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Category: RetailRevolution

RetailRevolution

  • Walmart Giving 740,000 Associates Samsung Smartphones

    Walmart Giving 740,000 Associates Samsung Smartphones

    Walmart is going the distance to ensure its employees can access its new app, giving 740,000 of them a Samsung smartphone.

    The retailer is taking the wraps off of its Me@Walmart app, designed to make employees’ jobs easier and help them “plan for life outside of work.” The company is determined to make it as easy as possible to use the app, even providing the phone for it to run on.

    Walmart will be providing a Samsung Galaxy XCover Pro smartphone, case and protection plan, completely free. Employees will only be able to access Me@Walmart’s work feature when they’re on the clock, but are free to use the phone as their personal device. The company emphasizes employee privacy is paramount, and that it has no access to employees’ personal data.

    The company says this is just the beginning, and it will continue to add features to the Me@Walmart app.

    In the coming months, we’ll add another feature to the Me@Walmart app that helps speed up the time it takes our stocking associates to get items from the backroom to the sales floor. Instead of scanning each box individually, associates just hold up their device and, using augmented reality, highlight the boxes that are ready to go. Product gets on the shelf faster — something we all know is increasingly important. In fact, since piloting it last year, this patent-pending capability takes a third of the time than the previous manual process.

    As retail continues to evolve — and quickly — it’s more critical than ever to equip our people with the tools and technology they need for success. Doing so makes work easier and more enjoyable, and it keeps the focus where we need it most — delivering a great in-store, pickup and delivery experience for our customers.

  • Amazon Calls for Revitalizing the USPS

    Amazon Calls for Revitalizing the USPS

    Amazon is throwing its weight behind efforts to revitalize the United States Postal Service, calling it the company’s “first and oldest business partner.”

    The USPS has been facing increasingly difficult times as a result of the digital transformation. With people relying more on electronic communications than letters, USPS revenue has dropped precipitously. The outlook is even worse, with the USPS estimating it will lose $160 billion over the next 10 years.

    The Postal Service Reform Act is bipartisan legislation that has been introduced in an effort to help the USPS transition to a more sustainable future.

    We’re proud of our partnership with USPS and want to continue working with the agency to innovate and deliver for our customers well into the future. With the House Oversight Committee’s swift advancement of the Postal Service Reform Act, we hope the full U.S. House and Senate will follow suit. Enacting these common-sense reforms will help guarantee that the USPS remains an affordable, reliable, and profitable package delivery system for the American people.

    It remains to be seen what will happen with the the Postal Service Reform Act, but Amazon has made it clear where it stands.

  • Amazon Workers Petition Company to Address Its Pollution in Communities of Color

    Amazon Workers Petition Company to Address Its Pollution in Communities of Color

    Over 600 Amazon workers have signed a petition asking Amazon to do more to address warehouse pollution in communities of color.

    Recent research has shown that communities of color are disproportionately impacted by airborne pollution. Amazon Employees for Climate Justice (AECJ) accuse Amazon of being complicit in that disparity.

    Amazon’s operations are complicit in environmental racism. Amazon’s logistics network of trucks spew climate-change-causing greenhouse gases and toxic particles as they drive to and from warehouses that are concentrated near Black, Latinx, and Indigenous communities. Public warehouse facility location data from MWPVL International indicates 80% of Amazon’s non-corporate facilities are located in zip codes that have a higher percentage of people of color than the majority of populated zip codes in their metropolitan area.

    The AECJ has created a petition in an effort to force Amazon to address the issue.

    As employees, we are alarmed that Amazon’s pollution is disproportionately concentrated in communities of color. Amazon must commit to zero emissions by 2030 and deploy zero emissions technologies in communities most impacted by its pollution first. We want to be proud of where we work. A company that lives up to its statements about racial equity and closes the racial equity gaps in its operations is a critical part of that.

    Amazon has yet to respond to the petition.

  • D.C. AG Launches Antitrust Suit Against Amazon

    D.C. AG Launches Antitrust Suit Against Amazon

     

    Washington, D.C. Attorney General Karl A. Racine has filed an antitrust lawsuit against Amazon for anticompetitive practices and price-fixing.

