to get involved:

  1. Create a response that will help fill the Internet with belief, in the form of a short message, photo or video on why you believe in Santa and the spirit of the holiday season (filmed via smartphone, held sideways in landscape format)
  2. Post on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or YouTube with #SantaProject
  3. Encourage your family and friends to join the movement and spread the spirit of belief

Select video responses will be featured in a Macy’s television spot in December.

The Santa Project is part of Macy’s Believe campaign, which benefits Make-A-Wish®. Customers can drop their letters to Santa at Macy’s or send digitally at macys.com/believe. For every letter collected in-store or online, Macy’s will donate $1, up to $1 million, to Make-A-Wish, the organization that grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions.

To learn more about The Santa Project, visit macys.com/believe. Visitors can view a counter that will keep track of expressions of belief being spread throughout the holiday season, including an updated list of Top 10 states in the country that are showing the most belief via social media, letters to Santa, visits to Santa at Macy’s Santaland, and visits to macys.com/believe.

The Santa Project was created by Macy’s in partnership with Figliulo&Partners.

For media materials and video assets, visit http://pimsmultimedia.com/macys-holiday2016/believe.php.

Ipsos Methodology

This survey was conducted by Ipsos on Oct. 28, 2016, on behalf of Macy’s. For the survey, a sample of 1,006 U.S. adults over the age of 18 was interviewed online, in English, including 328 adults who have children under the age of 18. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the poll has a credibility interval of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points for all respondents surveyed, and 6.2 percentage points for parents.

About Macy’s

Macy’s, the largest retail brand of Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE:M), delivers fashion and affordable luxury to customers at 734 locations in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam, as well as to customers in the U.S. and more than 100 international destinations through its leading online store at macys.com. Via its stores, e-commerce site, mobile and social platforms, Macy’s offers distinctive assortments including the most desired family of exclusive and fashion brands for him, her and home. Macy’s is known for such epic events as Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks® and the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade®, as well as spectacular fashion shows, culinary events, flower shows and celebrity appearances. Macy’s flagship stores — including Herald Square in New York City, Union Square in San Francisco, State Street in Chicago, and Dadeland in Miami and South Coast Plaza in southern California — are known internationally and are leading destinations for visitors. Building on a more than 150-year tradition, and with the collective support of customers and employees, Macy’s helps strengthen communities by supporting local and national charities giving more than $69 million each year to help make a difference in the lives of our customers.

For Macy’s media materials, including images and contacts, please visit our online pressroom at macys.com/pressroom.

Media Relations:

Holly Thomas
646-429-5250
holly.thomas@macys.com

Julie Strider Fukami
646-429-5213
julie.striderfukami@macys.com

Source: Macy’s, Inc.

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La campaña organizada por EROSKI para recabar fondos para los damnificados por el huracán Matthew en Haití recauda €75.000

La campaña organizada por EROSKI para recabar fondos para los damnificados por el huracán Matthew en Haití recauda €75.000
La campaña organizada por EROSKI para recabar fondos para los damnificados por el huracán Matthew en Haití recauda €75.000

 

  • Los fondos van a ser donados íntegramente a UNICEF e irán destinados a proporcionar asistencia sanitaria, agua potable, refugio y protección a los niños y niñas afectados por la catástrofe y a sus familias
  • A lo recaudado en sus tiendas gracias a las donaciones de los clientes, EROSKI ha sumado una aportación adicional

ELORRIO,España, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — La campaña organizada por EROSKI, en coordinación con UNICEF Comité Español, para recabar fondos en favor de los damnificados por el paso del huracán Matthew que ha devastado Haití y ha causado la peor crisis humanitaria en el país desde el terremoto de 2010, ha recaudado 75.000 euros.

Los fondos van a a ser canalizados íntegramente a través de UNICEF que está trabajando sobre el terreno con misiones específicas en apoyo a los damnificados por esta tragedia. Concretamente irán destinados a facilitar el acceso a agua potable a través de infraestructuras de saneamiento adecuadas, proporcionar asistencia sanitaria y refugio y protección a los niños y niñas afectados por esta catástrofe.

