Stephan's Tuesday Picks

• Roger Martin: First mover advantages versus pioneering costs (Substack)
• Unilever nears deal to create $60 billion food giant with McCormick (WSJ)
• Food giants were finally starting to cut prices - then the war began (FT)
• Amazon's rural delivery push slams into Walmart (Bloomberg)
• Nestle pushes ahead of €5B Perrier and San Pellegrino deal (FT)

 Stephan's Monday Picks

• He was supposed to break up Kraft and Heinz. Then he changed his mind (NYT)
• Why Kraft Heinz's CEO decided not to split up the company (WSJ)
• Food megamergers hardly ever work. Could McCormick-Unilever be different (WSJ)
• The global food crisis unleashed by the war (FT)
• Dutch retailer Action targets US market by 100-store rollout by 2028 (Bloomberg)

 Stephan's Friday Picks

• Larry Fink's annual chairman's letter to investors (BlackRock)
• Kraft Heinz to invest $250 million in Montreal factory to boost capacity amid increased demand (Globe and Mail)
• The corporate strategy function in an AI-first world (BCG)
• Dollar General falls after naming CEO (Bloomberg)
• From the archives (1996): The science of shopping (The New Yorker)

 Stephan's Thursday Picks

• How Amazon is bringing fast delivery to rural America (WSJ)
• Commerce media at an inflection point (McKinsey)
• Red Lobster's last gasp (Bloomberg)
• Danone to buy protein shake maker for $1.2 billion (WSJ)
• Vertical farming tried to compete with open field farming. It's not going well (NYT)

 Stephan's Wednesday Picks

• Target plans to tighten dress code rules for store employees (Bloomberg)
• McCormick to go all in on mayo with potential Unilever deal (Bloomberg)
• Why mayo and soap no longer mix for Unilever (WSJ)
• Fast food's math problem: Making burgers cheap with beef at records (WSJ)
• Project 'Buff Baby' transformed a Huggies diaper. Not it could change the way we shop (WSJ)

 Stephan's Tuesday Picks

• Store traffic expected to rise across U.S. Circle K stores despite surging gasoline prices, Couche-Tard CEO says (Globe and Mail)
• Unilever in talks to separate food business and combine it with McCormick (WSJ)
• Snack brands jockey to invent the next hit chip (Bloomberg)
• Blank Street bets on bigger storefronts (Bloomberg)
• Topo Chico might be hard to get this summer (Texas Monthly)

 Stephan's Monday Picks

• Walmart wins patents to give algorithms more sway over prices (FT)
• Unilever, Kraft Heinz held talks over food merger uniting ketchup and mayo (FT)
• Artificial intelligence is coming for sommeliers (NYT)
• Canada's first butter bar is coming to Port Credit (Toronto Life)
• Macy's CEO points to E-shaped economy, signaling consumer shift (WSJ)

Stephan's Friday Picks

• Canada reports first annual population decline on record (Globe and Mail)
• Restaurants are struggling as Americans drink less (NYT)
• How Danone is reinventing FMCG operations (McKinsey)
• Looking for rotisserie chicken heaven? It's in Montreal (NYT)
• From the archives (2020): Nothing compares to yuzu (The New Yorker)

 Stephan's Thursday Picks

• Kraft Heinz puts focus on struggling brands after ditching split (Bloomberg)
• Lululemon scrambles to revive yoga pants empire amid fight with founder (NYT)
• Unilever considers potential separation of food assets (Bloomberg)
• Amazon plans drastic cut in packages sent via already struggling postal service (WSJ)
• General Mills posts lower sales, profit amid turnaround (WSJ)

 Stephan's Wednesday Picks

• Target's tech chief has a big role to play in the retailer's turnaround (WSJ)
• JD.com's European push pits Chinese retailer against Amazon (Bloomberg)
• Pop Mart bets on new toys as Labubu mania fades (Bloomberg)
• Big bargains and 'white knuckle' buying: Inside the rise of TJ Maxx (FT)
• Amazon launches 1-hour delivery in hundreds of U.S. cities (WSJ)

 Stephan's Tuesday Picks

• Roger Martin: Becoming an EI augmented enterprise (Substack)
• The dark side of Japan's convenience stores (FT)
• How Jeff Bezos upended The Washington Post (NYT)
• South Korea fell hard for this dessert, but that was so last month (NYT)
• JBS beef plant workers begin industry's largest strike in years (WSJ)

