Retail Daily Minute | Best Buy's Brand Revamp, Sam's Club New Scan & Go Ad Integration, Conn's Store Closures

Hello Omni Talk Fans!

In today’s Retail Daily Minute:

• Best Buy is rebranding with a new tagline, "imagine that," and an updated color palette featuring magenta, teal, and red, along with its traditional blue and yellow.
• Sam's Club is enhancing its Scan & Go feature by integrating display ads within its mobile app.
• Conn's is closing 71 stores across 13 states, representing approximately 13% of its total store fleet.

Plus, our mid-year report card webinar recording with Ethan Chernofsky, a riveting podcast (seriously) on the history and future of the barcode, and a movie quote from the great Bobby D in his directorial debut.

Today’s Top Headlines

1. Here’s how Best Buy is Trying to Convince Customers to Replace Pandemic-Era Devices, Buy Into AI

Best Buy announced plans to reverse a two-year sales slump by adding trained sales teams, creating more YouTube videos, and launching a new marketing campaign with the tagline "Imagine that." CEO Corie Barry noted that store experiences and technology have lost their appeal, affecting consumer electronics innovation. (Read More)

2. Sam’s Club Adding Display Ads Into Scan & Go Feature on Its App

Sam's Club is adding display ads to its Scan & Go mobile app feature, enhancing in-store item discovery and integrating physical and digital shopping. This new capability will measure member shopping behavior and ad performance while offering advertisers better reach and a more engaging member experience. (Read More)

3. Conn’s to Close Over 70 Stores Amid Bankruptcy Speculation

Conn's is closing 71 stores in 13 states, about 13% of its 550 locations. Florida and Texas will see the most closures, with 18 and 9 stores, respectively. Reports suggest Conn's is planning a bankruptcy filing and seeking financing for the process, though the company hasn't commented on these claims. (Read More)

4. Target Employees Hate Its New AI Chatbot

Last month, Target launched a ChatGPT-like AI bot focused on aiding employees, not customers. CIO Brett Craig highlighted the "transformative GenAI Technology," arriving in nearly 2,000 stores by August, to help team members with job training, answering process questions, and supporting store operations for enhanced efficiency. (Read More)

5. Returns of the ‘Amazombies’: Unwanted Packages are a Retail Nightmare

Known as “Amazombies,” Amazon customers flood Staples, Kohl’s, and The UPS Store daily with returns, creating chaos for employees. Originally intended to boost foot traffic, these drop-off deals have led to long lines, frayed tempers, and increased workloads without additional revenue, turning employees’ jobs into a retail nightmare. (Read More)

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Be careful out there,

-- Chris, Anne, and the entire Omni Talk team