1. Desiree Young: The Dumpster Diver Strategy: Desiree dives into dumpsters behind businesses and recycling bins to find discarded coupon inserts, viewing them as “free money.” Effort: She spends roughly 60 hours a week on couponing, treating it as a full-time job involving online prep, bin diving, and binder organization. The Haul: Goal: To spend … Read more
The “Big Box” Burden on Cities Infrastructure Costs vs. Tax Revenue: Big box stores are usually built on the edge of cities (greenfield locations), requiring massive amounts of new infrastructure (roads, sewage, pipes) to support them. The Math: Urban3’s research in Asheville, NC, found that a mixed-use downtown building generates nearly 100 times more property … Read more
1. Extreme Efficiency & Store Layout Store Size: Aldi stores are small, typically around 12,000 square feet. This is comparable to Trader Joe’s but much smaller than the average supermarket. Cost Savings: The smaller footprint reduces costs for property, rent, and utilities. Layout Design: The store is designed to minimize the number of footsteps required … Read more
1. Top Story: Retail Sales & Inflation Data Retail Sales Miss: January retail sales came in significantly weaker than expected, dropping 0.9% (vs. expected drop of 0.2%). When excluding autos and gas, it was down roughly 0.5%. Context: The decline is attributed partly to severe winter weather and wildfires in California, but analysts also note … Read more
1. Aldi: The Efficiency of “No Frills” Strategy: Aldi keeps prices lower than national averages (e.g., milk for $2.18 vs competitors) through extreme operational efficiency. Store Layout: Stores are small (~12,000 sq ft) with only 3–5 employees on the floor. Products are displayed in their shipping boxes to save stocking time. Inventory: They stock only … Read more
Part 1: The Rise of Temu The “Super Bowl” Moment: Temu, a shopping app owned by PDD Holdings (Pinduoduo), launched a massive aggressive marketing campaign, including multiple Super Bowl ads, promising consumers they could “shop like a billionaire” with rock-bottom prices . Business Model: Unlike traditional retailers, Temu connects consumers directly to manufacturers in China, … Read more
The “Retail Apocalypse” Overview Context: Over 7,320 stores closed in a single year according to Coresight Research. The crisis is driven by consumers proactively withdrawing due to high prices and poor experiences, not just poverty . List of 12 Retailers Closing Stores 1. Walmart Situation: Even the largest retailer is closing stores in difficult-to-serve areas … Read more