 Stephan's Monday Picks

• Weston family funding launch of a national digital media startup, sources say (Globe and Mail)
• Who's really ordering all that DoorDash (The Argument)
• Empire reports third-quarter loss amid shift in e-commerce strategy (Globe and Mail)
• Japan loses its thirst for vending machines (FT)
• The dieting myth that won't die (The Atlantic)

 Stephan's Friday Picks

• Target boycott over DEI charges winding down (WSJ)
• Coffee prices stay at record highs despite drop in market for beans (Bloomberg)
• The highly exclusive way that everyone is shopping now (The Atlantic)
• Rene Redzepi steps down at Noma amid allegations of past abuse (NYT)
• From the archives (1997): What price the Snapple debacle (Bloomberg)

 Stephan's Thursday Picks

• Amazon wins court order blocking Perplexity AI shopping bots (Bloomberg)
• The suburb that won't sleep (NYT)
• In Canada's major cities, fertility rates are in steep decline. What happened? (Globe and Mail)
• Walmart-backed Flipkart said to plan to invite banks to pitch for IPO in April (Bloomberg)
• Campbell's cuts outlook as snack sales fall (WSJ)

 Stephan's Wednesday Picks

• A growth formula for the home and hygiene market (McKinsey)
• A $1,000 dog grooming session? The wellness industry is booming (NYT)
• The new food fad sweeping Korea (FT)
• Graza's new mayo is the latest buzzy condiment to launch (Fast Company)
• Liquor hasn't led to an explosion in alcohol sales, as some feared (Globe and Mail)

 Stephan's Tuesday Picks

• How Swig turned dirty soda into a national obsession (Bloomberg)
• Luckin coffee backer Centurium is said to be in advanced talks for Blue Bottle (Bloomberg)
• Iran conflict sparks global rush for critical fertilizers (Bloomberg)
• Why dinner never gets easier (The Atlantic)
• War in the Middle East threatens global food production (WSJ)

Stephan's Monday Picks

• Parisians have given into the lunch salad (NYT)
• The allure of 'slop bowls' fades as consumers tighten spending (NYT)
• A new generation of mall rats has arrived (WSJ)
• We got hooked on fast, free shipping. Now retailers are taking it away (WSJ)
• Kroger's new CEO will focus on price, customer experiences (Bloomberg)

Stephan's Friday Picks

• Pizza Hut takes fans on a trip to its past (NYT)
• Can Reese's have too many pieces (FT)
• Target accelerates in-store investments as part of turnaround strategy (WSJ)
• Inside the unraveling of seafood magnate John Risley's billion dollar empire (Globe and Mail)
• From the archives (2019): How Target became the model in U.S. retail (Bloomberg)

 Stephan's Thursday Picks

• He's Reese's biggest advocate - and Hershey's biggest headache (WSJ)
• Are European supermarkets actually better and cheaper than American (Washington Post)
• Target's new CEO has a $6 billion plan to turn the tide (WSJ)
• B&M tries to win back Britain's discount shoppers (FT)
• The 13-second video that supercharged the McDonald's - Burger King rivalry (WSJ)

 Stephan's Wednesday Picks

• Another eating craze is straining supplies (Bloomberg)
• Bosses ditch 'peanut butter pay' in favor of giving big raises to top talent (Bloomberg)
• Chocolate kept in anti-theft boxes as shops warn it's being stolen to order (BBC)
• Iconic retailer Roots could be for sale as it launches strategic review (Globe and Mail)
• State of grocery retail MENA 2026: Managing the growth paradox (McKinsey)

 Stephan's Tuesday Picks

• Jimmy Pattison taps a tax whiz to run his empire (Bloomberg)
• Consumer packaged goods: Reigniting growth with portfolio realignment (McKinsey)
• America's love of ube is straining supply in the Philippines (Bloomberg)
• Strategy's biggest blind spot: Erosion of competitive advantage (McKinsey)
• American's can't quit steak, no matter the cost (Bloomberg)

 Stephan's Monday Picks

• Greg Abel's Letter to Shareholders (Berkshire Hathaway)
• The newest front in America's supermarket wars is ... Kentucky? (WSJ)
• The third-largest coffee chain in the U.S. sells very little hot coffee (WSJ)
• Ocado plans to cut 1,000 jobs and restructure technology unit (FT)
• Meat snack maker Archer gets $100 million loan as demand from women grows (Bloomberg)