    Amazon has increasingly been under fire on all fronts. The company has repeatedly been criticized for how it treats employees, as well as its attempts to combat unionization efforts.

    Now the company is under fire for alleged anticompetitive behavior, including wide-scale price-fixing. At the heart of the case is the company’s “most favored nation” (MFN) agreements, which prohibit retailers from offering their products elsewhere at cheaper prices, or with better terms, than they do on Amazon. The MFN agreements even prohibit retailers from offering their products cheaper on their own websites.

    “Amazon has used its dominant position in the online retail market to win at all costs. It maximizes its profits at the expense of third-party sellers and consumers while harming competition, stifling innovation, and illegally tilting the playing field in its favor,” said AG Racine. “We filed this antitrust lawsuit to put an end to Amazon’s illegal control of prices across the online retail market. We need a fair online marketplace that expands options available to District residents and promotes competition, innovation, and choice.”

    According to the AG, Amazon claimed to have removed its price parity policy in 2019. In actuality, the company is accused of quickly and quietly replacing it with a replacement policy that accomplished the same thing. Under the new policy, the Fair Pricing Policy, “third-party sellers can be sanctioned or removed from Amazon altogether if they offer their products for lower prices or under better terms on a competing online platform.”

    https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/20788384/amazon-complaint-.pdf

  • Target CEO Says Digital Performance Up 50%

    Target CEO Says Digital Performance Up 50%

    “Our digital performance was up 50 percent,” says Target CEO Brian Cornell. “As we gain greater clarity around the consumer, the economy, the state of the vaccine, we feel that the consumer continues to respond to our in-store experience and the ease and convenience of shopping with some of our same-day services like pickup, drive-up, and ship. Same-day fulfillment services now represent over half of our digital channel.”

    Brian Cornell, CEO of Target, discusses their massive Q1 results in an interview on CNBC:

    Digital Performance Up 50 Percent

    We’ve had a string of really solid results going back to 2017 but this quarter may be one of the highlights. Our team executed throughout the quarter. We had a great performance from our store teams with a store comp of 18%. Our digital performance was up 50%. It was really a team effort. We had great supply chain support with our merchants and marketers all coming together to support the results which speak for themselves.

    We are benefitting from investments we’ve been making for years now. Our investment in our store experience, our curated Home Brand and national brand mix, and then the fulfillment services that we offer. That combined with the investment in our team, I think we are seeing continued strength. We feel really good sitting here right now about our outlook, not just for the second quarter but for the full year.

    We’ve Connected With The Consumer

    As we gain greater clarity around the consumer, the economy, the state of the vaccine, we feel that the consumer continues to respond to our in-store experience and the ease and convenience of shopping with some of our same-day services like pickup, drive-up, and ship. They really connect with our curation of Great Home Brand, national brands, and the service our team provides each and every day.

    We are feeling very confident about our position today. I look at the proof point from Q1, we picked up another billion dollars in market share on top of the $9 billion of share last year. That’s just a sign that we’ve connected with the consumer, we’re building relevance, and we’re providing what they need and what they want throughout the year.

    Newness Is A Huge Trend In Our Business

    When you see the combination of stores comping up at 18%, which to me is just a highlight number, and categories like apparel growing again by over 60%, that combination of store traffic and category mix really benefited us throughout the quarter. We are seeing a resilient consumer. They’re clearly shopping our stores and when they’re there they are attracted to anything that’s new.

    Newness has certainly been a trend throughout our business in the first quarter and I think that’s going to continue. That great combination of store traffic and store comps and the continued movement of same-day fulfillment services which now represent over half of our digital channel. We really like that transaction. It looks and feels more like a store transaction which from a profitability standpoint certainly is beneficial for us.

    Target CEO Brian Cornell Says Digital Performance Up 50%
  • Amazon Destroyed Millions of Counterfeit Products in 2020

    Amazon Destroyed Millions of Counterfeit Products in 2020

    Amazon has detailed its efforts to fight counterfeit products, including the destruction of more than 2 million counterfeits.