La campaña solidaria de EROSKI arrancó el 13 de octubre y hasta principios de la semana pasada ha estado activada en su red de supermercados e hipermercados. Las tiendas EROSKI han exhibido carteles de la campaña que, bajo el lema ‘SOS HAITI’, apelaban a la solidaridad de los consumidores para que realizaran una donación voluntaria a su paso por la línea de cajas para ayudar a cubrir las necesidades básicas de la población afectada por esta catástrofe, que necesita ayuda urgente.

La cantidad recaudada en las tiendas a través de la donación de los clientes ha ascendido a 63.946 euros y EROSKI ha realizado una aportación adicional por lo que la recaudación final donada a UNICEF ascienda a 75.000 euros.

“Una vez más la solidaridad de nuestros clientes nos hace sentir una gran satisfacción por el resultado de esta campaña, y nuevamente nos demuestran su gran compromiso con las crisis humanitarias. Desde EROSKI queremos agradecer su implicación y respuesta siempre positiva a las acciones solidarias que les proponemos”, ha señalado el director de Responsabilidad Social de EROSKI, Alejandro Martínez Berriochoa.

“Desde UNICEF Comité Español queremos agradecer el trabajo realizado y la implicación de EROSKI y sus empleados y empleadas, cuya colaboración es clave, y es una excelente vía para movilizar a miles de personas ebn la recaudación de fondos para paliar los efectos de esta emergencia. . También a sus clientes que una vez más han demostrado su solidaridad y compromiso con la infancia más vulnerable. Con estos  apoyos, podremos facilitar el acceso a agua potable y dotar de infraestructuras de saneamiento adecuadas para evitar la propagación de enfermedades como el cólera, suministrando pastillas potabilizadoras, depósitos de agua y kits de saneamiento e higiene”, ha señalado Isidro Elezgarai, Patrono de UNICEF Comité Español.

EROSKI colabora con UNICEF desde hace 14 años en diferentes labores humanitarias. Ya lo hizo en 2010 cuando un terremoto desoló también Haití. A través de aquella campaña solidaria de EROSKI se recaudaron más de 200.000 euros a través de las aportaciones de decenas de miles de sus clientes.

EROSKI y Fundación EROSKI, junto a sus clientes, han realizado donaciones que rondan los 600.000 euros durante las últimas campañas solidarias activadas para causas humanitarias en destinos como Haití (2010), Lorca-Murcia (2011), Filipinas (2013), Nepal (2015) y Siria (2015).

Desde sus inicios, EROSKI lleva a cabo múltiples iniciativas de acción social, principalmente relacionadas con la promoción de los hábitos de vida saludables, la formación al consumidor, la defensa del medio ambiente y la solidaridad.

Datos de contacto con el Departamento de Comunicación:
944 158 642
comunicacion@eroski.es

Source: Eroski

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The Michaels Companies, Inc. to report 3Q2016 results on December 6, 2016

IRVING, Texas, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — The Michaels Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ:MIK) today (2016-11-14) announced that it will report third quarter results on Tuesday, December 6, 2016, before the opening of financial markets. In connection with the announcement, the Company will host a conference call at 8:00 a.m. CT on Tuesday, December 6, 2016, to discuss its financial and operational results.

Investors who would like to join the conference call are encouraged to pre-register for the conference call using the following link: http://dpregister.com/10096593. Callers who pre-register will be given a conference call passcode and a unique PIN to gain immediate access to the call and bypass the live operator. Participants may pre-register at any time, including up to and after the call start time.

Investors without internet access or who are unable to pre-register can join the call by dialing (866) 777-2509 or (412)-317-5413.

The conference call will also be webcast at http://investors.michaels.com/. To listen to the live call, please go to the website at least 15 minutes before the call is scheduled to begin to register and download any necessary audio software. The webcast will be accessible for 30 days after the call. Additionally, a telephone replay will be available untilDecember 13, 2016, by dialing (877) 344-7529 or (412) 317-0088, access code 10096593.

