Walmart tops the NRF's list of retailers.
This week's marketing winners, losers and newsmakers.
Threads: The new social platform from Meta already appears to be weaving a rich alternative to Twitter. Threads had 30 million users the morning after launching Wednesday, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg shared on the app, including big celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey and big advertisers such as Netflix. It had 70 million users as of Friday morning, Zuckerberg said.
Read more: How Threads is poised to steal Twitter advertisers
Walmart: The big box retailer topped the National Retail Federation’s annual list of the Top 100 Retailers for 2023. Walmart again ranked No. 1 with $499.65 billion in U.S. retail sales last year. Amazon’s $232.46 billion in sales brought it to second place while Costco ranked third with $164.15 billion. Kroger and The Home Depot rounded out the Top 5. Walmart is already getting an early jump on back-to-school sales, along with several competitors.
Joey Chestnut: The longtime reigning champion of Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest was a winner yet again. Chestnut sealed his 16th victory at the annual July 4 competition, scarfing down 62 hot dogs in ten minutes, 14 more than anyone else.
Christmas Tree Shops: So much for Christmas in July. The not-so-seasonal discount chain said it will close all of its 70 stores and liquidate its assets as part of a bankruptcy filing as sales continue to sputter. The 53-year-old Christmas Tree Shops had been owned until 2020 by Bed Bath & Beyond, which went under earlier this year.
Patriot Pickle: In a pickle battle for the ages, Boston-based Grillo’s Pickles is suing Wayne, NJ-based competitor Patriot Pickle, accusing the latter of recipe theft. Patriot sells its dills under the Whole Foods 365 label. Grillo’s also sells at Whole Foods under its own brand. What a pickle!
Subway: The sandwich chain faced backlash this week for a sign making light of the recent Titan submersible implosion that killed five passengers. A sign outside a Subway restaurant in Georgia read, “Our subs don’t implode.” After someone posted a photo of the sign, consumers complained, calling the chain “disrespectful” and “tacky.” Subway eventually removed the sign, which it said had been put up by a franchise owner. Also this week, Subway announced it will now be using on-site meat slicers for its deli meat, which was previously delivered to stores pre-sliced.
“Interest in the Women’s World Cup is dramatically increasing, which opens the door for traditionally male-centric brands to tap into new demographics—and for brands with traditionally female audiences to organically extend their presence into the sports realm.” —Gregg Morton, CEO of Fooji, a fan engagement platform for brands, on the rise of FIFA Women’s World Cup marketing.
25%: Percentage of consumers who believe Amazon Prime Day deals have become more valuable over time. Sixteen percent believe they have become less valuable and 24% say they have remained at the same level of value, according to a recent survey from market research firm Numerator about Prime Day, which will take place on July 11 and 12 this year.
Geezy X, a sampling and activation platform, hired Dan Jenner as head of global partnerships. He had been strategic partnerships director at N2O. Geezy also promoted Ryan Drager to head of growth from head of operations.