    Few companies have enjoyed as much success as Amazon during the pandemic. The company became a lifeline for many who were under lockdown and quarantine, and significantly expanded its workforce to keep up.

    A long-term problem Amazon has faced, however, has been companies and individuals trying to sell counterfeit goods on the site. As Amazon has become a force to be reckoned with in the retail market, it is also stepping up its efforts to combat counterfeit products and attract brands that have been reluctant to sell on the site.

    In its first Brand Protection Report, Amazon said fewer than 0.01% of products sold received a counterfeit complaint. That low number was, in part, the result of the company’s aggressive fight against the problem.

    We seized and destroyed more than 2 million products sent to our fulfillment centers and that we detected as counterfeit before being sent to a customer.

    The company also stepped up its efforts to prevent bad actors from even gaining a foothold in the store.

    Our verification processes stopped over 6 million attempts to create a selling account before they were able to publish a single listing for sale. This is a significant increase from the 2.5 million attempts we stopped in 2019, and it was driven by increased bad actor attempts to get into our store that we successfully thwarted.

    Amazon’s transparency about its efforts may help sway companies and brands that have been reluctant to embrace the e-commerce giant.

  • Amazon Goes on Another Hiring Spree

    Amazon Goes on Another Hiring Spree

    Amazon has announced it is hiring tens of thousands of new workers, across the US, Canada and the UK.

    Amazon has been one of the companies that has benefited most from the pandemic. During lockdowns and quarantine, the e-commerce giant went from luxury to necessity for many people, and its hiring has reflected that growth.

    Although many areas are easing restrictions, Amazon continues to benefit people’s newfound appreciation for the convenience of home shopping. In addition, the company is preparing for its upcoming Prime Day next month.

    As a result, Amazon has announced it is hiring an additional 75,000 employees across the US and Canada, with average starting pay of over $17 and $1,000 starting bonus.

    “We look forward to hiring 75,000 associates across our fulfillment and transportation network,” said Alicia Boler Davis, Vice President of Global Customer Fulfillment at Amazon. “Working at Amazon also comes with an unwavering commitment to safety, especially as we continue to navigate a global pandemic. In addition to the great pay and robust benefits available to new hires starting on their first day, we’re offering a $100 benefit to new hires who come to Amazon already vaccinated for COVID-19.”

    The company is also hiring for 10,000 new permanent jobs in the UK, bringing its total UK workforce to more than 55,000.

    Business Secretary, Kwasi Kwarteng, said: “Amazon’s announcement today is fantastic news and a huge vote of confidence in the British economy, helping us deliver on our commitment to level up across the UK with a whopping 10,000 new permanent jobs. As we build back better from the pandemic, this is a prime investment in our retail sector.

    “Over the past year, Amazon’s workforce have pulled out all the stops to ensure consumers have had safe access to goods during this challenging time. Their latest investment will open up a wide range of opportunities for even more workers, helping to develop the skills needed to power tomorrow’s economy.”

  • Amazon Is the Number One US Apparel Retailer, Passing Walmart

    Amazon Is the Number One US Apparel Retailer, Passing Walmart

    What was years in the making has finally happened, with Amazon passing Walmart to become the largest apparel retailer in the US.

    Experts had been predicting Amazon would overtake Walmart for years. Like many other transformations, however, the pandemic is what finally pushed the online giant across the finish line. As individuals remained in lockdown and avoided crowded stores, Amazon’s business went into overdrive.

    According to Wells Fargo, via CNBC, that was enough to help it surpass Walmart in the apparel space, with its apparel and footwear growing an estimated 15% in 2020 to more than $41 billion. That gives it a solid 20% to 25% lead over Walmart.

    “This represents highly impressive 11%-12% share of all apparel sold in the U.S. and 34%-35% share of all apparel sold online,” wrote Wells Fargo analysts Ike Boruchow and Tom Nikic. “We now estimate Amazon will surpass $45 billion in apparel/footwear sales in 2021.”