About The Michaels Companies, Inc.

The Michaels Companies, Inc. is North America’s largest specialty provider of arts, crafts, framing, floral, wall décor, and seasonal merchandise for the hobbyist and do-it-yourself home decorator. As of July 30, 2016, the Company owned and operated 1,356 stores in 49 states and Canada under the brands Michaels, Aaron Brothers, and Pat Catan’s. The Michaels Companies, Inc., also owns Artistree, a manufacturer of high quality custom and specialty framing merchandise, and Darice, a premier wholesale distributor in the craft, gift and decor industry. The Michaels Companies, Inc. produces a number of exclusive private brands including Recollections®, Studio Decor™, Bead Landing®, Creatology®, Ashland®, Celebrate It®, Art Minds®, Artist’s Loft®, Craft Smart®, Loops & Threads®, Make Market®, Foamies®, LockerLookz®, and Sticky Sticks®. Learn more about Michaels at www.michaels.com.

Investors Contact:
The Michaels Companies, Inc.
Kiley F. Rawlins, CFA,
972-409-7404
Kiley.Rawlins@michaels.com

ICR, Inc.
Farah Soi / Anne Rakunas
203-682-8200
Farah.Soi@icrinc.com / Anne.Rakunas@icrinc.com

Financial Media:
ICR, Inc.
Jessica Liddell / Julia Young
203-682-8200
Michaels@icrinc.com

Source: The Michaels Companies, Inc.

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IKEA to install solar panels on its distribution center in Joliet; Illinois’ largest solar rooftop installation

CONSHOHOCKEN, PA, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — IKEA, the world’s leading home furnishings retailer, today (11/15/2016) announced plans to install solar panels on its Midwest distribution center under construction in Joliet, IL. Installation will begin in Spring 2017, with completion expected in Fall 2017 for Illinois’ largest rooftop array. Combined with arrays atop the Chicago-area IKEA stores in Bolingbrook and Schaumburg, this third project will make IKEA owner of three of the state’s largest solar rooftop installations. (The renewable energy portfolio of IKEA in Illinois also includes a 49-turbine wind farm in Hoopeston, IL)

The distribution center’s 470,545-square-foot solar array will consist of a 2.91 MW system, built with 8,966 panels, and will produce approximately 3,411,600 kWh of electricity annually for the facility, the equivalent of reducing 2,398 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) – equal to the emissions of 506 cars or providing electricity for 354 homes yearly (calculating clean energy equivalents at www.epa.gov/energy/greenhouse-gas-equivalencies-calculator).

For the development, design and installation of the facility’s solar power system, IKEA selected SoCore Energy, a wholly owned, indirect subsidiary of Edison International that has designed and installed hundreds of solar solutions across 21 states. Gray Construction is managing the construction of the Joliet distribution center, which will receive and inventory goods sold at IKEA stores worldwide.

“We are excited to further our sustainability commitment with solar panels on our future Midwest distribution center,” said Lars Peterson, IKEA U.S. president. “Installing Illinois’ largest rooftop array advances our vision of creating a better everyday life for the many.”

IKEA, drawing from its Swedish heritage and respect of nature, believes it can do good business while minimizing impacts on the environment. This installation will represent the 45th solar project for IKEA in the United States, contributing to the IKEA solar presence atop nearly 90% of its U.S. locations, with a total generation of more than 40 MW. IKEA owns and operates each of its solar PV energy systems atop its buildings – as opposed to a solar lease or PPA (power purchase agreement) – and globally has allocated $2.5 billion to invest in renewable energy through 2020, reinforcing its confidence and investment in solar photovoltaic technology. Consistent with the goal of being energy independent by 2020, IKEA has installed more than 700,000 solar panels on buildings across the world and owns approximately 300 wind turbines, including 104 in the U.S. – 49 of which are in Hoopeston, IL.

