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It’s been another week with far more retail news than there is time in the day. Below, we break down some things you may have missed during the week and what we’re still thinking about.
From Amazon’s Business Prime Rewards to The Beachbody Company reducing its workforce by 33%, here’s our closeout for the week.
What you may have missed
Beachbody drops MLM business model
The Beachbody Company this week announced it is transitioning from a multi-level marketing business model to a single-level affiliate program, effective Nov. 1. Existing members in the company’s Team Bodi Partner Network in the U.S. and Canada will move to the new affiliate program “focused on being more productive and rewarding for a larger group of sellers,” according to a Monday press release. Beachbody expects to fully wind-down its MLM network by Jan. 1.
As a result, the company is expanding its direct-to-consumer, Amazon and partnership-driven sales channels.
“The first phase of our turnaround is centered on lowering our infrastructure costs and re-architecting our financial model. We have successfully accomplished that goal — we’ve lowered our revenue break-even point by more than $400 million, have reduced our net losses and generated positive Adjusted EBITDA over the last three quarters,” Executive Chairman of Bodi Mark Goldston said in a statement. “The organizational challenges and complexity of the MLM approach has weighed on the Company’s turnaround and the ability of Partners to optimize their potential.”
At the same time, the company said its restructuring plan — which includes laying off 33% of Bodi’s workforce and eliminating network marketing support functions — will result in overhead savings of $54 million on an annualized run-rate basis.
Business Prime members can now earn up to $1,000 annually on qualifying purchases while shopping on Amazon Business. Additionally, Amazon Business members with a personal Prime membership can obtain the first tier of Business Prime for free, or elect to upgrade to the next tier for $9.99 their first year — a discount of nearly 95%.
“[S]mall and medium-sized businesses are the heart of communities across the country and Amazon Business is committed to championing their growth through our unmatched selection, deep discounts and rewards, and smart capabilities,” Todd Heimes, vice president of Amazon Business, said in a statement. “Our customers have been asking for a rewards program, and we’ve listened.”
New payment, delivery option at Family Dollar
Family Dollar is partnering with Instacart to accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program’s Electronic Benefit Transfer payments for online orders.
Although Family Dollar stores previously accepted SNAP and EBT in person, the retailer said in a Thursday announcement that customers can now use Instacart to buy SNAP-eligible items through Family Dollar’s mobile app and online storefront. Instacart can then deliver the products to customers’ homes.
Nearly 98% of SNAP eligible families nationwide can now shop for groceries on Instacart with same-day delivery, according to Sarah Mastrorocco, Instacart’s vice president and general manager of health. “By expanding our partnerships with retailers like Family Dollar, we’re making it easier for families to get what they need from their preferred stores,” Mastrorocco said.
Retail therapy
Build-A-Bluey!
Build-A-Bear Workshop in partnership with BBC Studios released Bluey and Bingo plushies from the beloved Australian kids animated series.
For the plushies, Build-A-Bear also introduced Granny Janet and Granny Rita costumes, a sleeper and T-shirt and the ability to add the Bluey theme song or character phrases. The initial collection is expected to sell out quickly, with nearly 50,000 people already on the waitlist.
The Krabby Patty comes to Wendy’s
Looks like someone finally let the secret Krabby Patty formula out! In celebration of the 25th anniversary of “SpongeBob SquarePants,” and in collaboration with Wendy’s, Nickelodeon and Paramount, fans can finally taste the finest Bikini Bottom cuisine in its new meal offering, the Wendy's Krabby Patty Kollab Meal.
The meal comes with a Krabby Patty burger and a pineapple Under the Sea Frosty.
Fans in Los Angeles will get a first bite on Monday with an immersive Wendy's drive-thru experience in Panorama City. The next day, the collaboration will be made available at Wendy’s restaurants in the U.S., Canada and Guam.
What we’re still talking about
2 years
That’s JD Sports’ estimate for when the Finish Line brand will officially disappear, with all of its stores rebannered as JD by that point, per an earnings transcript from earlier this week. The company converted 13 Finish Line stores to JD locations during the first half of the year and said it is pursuing an “accelerated program of conversion” going forward. The retailer also closed 16 Finish Line stores.
The U.K. company acquired Finish Line in 2019 when it was making 1 billion pounds ($1.3 billion at current exchange rates) and “losing money,” per JD Sports CEO Régis Schultz. By 2023, the company’s U.S. business — inclusive of JD, Finish Line and other banners — had grown to 3 billion pounds.
JD Sports acquired Hibbett earlier this year for $1.1 billion, giving it roughly 1,000 new stores in the U.S., and Schultz noted on a call with analysts that JD will bring a much wider multibrand offering to Hibbett, versus just “acting like a Nike distributor.” JD as a whole made 5 billion pounds in revenue for the first half of the year, a record for the company and representative of 5.2% growth year over year.
5
That’s how many board members Belk named earlier this week in unveiling a new board of directors. In addition to CEO Don Hendricks, the department store’s board will be made up of former Saks CEO Steve Sadove, Spruce Advisory Managing Partner Joel Bines, longtime former Lowe’s exec Bob Hull and JZ Advisors managing member Jon Zinman, per a company press release. Three of the new board members currently work for advisory firms of one kind or another.
Sadove will serve as board chairman, and said he sees “incredible opportunity” for Belk’s future and growth strategy. After a financial maneuver that helped Belk shrink its debt load earlier this year, the department store said the new board would reinforce “Belk’s momentum as it focuses on deepening national brand partnerships, creating a more personalized shopping experience, and further increasing customer engagement.”
What we’re watching
The ILA strike ends
The International Longshoreman’s Association launched a strike on Tuesday that shut down ports from Maine to Texas. The union was unable to come to an agreement on a new master contract with the United States Maritime Alliance, and negotiations stalled.
By Thursday the strike ended with a tentative deal on wages and an extension of the master contract until Jan. 15, 2025, when they will “return to the bargaining table to negotiate all other outstanding issues,” according to a joint statement. Cargo operations are resuming at union-operated ports.