    Interestingly, the outlook was not all roses for Amazon, as there are still some high-profile brands that refuse to sell on the online store. Much of this is due to the way Amazon approaches the business, focusing on sales over helping companies build their brand.

    “Until Amazon becomes a platform that works with companies to elevate brands, rather than viewing the relationship as transactional, companies who are fiercely protective of their brands (e.g. Nike), will not sell to Amazon,” said the analysts.

  • Best Buy Debuts $200 Yearly Membership Program

    Best Buy Debuts $200 Yearly Membership Program

    Best Buy has announced a yearly membership program, for $199.99, that provides special pricing, free installation and unlimited tech support.

    Like many companies, Best Buy has been working to transition away from brick and mortar stores, in favor of online shopping. The company recently announced it had laid off 5,000 employees, and would close more stores in 2021 than in previous years.

    The company is now offering a membership program, called Best Buy Beta. The program will cost $199.99, or $179.99 for customers with the Best Buy credit card. The program will be available in 60 stores by the end of the month.

    “As we look to evolve our membership programs, the goal of Best Buy Beta is to create a membership experience that customers will love and to leave them feeling confident throughout their relationship with Best Buy,” said Allison Peterson, Best Buy’s chief customer officer. “This pilot offers premium service, complete with support aimed at anticipating our customers’ needs.”

    The service will also provide a 24/7 concierge team, available via phone, chat, email and the Best Buy app. The service is currently available in Iowa, Oklahoma and eastern Pennsylvania, with Minnesota, North Carolina and Tennessee next in line.

  • Affirm’s Debit Card Is The Anti-Credit Card, Says CEO

    Affirm’s Debit Card Is The Anti-Credit Card, Says CEO

    “It should not be called a credit card for sure in part because it’s sort of the anti-credit card,” says Affirm co-founder and CEO Max Levchin. “I don’t need to be provocative but the idea of credit cards fundamentally is to get you to spend, get into debt, and stay in debt. Literally, every single one of these things is the exact opposite for Affirm’s card.”

    Max Levchin, CEO of Affirm, describes the company’s debit card as the anti-credit card:

    Affirm’s Debit Card Is The Anti-Credit Card

    It should not be called a credit card for sure in part because it’s sort of the anti-credit card. I don’t need to be provocative but the idea of credit cards fundamentally is to get you to spend, get into debt, and stay in debt. You will not know when you’re done paying off any specific purchase. You’re not really sure exactly how much you’re gonna pay. You should actually expect late fees if you miss a payment.

    Literally, every single one of these things is the exact opposite for Affirm’s card. You know exactly what you’re going to pay. You know exactly what the schedule of repayment is and there’ll be no late fees under any circumstances. It’s sort of the exact opposite in many ways. It does serve the same purpose. You get to pay for things right now or over time.

    Card Form Factor Is Extraordinarily Elegant

    I don’t really know how long the card as a form factor will be with us, but I do think it’s extraordinarily elegant. The majority of the offline world certainly in the US still transacts with plastic and chips these days so I think it’s important to meet the customer where they are. I do know that our user base is primarily millennials and Gen Z’s. They love their debit cards they love to transact with them offline.

    The purpose of this product was to bring by functionality that they have really loved online and really offline as well with us but have never had in a card. Particularly, a card that is embedded inside their daily everyday spend tool. The debit card form factor is a metaphor for everyday spend and that’s what we’re trying to get to.

    What I Care About Is The Return Of The Country

    The primary signal that I care about is the return of the country. We’re all kind of holding our breath a little bit to see when vaccines are coming. There are a bunch of reopenings and, knock on wood, everything sort of starts to come back to a little bit more normal. There’s just an incredible amount of opportunity to grow with this product that we have. It’s seen so much adoption in areas like travel, which has been effectively zero growth for the last several quarters because of the pandemic.

    There are lots of interesting new challenges as the country reopens. The dominant thread is that there is that reopening creates a lot more opportunity for this product. We have proven that this product is what our customer wants and needs. This debit card will absolutely meet them where they are as they hopefully come out of their houses and go into restaurants and coffee shops and start traveling and buy tickets.