Under construction on 72 acres at the Laraway Crossings Business Park, the future 1.25-million-square-foot distribution center in Joliet will enhance the IKEA distribution network with a central location allowing goods to be received at coastal ports from both Asia and Europe and then transported inland to the Joliet facility. The proximity to a nearby railroad intermodal will represent additional long-term transportation options too. IKEA also is planning another, similarly-sized facility on 62 acres adjacent to the one currently being built. (The timing for construction of the second building remains to be determined.

Since its 1943 founding in Sweden, IKEA has offered home furnishings of good design and function at low prices so the majority of people can afford them. There are currently more than 380 IKEA stores in 48 countries, including 42 in the U.S., where there also are five operating distribution centers. IKEA has been ranked among “Best Companies to Work For” and, as further investment in its coworkers, has raised its own minimum wage twice in two years. IKEA incorporates sustainability into day-to-day business and supports initiatives that benefit children and the environment. For more information see IKEA-USA.com, @IKEAUSANews, @IKEAUSA or IKEAUSA on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Pinterest.

Contact:
Joseph Roth
Expansion Public Affairs
(610) 834-0180, x 6500

Source: IKEA

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ALDI and celebrity chef Carla Hall partner to inspire at-home master chefs and kitchen newbies alike

Batavia, Ill., 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — ALDI, one of America’s favorite grocery stores*, today (November 14, 2016) announced a partnership with chef, restaurateur and co-host of ABC’s The Chew, Carla Hall. Bringing her signature flair and innovative twists on comfort food favorites, Hall is joining forces with ALDI to serve up recipes, cooking tips and videos that’ll inspire at-home master chefs and kitchen newbies alike.

The partnership kicked off with a taste test: could Hall taste the difference between ALDI products in comparison to the national brands? Spoiler alert: she discovered what millions of ALDI customers already know – ALDI products taste the same, if not better, than the big brands, but cost up to 50 percent less**. Check out Hall’s taste test video at aldi.us/holidays.

“ALDI is the best because they take the guess work out of grocery shopping. You know you’re going to get quality, delicious products at amazing prices every time you shop there,” said Carla Hall. “I love the holidays, but I know how crazy expensive they can be. With ALDI, you can host a feast on a budget that will impress your family and friends.”

Known for making shopping easy and affordable, ALDI wants to take the stress out of the holiday season. That’s why ALDI built a go-to source for its customers to find entertaining ideas, holiday must-haves and simple, delicious recipes. Like an advent calendar, the ALDI holiday website will count down to New Year’s, revealing new tips, tricks, and recipes, including many from Hall, to help make the holidays happen without a hitch. ALDI is encouraging fans to share their holiday moments by posting their favorite recipes, tips and photos using #MakeHolidaysHappen.

“Carla’s fun, infectious personality is a perfect fit for ALDI this holiday season,” said ALDI spokeswoman Liz Ruggles. “Her crowd-pleasing recipes and genius kitchen hacks, combined with our premium products that won’t break the bank, will help make your holiday celebrations a bit more magical and a lot less stressful.”

For more on ALDI and Carla Hall this season, follow ALDI on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and the ALDI Simply Smarter Living Blog.

About ALDI Inc.

A leader in the grocery retailing industry, ALDI operates nearly 1,600 US stores in 34 states. More than 32 million customers each month save up to 50 percent* on their grocery bills, benefiting from the ALDI simple and streamlined approach to retailing. ALDI sells the most frequently purchased grocery and household items, primarily under its exclusive brands, which must meet or exceed the national name brands on taste and quality. ALDI is so confident in the quality of its products, the company offers a Double Guarantee: If for any reason a customer is not 100 percent satisfied with any ALDI food product, ALDI will gladly replace the product and refund the purchase price. ALDI was honored with the 2015 Supermarket News Retail Achievement Award, recognizing the company for its ongoing business expansion and product evolution. For more information about ALDI, visit aldi.us.

Contacts:
Jodie Kehoe
(312) 988-2230
jkehoe@webershandwick.com

Melisa Yunlu
(312) 988-2427
myunlu@webershandwick.com

Source: ALDI Inc.

