Stephan's Thursday Picks

• Target sees sales falling this year as turnaround falters (NYT)
• Amazon gives refunds for years-old returns (Bloomberg)
• Marks & Spencer expects $400 million hit from cyber attack (WSJ)
• Kraft Heinz mulls deals after Berkshire Hathaway exits board (Bloomberg)
• Home Depot maintains guidance as US spending holds up (Bloomberg)

 Stephan's Wednesday Picks

• Chinese Gen Z's 'emotional spending' fuels big gains for Pop-Mart-crazed investors (Bloomberg)
• The golden age of the fried chicken sandwich (The Atlantic)
• Two million meat sticks a day isn't enough for Chomps' CEO (Bloomberg)
• Why are we so obsessed with Costco (CBC)
• The booming business of returned products (NYT)

 Stephan's Thursday Picks

• Starbucks reports weak earnings as it tries to woo back customers (NYT)
• The buy, wear, return days for shoppers could be over now that retailers and tech are catching on (Globe and Mail)
• Seeking new foods, scientists look to bacteria, algae, and more (Undark)
• Why some Heinz ketchup bottles still say 'Product of USA' (CBC)
• CVS knows you hate those locked cabinets (NYT)

 Stephan's Wednesday Picks

• The state of luxury: How to navigate a slowdown (McKinsey)
• Staying up late at the 24-hour diner (NYT)
• DHL buys into the growing retail returns business (WSJ)
• How Athletic sparked the nonalcoholic beer boom with brews that don't suck (Bloomberg)
• Canada approves Bunge's $8.2- billion deal for Viterra (WSJ)

 Stephan's Monday Picks

• Why online returns are a hassle now (The Atlantic)
• Party City to close all stores by February, company says (NYT)
• What consumers want from personalization (BCG)
• H&M's comeback plan: Try to be cooler (WSJ)
• Canadian Tire tightens recruiting roles for temporary foreign workers (Globe and Mail)

 Stephan's Monday Picks

• The sand wars dividing cranberry growers and their neighbours (WSJ)
• At 7-Eleven, Couche-Tard wins by losing out (Globe and Mail)
• How Harry & David gest 20,000 pears to doorsteps for the holidays (WSJ)
• Grupo Bimbo suing Maple Leaf Foods for more than $2 billion over alleged bread price fixing probe (Globe and Mail)
• Shoppers fight back as retailers crack down on returns (WSJ)

 Stephan's Monday Picks

• 7-Eleven owner considers going private in Japan's biggest $58 billion buyout (Bloomberg)
• The 25 most influential cookbooks over the last 100 years (NYT)
• Amazon Haul is an omen (The Atlantic)
• Returns are a headache. More retailers are saying 'just keep it' (NYT)
• FedEx's new CEO is charting his own path - in the Smith family's shadow (Bloomberg)

 Stephan's Wednesday Picks

• The secret world of Aldi Australia (The Guardian)
• The state of fashion 2025 (McKinsey)
• Alcohol brands tap the art world to woo younger drinkers (NYT)
• Amazon targets delivery operations in bid for bigger grocery business (WSJ)
• Many retailers offer 'returnless refunds'. Just don't ask them to say for which products (AP)

 Stephan's Wednesday Picks

• Online shopping has become a giant fake product machine (Bloomberg)
• Returns of the 'Amazombies': Unwanted packages are a retail nightmare (Washington Post)
• Halal meat is big business both within and beyond Muslim communities (CBC)
• Buyout firm L Catterton approaches Mattel with buyout offer (Reuters)
• Competition Bureau outlines what can be considered corporate greenwashing (Globe and Mail)

 Stephan's Tuesday Picks

• Roger Martin: The doctrine of relentless utility (Medium)
• The return grift is over (The Cut)
• FTC sues to stop Kroger-Albertsons grocery store deal (NYT)
• Vending machine error reveals secret face image database of college students (Ars Technica)
• A foreign grocer does not simply walk into the Canadian market (Globe and Mail)

 Stephan's Wednesday Picks

• The restaurant QR code is being shown the door (NYT)
• Pasta prices are surging, prompting crisis meetings in Italy (CNBC)
• Beware of the food that isn't food (The Atlantic)
• Aldo to expand to wholesale in licensing deal with Ted Baker and Brooks Brothers (Globe and Mail)
• Retailers clamp down on returns (WSJ)

 Stephan's Wednesday Picks

• Why do American diners have such a limited palate for textures (NYT)
• The free-returns party is over (The Atlantic)
• Pilot programs for temporary agricultural workers extended after rocky start (Globe and Mail)
• The decline of the five-day work week is a boon for suburban retail (WSJ)
• What does productivity mean? Bosses aren't really sure (Vox)

 Stephan's Wednesday Picks

• Roger Martin: My love/hate relationship with VUCA (Medium)
• Tyson Foods works to fix its chicken operation as orders pile up (WSJ)
• Some surprising good news: Bookstores are booming and becoming more diverse (NYT)
• Gap CEO Syngal fired after failing to rescue struggling retailer (Bloomberg)
• Cadillac Fairview, Teachers, and ex-Shopify exec gamble on a new, old model for e-commerce returns: showing up in person (Globe and Mail)

 Stephan's Wednesday Picks

• Food delivery startups look for new ways to sustain growth (WSJ)
• The new secret chicken recipe? Animal cells (NYT)
• Here's what actually happens with all your online shopping returns (Rest of World)
• The real secret to retaining talent (HBR)
• How chef Mark McEwan navigated the 'public undressing' of restructuring his business (Globe and Mail)