    Affirm’s Debit Card Is The Anti-Credit Card, Says CEO Max Levchin
  • Shopify: We Are Arming The Rebels

    Shopify: We Are Arming The Rebels

    “We are arming the rebels… the entrepreneurs, the small business owners, the independent brands, and the rebels are winning,” says Shopify President Harley Finkelstein. “It feels like the retail world that would have existed in 2030 was pulled back to 2020. We have seen this massive catalyst to an acceleration in digitalization in commerce and retail. We are writing the future of commerce and entrepreneurs are really the heroes of the Shopify story.”

    Shopify President Harley Finkelstein says the rebels―the entrepreneurs and the small business owners―are the heroes of the Shopify story… and the rebels are winning:

    We Are Arming The Rebels

    There’s a lot to be optimistic about even in the second half of 2021. It feels like the retail world that would have existed in 2030 was pulled back to 2020. We certainly have seen this massive catalyst to an acceleration in digitalization in commerce and retail. But actually, we are writing the future of commerce and entrepreneurs are really the heroes of the Shopify story. We are arming the rebels… the entrepreneurs, the small business owners, the independent brands, and the rebels are winning.

    Consumers have been voting with their wallets for the last ten months or so to buy from independent brands wherever possible. In 2020, 47 million consumers purchased from a Shopify merchant. That’s up 52 from 2019. Our merchant’s performance helped expand Shopify’s lead on an aggregated basis to be the second-largest e-commerce retailer in the U.S. Shopify is now about nine percent of all US ecom. If you think about it, Shopify is a proxy for independent retail and for direct-to-consumer retail.

    Shop Pay Launches Accelerated Checkout

    We only succeed when our merchants do. This has led to us having more than 1.7 million merchants on Shopify. This includes people from first-time entrepreneurs making their first sale every 28 seconds to the likes of O’Neill and Hallmark and Herman Miller and Purina. Diageo, who also just launched in Shopify and in Q4 alone revenue nearly doubled year over year to $978 million. There’s a lot to be optimistic about. Actually, the future of retail and commerce we think is going to look a lot more like these independent brands than these sort of department stores that existed in the past.

    Shop Pay is our accelerated checkout. We just announced it last week. We know that it not only helps merchants get more sales, it helps buyers convert better and much faster. Now we think that providing it to the Instagram and Facebook platforms means that our merchants can not only access new customers on those platforms, and frankly anywhere where customers are, but now can transact in a more efficient way. Shopify is becoming far more than an e-commerce provider.

    Future of Retail Is Wherever Consumers Are

    We are trying to build the world’s first retail operating system, which makes it as easy as possible and where the cost of failure is as low as possible, so more people can participate in entrepreneurship. We think the future retail is not online or offline or anywhere, in particular, it’s wherever consumers are. That’s what we’re trying to build. Seeing Shop Pay move into Facebook and Instagram is a really great way to demonstrate where the future of retail is happening.

    We are trying to get to a point where we completely democratize entrepreneurship. We use a 100-year perspective and we want to build a 100-year company. We’re about 15 years into our journey right now and we have 85 years left to go. In the long run, we’re happy where Shopify is but frankly, on the topic of more participation in the equity markets, we think that is also entrepreneurial and we think that’s also democratizing.

    Shopify CEO: We Are Arming The Rebels

  • Ever Given Freed, Suez Canal Reopened

    Ever Given Freed, Suez Canal Reopened

    Salvage crews have freed the container ship Ever Given from the shore, reopening the Suez Canal after it was blocked for nearly a week.

    The Ever Given ran aground in the Suez Canal Tuesday, March 23. The ship is one of the biggest container vessels in the world, coming in at over 1,300 feet long and nearly 192 feet wide. The ship can carry over 20,000 containers.

    Once the ship ran aground, 372 ships were were unable to pass, according to Lloyd’s List, resulting in a significant impact to the global economy. Roughly 12% of maritime trade passes through the canal, equaling an estimated $9 billion in goods every day.

    Given the amount of trade and goods passing through the canal, experts said the incident would have ripple effects throughout the economy for months. Some even said it could impact virtually everything sold in stores.