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Product recall: Weight Watchers Smart Ones Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Sundae frozen desserts due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination

Product recall: Weight Watchers Smart Ones Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Sundae frozen desserts due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination
Product recall: Weight Watchers Smart Ones Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Sundae frozen desserts due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination

 

Chicago, IL, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — Weight Watchers Smart Ones Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Sundae frozen desserts is voluntarily being recalled due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination from Aspen Hills, Inc. Cookie Dough Pieces.

This issue was identified when Aspen Hills, the supplier of the cookie dough pieces used as an ingredient in Weight Watchers Smart Ones Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Sundae frozen desserts, reported positive test results for Listeria monocytogenes. We immediately began an investigation and are voluntarily taking this action as a precautionary measure.

Listeria monocytogenes is a bacterium that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, Listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.

There have been no consumer complaints or reports of illness related to this issue to date.

The recall is for approximately 100,000 cases of Weight Watchers Smart OnesChocolate Chip Cookie Dough Sundae frozen desserts.

No other sizes, varieties or code dates of Weight Watchers Smart Ones products are included in this recall.

The following is being recalled:

Product Size Name of Product Individual Package  Lot Code
Best When Used By Code Date		 Individual Package UPC
4 Pack Weight Watchers Smart One’s Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Sundae Best if Used by 12/28/2016   MS5M01A 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used by 12/28/2016   MS5M02A 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used by 12/28/2016    MS5M07A 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used By 12/28/2016    MS5M08A 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used by 01/28/2017    MS6A18A 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used by 01/28/2017   MS6A19A 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used by 01/28/2017   MS6A20A 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used by 02/28/17    MS6B15A 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used by 02/28/17    MS6B16A 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used by 02/28/17   MS6B17A 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used by 03/28/2017  &MS6C28A 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used by 03/28/2017    MS6C29A 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used by 03/28/2017   MS6C30A 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used By 05/28/2017    MS6E10A 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used By 06/28/2017    MS6F27A 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used By 06/28/2017    MS6F28A 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used By 06/28/2017    MS6F29A 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used by 07/28/2017    MS6G28A 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used By 07/28/2017  MS6G25 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used By 07/28/2017    MS6G26 0 2580002329 5
Best if Used By 07/28/2017    MS6G27 0 2580002329 5

 

We deeply regret this situation and apologize to any consumers we have disappointed.

Consumers who purchased this product should not eat it. They should return it to the store where purchased for an exchange or full refund. Consumers can also contact 1-866-572-3805. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern, for a full refund.

This product was distributed to retailers in the U.S. only.

Consumers Contact:
Kraft Heinz
1-866-572-3805

Media Contact:
Lynne Galia
lynne.galia@kraftheinzcompany.com
847-646-4396

Source: FDA

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Marine Agrifuture recalls “Kahuku Ogo”, “Robusta Ogo” and “Kahuku Sea Asparagus” due to potential contamination of Salmonella

Marine Agrifuture recalls “Kahuku Ogo”, “Robusta Ogo” and "Kahuku Sea Asparagus" due to potential contamination of Salmonella
Marine Agrifuture recalls “Kahuku Ogo”, “Robusta Ogo” and “Kahuku Sea Asparagus” due to potential contamination of Salmonella

 

Kahuku, HI, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — Marine Agrifuture, LLC. of Kahuku, HI, is recalling its “Kahuku Ogo”, “Robusta Ogo” and  “Kahuku Sea Asparagus” because they have the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella, an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis and arthritis.

The recalled “Kahuku Ogo”, “Robusta Ogo”, and  “Kahuku Sea Asparagus” were distributed mainly in Hawaii to Seafood and Produce Distributors through direct delivery, but also to some customers in CA, WA, NV, and Tokyo Japan, and retailed at local Farmers Markets in Hawaii.

The Ogo products come in a plastic bag of various weights from 0.5 LB to 35 LB, which were sold from November 2, 2016 and prior, and the Sea Asparagus in 4 Ounce, 1 LB clear plastic clamshell or in a 5 LB of plastic bag marked with a tracking number stamped on the lids or bags, which were sold from November 8, 2016 and prior. The corresponding UPC number for 4 OZ, 1 LB, and 5 LB of sea asparagus are 897680001010, 897680001027, and 897680001041 respectively.

Fourteen cases of Salmonella on Oahu have been reported to date in connection with this problem. The potential for contamination was noted after special tests by the Hawaii Department of Health revealed the presence of Salmonella in saltwater in the farm production and processing areas.

Production of the product has been suspended while FDA and the company continue their investigation as to what caused the problem.

Seafood and Produce companies that have purchased Kahuku Ogo, Robusta Ogo, and Kahuku Sea Asparagus described above are urged to stop using or selling or further distributing these products, to disposal of the products, and to have them let us know the amount that was destroyed for credit and reconciliation for your recall. Consumers who have purchased 1 LB or 0.5 LB package of Kahuku Ogo, Robusta Ogo, and 4 OZ package of Kahuku Sea Asparagus at Farmers Markets are urged to return them to the place of purchase for a full refund. Consumers with questions may contact the company at 1-808-779-2885, from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm Monday to Friday Hawaiian time.

Consumers Contact:

Marine Agrifuture, LLC.
1-808-779-2885

Source: FDA

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Toys“R”Us adds St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital® to its charitable causes in this season of giving

WAYNE, NJ, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — The holiday season is all about showing thanks and embracing the spirit of giving. And with that, Toys“R”Us® is joining St. Jude in its Thanks and Giving® campaign through a financial commitment from the Toys”R”Us Children’s Fund, a public charity affiliated with the company, to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital®.

This is the first year Toys“R”Us will join celebrities, media, and more than 70 of the nation’s leading brands and companies that unite to raise funds and awareness for the campaign. These funds are critical given that no family ever receives a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food – because all a family should worry about is helping their child live.

For all of these reasons and more, Toys“R”Us is thrilled to add St. Jude to its charitable causes in this season of giving. Since its founding in 1992, the Toys“R”Us Children’s Fund has contributed 125 million dollars to various children’s organizations that share in the company’s mission to keep children safe and help them in times of need.

Please click here to learn more about Toys“R”Us” joining the St. Jude Thanks and Giving campaign.

Media Contacts:
Toys“R”Us, Inc.
Alyssa Peera
973-617-5634
alyssa.peera@toysrus.com

SOURCE: Toys“R”Us, Inc.

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Apple announces conservation efforts to protect working forests in the United States

Apple announces conservation efforts to protect working forests in the United States

Cupertino, California, 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — Apple today (NOVEMBER 14, 2016) announced important progress in its efforts to protect working forests in the United States. The company, in partnership with The Conservation Fund, is donating the conservation easement across more than 32,400 acres of working forest in the US — the Reed Forest in Maine — to the Forest Society of Maine. Apple is also supporting the Fund’s donation of an endowment to the Forest Society of Maine, which will ensure that the easement can be monitored and enforced for centuries to come.

Apple recognizes forests are a tremendous natural resource, and is committed to minimizing its impact by sourcing paper responsibly and using it as efficiently as possible. The company is working to protect and create enough responsibly managed forests around the world to cover all its packaging needs and produce fiber for generations. In 2015, Apple launched a partnership with The Conservation Fund to protect 36,000 acres of sustainable forest in the Eastern United States through the use of conservation easements, which help ensure the working forests remain forests. Apple is also partnering with World Wildlife Fund in China to transition up to one million acres of forest into responsible management by 2020.

The conservation easement ensures forests at Reed won’t be developed or converted to other uses, and helps promote economical and ecologically-sustainable production of fiber and other wood products. The easement also guarantees recreational activities in the forests, and requires forest harvest plans to address water quality, native fish and wildlife habitat, soil productivity, recreational values, scenic benefits, an enduring forest and other conservation values.

Located along the Mattawamkeag River in Aroostook County, Reed Forest connects more than a million acres of conserved lands and interconnected forest habit that extend beyond the US border into Canada. Maine’s forests provide important habitat for species such as the Atlantic salmon, bald eagle, northern goshawk and Canada lynx.