    It’s still unclear if the Ever Given will be able to resume its scheduled deliveries. When the ship was stuck, it had pressure on its bow and stern, leaving the middle section to sag. Since ships weren’t designed to take that kind of pressure, there was concern the hull would crack. Early inspections indicated that didn’t happen, but the ship still has to pass a final inspection now that it’s free.

  • Amazon’s Italy Workers Go On Strike

    Amazon’s Italy Workers Go On Strike

    Amazon’s workers in Italy are going on a 24-hour strike to protest working conditions.

    Workers in several warehouse facilities, including in Tuscany, Florence and Pisa, are going on a 24-hour strike, the first to impact Amazon’s logistics operations in Italy on a national level, according to CNBC.

    The strike comes at a time when Amazon’s importance to the global supply chain is greater than ever, and while the company is facing increased scrutiny and criticism for how it treats its workers. The company has taken aggressive measures to combat unionization, hiring Pinkerton detectives to monitor efforts and going full-court press against unionization in Alabama.

    Salvatore Pellecchia, general secretary of trade union FIT-CISL, told CNBC that 75% of Amazon workers in Italy joined the strike, despite many of them being temporary workers, at the most risk of being replaced.

    “If Amazon does not change its position, we will be forced to organize another strike,” Pellecchia said in a statement. “Amazon has registered a huge increase in turnover and profits thanks to the pandemic, and now must talk with us to give its employee what they are waiting for.”

    The strike is the latest setback for the company, and may encourage other unions to do the same.

  • Best Buy Lays Off 5,000 Employees, Will Shutter More Stores

    Best Buy Lays Off 5,000 Employees, Will Shutter More Stores

    Best Buy has laid off some 5,000 employees and plans to close additional stores as customers turn to online shopping.

    American customers have increasingly been turning to Amazon and online stores for their electronics needs, putting pressure on traditional, brick and mortar stores. With the pandemic further changing consumers’ shopping habits, traditional stores have been under even more pressure. Fry’s Electronics announced it was closing Wednesday, illustrating the growing challenges traditional businesses are facing.

    Best Buy, in contrast, has fared relatively well during the pandemic. Much of this is due to the company’s online sales. According to CNN Business, the company expects 40% of its sales to come from online purchases in 2021, as opposed to 19% two years ago. The company has also been relatively successful with its physical stores, although it expects in-store business to slow this year.

    As a result, Best Buy has laid off 5,000 staff, mostly full-time employees. The company is also raising the bar for evaluating whether to renew store leases. The company already closed 20 stores a year for the past couple of years, and expects that number to go up this year.

  • Five-Star Review? Maybe Not as Amazon Grapples With Fake Reviews Industry

    Five-Star Review? Maybe Not as Amazon Grapples With Fake Reviews Industry

    Amazon is grappling with an entire industry aimed at providing fake reviews and gaming the system, according to new research.

    Which? is a UK-based company that reviews products and services and helps consumers make educated choices. The company has investigated the state of Amazon reviews and found that fake reviews are being sold in bulk.

    Customers rely on Amazon reviews to make decisions about their purchases. Even when customers ultimately end up purchasing elsewhere, Amazon product reviews often still impact customers’ decisions. Unfortunately, many of those reviews may be fake, according to Which?.

    “More people are shopping online than ever before due to the coronavirus crisis – yet our latest research shows that Amazon is facing an uphill struggle against a relentless and widespread fake reviews industry geared towards misleading consumers,” Natalie Hitchins, Head of Home Products and Services at Which?, said.

    Some companies charge as little as £5 per review, while others charge more, up to £8,000 for 1,000 reviews. Many of the companies provided incentives and rewards programs, along with guidelines to help their armies of reviews avoid detection by Amazon.

    All the sites Which? signed up to gave advice for how to write reviews so as not to arouse Amazon’s suspicion, and in many cases had criteria for reviewers to meet to qualify for rewards. These included leaving reviews that were at least two sentences long, posting an accompanying image or video and not posting reviews until at least four days after receiving a product. Some sites also had no return policies – as returned products are monitored by Amazon and high return rates can affect the chance of an Amazon’s Choice endorsement.

    Which? is calling on regulators to take action against these kind of schemes, in the interest of protecting customers that rely on such reviews to make informed decisions. The company is also calling on tech firms, such as Google and Facebook, to crack down on these companies, as many of them use search and social media platforms to gain reviewers.

    “The regulator must crack down on bad actors and hold sites to account if they fail to keep their users safe. If it is unable to do so, the government must urgently strengthen online consumer protections,” Hitchins added.

    “Amazon, and other online platforms, must do more to proactively prevent fake reviews infiltrating their sites so that consumers can trust the integrity of their reviews.”

    It remains to be seen what, if any, action will be taken. in the meantime, savvy purchasers would do well to take Amazon’s reviews with a grain of salt.

  • Homeland Security Investing Fake N95 Mask Scam

    Homeland Security Investing Fake N95 Mask Scam

    As if the pandemic is not bad enough, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is investigating a scam involving fake N95 masks.

    Effective masks are one of the principle ways to combat the coronavirus and prevent its spread. While important for the population at large, masks are especially vital for front-line health workers who are exposed to the virus on a daily basis. N95 masks are particularly important to health workers, as they provide a higher level of protection than a basic face mask.

    Unfortunately, companies are selling counterfeit N95 masks to hospitals and frontline workers. The counterfeits, purporting to be 3M masks, are becoming more difficult to detect, putting health and frontline workers at risk.

    “They’re not coming from authorized distributors,” said Kevin Rhodes, 3M’s vice president and deputy general counsel, according to the Associated Press. “They’re coming from companies really just coming into existence.”

    “These products are not tested to see if they make the N95 standards,” Rhodes added “They’re not interested in testing them. They’re interested in making as many as they can as cheaply as possible.”

    To help combat the counterfeits, 3M has published guidelines to help individuals and companies identify fakes.

  • Investors Urging Amazon to Stop Pressuring Workers On Unionization

    Investors Urging Amazon to Stop Pressuring Workers On Unionization

    Investors are reportedly urging Amazon to stop pressuring workers amid the first-ever vote on unionization by the company’s workers.

    Amazon is notoriously anti-union, even going so far as to hire Pinkerton detectives to monitor and impede unionization efforts. The company has also been accused of illegally firing individuals who supported organizing. Most recently, Amazon has made waves with employees, pressuring workers in Bessemer, Alabama to vote against unionization.

    According to The Financial Times, via Bloomberg, some of Amazon’s investors have had enough, urging the company to stop interfering with unionization efforts. The group is made up of more than 70 investors, collectively holding some $20 billion of the company’s shares. The comptrollers for the state of New York and New York City, BMO Global Asset Management, Sweden-based Folksam and Ohman Fonder, as well as the Church of England Pensions Board are just a few of the investors in question.

    “As these workers seek to organize with [the union] for health, safety, and protection, Amazon’s investors are watching,” New York City comptroller Scott Stringer said, according to the FT. “There is power in their unity and power in labour, and they have my full support as they fight for a safe, fair workplace.”

    The investor backlash is just the latest setback Amazon has faced, due to its dealings with employees. The company recently settled a case with the FTC over stealing some $62 million in tips from its Flex drivers. If the company doesn’t make some major changes, it will likely continue to face fallout and backlash from employees, lawmakers and investors alike.

  • Dinner and a Drink — Uber Buying Alcohol Delivery Service Drizly

    Dinner and a Drink — Uber Buying Alcohol Delivery Service Drizly

    Uber is acquiring alcohol delivery startup Drizly, in a deal worth $1.1 billion.

    Drizly is the nation’s leading alcohol delivery service, operating in over 1,400 cities around the country. The company’s reach is an impressive accomplishment given the patchwork of alcohol laws and regulations among various states.

    Uber sees an opportunity to round out its food delivery service, offering the full dining experience in-home.