Press Contacts:

Alisha Johnson
Apple
alisha_johnson@apple.com
(669) 227-3364

Apple Media Helpline:
media.help@apple.com
(408) 974-2042

Souree: Apple Inc.

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Dollar General announces fundraising and toy drive for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and Toys for Tots Foundation

Company furthers its mission of Serving Others through in-store collections for the St. Jude Thanks and Giving® campaign, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Foundation and local toy drives

Goodlettsville, Tenn., 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — Dollar General will continue its mission of Serving Others this holiday season with its ongoing commitment to support St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and the local communities it serves in partnership with the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Foundation and other area toy drives.  In addition to customer donations throughout the campaigns, Dollar General will donate $175,000 to provide additional funding and support of these organizations’ efforts.

From November 18 through December 18, Dollar General customers may donate $1 or more at check-out to benefit the St. Jude Thanks and Giving® campaign.  This year marks the eleventh consecutive year of Dollar General’s support of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, which is the global leader in finding cures and saving children with cancer and other deadly diseases. Dollar General and its customers have provided more than $15.3 million to the Thanks and Giving® campaign since 2006.

Also beginning November 18, Dollar General stores will begin collecting toys and holiday items to benefit children this holiday season.  Through partnerships with the Toys for Tots Foundation and local toy drives, children throughout the local communities Dollar General stores serve may have a brighter holiday season.  In-store collections run through December 9.

For additional information, photographs or items to supplement a story, please visit the DG Newsroom, contact the Media Relations Department at 1-877-944-DGPR (3477) or via email at dgpr@dg.com.

About Dollar General Corporation
Dollar General Corporation has been delivering value to shoppers for over 75 years through its mission of Serving Others. Dollar General helps shoppers Save time. Save money. Every day!® by offering products that are frequently used and replenished, such as food, snacks, health and beauty aids, cleaning supplies, clothing for the family, housewares and seasonal items at low everyday prices in convenient neighborhood locations. Dollar General operated over 13,000 stores in 43 states as of October 28, 2016. In addition to high quality private brands, Dollar General sells products from America’s most-trusted manufacturers such as Procter & Gamble, Kimberly-Clark, Unilever, Kellogg’s, General Mills, Nabisco, Hanes, PepsiCo and Coca-Cola. Learn more about Dollar General at www.dollargeneral.com.

For Media Inquiries:
Email: dgpr@dollargeneral.com
Call: 1-877-944-3477

Source: Dollar General

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Meijer offers sneak peek at its upcoming, week-long Black Friday deals

Meijer offers sneak peek at its upcoming, week-long Black Friday deals
Meijer offers sneak peek at its upcoming, week-long Black Friday deals

 

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — Meijer is giving customers a chance to get a head start on their Christmas shopping by offering a sneak peek at its upcoming, week-long Black Friday deals. Customers can start saving on this season’s hottest gifts beginning Nov. 20 – five days before Black Friday.

The Grand Rapids, Mich.-based retailer will also offer special sales beginning Thanksgiving morning at 6 a.m. to accommodate customers shopping for last-minute items who may want to get a jump on their holiday shopping. These special deals continue through Nov. 26.

“Christmas shopping can be very stressful, which is why Meijer believes that customers shouldn’t have to work hard to find great deals,” said Peter Whitsett, executive vice president of merchandising and marketing. “This sneak peek gives our customers time to plan ahead and choose how early or late they want to shop for everyone on their list all week long.”

Examples of hot electronics and toys deals include:

Thanksgiving Day Deals

  • Save $200 on a Vizio 50” LED TV, Regularly $399.99
  • 50 percent off Beats Solo 2 Wired On-Ear Headphones
  • Save $50 on any Xbox One S Console or Console Bundle, and receive $50 off your next shopping trip at Meijer.
  • Save $50 on a PlayStation 4 Uncharted Bundle, and receive $25 off your next shopping trip at Meijer.
  • Save $50 on Huffy 20” Glitzy or Shockwave Bike
  • Save $20 on a Fitbit Charge Heart Rate + Fitness Wristband, and receive $25 off your next shopping trip at Meijer.