    “Wherever you want to go and whatever you need to get, our goal at Uber is to make people’s lives a little bit easier. That’s why we’ve been branching into new categories like groceries, prescriptions and, now, alcohol. Cory and his amazing team have built Drizly into an incredible success story, profitably growing gross bookings more than 300 percent year-over-year. By bringing Drizly into the Uber family, we can accelerate that trajectory by exposing Drizly to the Uber audience and expanding its geographic presence into our global footprint in the years ahead,” said Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi.

    “Drizly has spent the last 8 years building the infrastructure, technology, and partnerships to bring the consumer a shopping experience they deserve. It’s a proud day for the Drizly team as we recognize what we’ve accomplished to date but also with the humility that much remains to be done to fulfill our vision. With this in mind, we are thrilled to join a world-class Uber team whose platform will accelerate Drizly on its mission to be there when it matters—committed to life’s moments and the people who create them,” said Drizly co-founder and CEO Cory Rellas.

    The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2021.

  • Amazon Offers Support For President Biden’s Vaccination Plans

    Amazon Offers Support For President Biden’s Vaccination Plans

    Amazon has congratulated President Biden and Vice President Harris on their inauguration and offered its support in ramping up the vaccine rollout.

    One of President Biden’s biggest challenges will be significantly increase the pace of the country’s vaccination efforts. In an open letter, Amazon’s Dave Clark, CEO, Worldwide Consumer, made it clear the company is ready to assist.

    We have an agreement in place with a licensed third-party occupational health care provider to administer vaccines on-site at our Amazon facilities. We are prepared to move quickly once vaccines are available. Additionally, we are prepared to leverage our operations, information technology, and communications capabilities and expertise to assist your administration’s vaccination efforts. Our scale allows us to make a meaningful impact immediately in the fight against COVID-19, and we stand ready to assist you in this effort.

    Clark also makes the case that Amazon’s workers, many of whom are considered essential workers, should be among the first vaccinated.

    There is no word yet on whether the new administration will take Clack up on the offer, but it’s a safe bet no options are off the table.

  • Amazon Warehouse Workers Voting On Unionization

    Amazon Warehouse Workers Voting On Unionization

    Amazon warehouse workers are preparing to vote on whether to form the company’s first union.

    Amazon is famously opposed to its employees unionizing. The company has gone to extreme measures, even hiring Pinkerton detectives to monitor efforts. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) accused Amazon of threatening, suspending and terminating employees for trying to organize.

    It appears Amazon’s efforts have not been successful, however, as employees at the company’s warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama are moving forward with plans to vote on unionization. The NLRB has scheduled the vote for February 8 through March 29, and will involve approximately 6,000 employees.

    It remains to be seen if the vote will pass. If it does, however, it would be a big step forward for unionization efforts within one of the biggest companies in the US.

  • Consumer Groups Take Amazon to Task Over Prime Cancellation Process

    Consumer Groups Take Amazon to Task Over Prime Cancellation Process

    Amazon is coming under fire from consumer groups for how it handles Prime cancellation.

    Amazon Prime is a wildly popular service the online giant offers, providing expedited shipping, steaming services, ebooks, groceries, gaming and more. Given everything the service offers, it’s $119 per year fee is a good deal, especially compared to other streaming services.

    When customers do want to cancel, however, Amazon doesn’t make it easy, running them through multiple prompts and warnings. This has caught the attention of consumer groups in both the US and the EU, according to The Seattle Times.

    A Norwegian customer rights group has filed a legal complaint against Amazon, citing the company’s cancellation policy.

    “It should be as easy to end a subscription as it was to subscribe in the first place,” said Finn Lützow-Holm Myrstad, director of digital policy for the Norwegian Consumer Council. “This practice not only betrays the expectations and trust of consumers but breaches European law.”

    Groups in other EU countries have expressed support, sharing similar concerns. Even in the US, the Public Citizen consumer group has asked the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Amazon’s policy.

    “Amazon should treat customers with respect instead of trying to undermine their autonomy and fight their decisions,” said Burcu Kilic, Public Citizen’s director of digital rights program.

    It remains to be seen if regulators will do anything about Amazon’s Prime cancellation, but the scrutiny is further evidence of the increased pressure Big Tech is under.