Black Friday Deals

  • Save $600 on Samsung 60” Smart 4K UHD TV
  • Save $200 on Parrot Bebop Drone
  • Save $100 on New Nintendo 3DS Super Mario White and Black Editions
  • Buy one, get one 50% off Shopkins Figures or Accessories
  • 50 percent off Disney Princess Shimmer Dolls
  • 50 percent off select Nerf Blasters

Special Black Saturday Deal for mPerks Customers

Meijer is introducing a special holiday shopping perk for its mPerks customers. Meijer customers using mPerks can save an additional 10 percent off on all general merchandise and apparel with mPerks digital coupons.  The Saturday ad preview can be seen here. Signing up for Meijer mPerks is easy and free at mperks.com or on the Meijer mobile app.

The ad previews can be seen here or via Facebook and Twitter. While customers can see the ads prior to distribution, the preview does not change the effective date of the advertised products.

About Meijer:

Meijer is a Grand Rapids, Mich.-based retailer that operates 230 supercenters and grocery stores throughout Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky and Wisconsin. As the inventor of the “one-stop shopping” concept, Meijer store have evolved over the years to include expanded fresh produce and meat departments, as well as pharmacies, comprehensive apparel departments, garden centers and electronics offerings. For more information on Meijer, please visit www.meijer.com. Follow Meijer on Twitter @twitter.com/Meijer and @twitter.com/MeijerPR or become a fan at www.facebook.com/meijer

Contact:
Jennifer Rook
jennifer.rook@meijer.com
616-791-2794

Source: Meijer

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Krispy Kreme Doughnuts brings back the Pumpkin Spice Original Glazed doughnut on Nov. 16

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts brings back the Pumpkin Spice Original Glazed doughnut on Nov. 16
Krispy Kreme Doughnuts brings back the Pumpkin Spice Original Glazed doughnut on Nov. 16

 

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C., 2016-Nov-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — One delicious comeback! Krispy Kreme Doughnuts today (November 14, 2016) announced the Pumpkin Spice Original Glazed doughnut will be back at participating U.S. locations on Nov. 16.

In an online poll, Krispy Kreme fans voted overwhelmingly to bring the autumn indulgence back, if even for just one day.

“We are listening to our customers, and we heard them loud and clear that they want the Pumpkin Spice Original Glazed back,” said Jackie Woodward, Chief Marketing Officer of Krispy Kreme Doughnuts. “With Friendsgiving celebrations meant to share joy with one another, we think this is perfect way to surprise your party with a limited time treat.”

The Pumpkin Spice Original Glazed doughnut is a one-of-a-kind treat, as the signature Original Glazed doughnut gets an autumn upgrade using pumpkin flavors. This product has only been in Krispy Kreme shops once before on Oct. 26.

Krispy Kreme shops participating in this delectable comeback can be found at KrispyKreme.com/PumpkinSpiceOG.

Get your hands on the Pumpkin Spice Original Glazed doughnut one more time by heading to your closest participating Krispy Kreme. Share your favorite Pumpkin Spice Original Glazed moments using #PumpkinSpiceOG and #friendsgiving.

About Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, Inc.

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, Inc., is a global retailer of premium-quality sweet treats, including its signature Original Glazed doughnut. Headquartered in Winston-Salem, N.C., the Company has offered the highest-quality doughnuts and great-tasting coffee since it was founded in 1937. Krispy Kreme Doughnuts is proud of its Fundraising program, which for decades has helped non-profit organizations raise millions of dollars in needed funds. Krispy Kreme doughnuts can be found in approximately 12,000 grocery, convenience and mass merchant stores in the U.S. The Company has more than 1,100 retail shops in 29 countries. Connect with Krispy Kreme Doughnuts at www.KrispyKreme.com, or on one its many social media channels, including www.Facebook.com/KrispyKreme, and www.Twitter.com/KrispyKreme.

Contact:

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, Inc.
Sarah Roof
336-726-8878
Corporate Communications Coordinator
sroof@krispykreme.com

Source: Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, Inc.

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