Coverage of brick-and-mortar retail, department stores, supermarkets, and physical commerce trends.
Costco’s fiscal 2027 plan of 33 openings nets out to 28 new warehouses, but the base case here is 24–26 by the year’s close on 29 August 2027. Three signals, including a fully documented fiscal 2026 markdown chain, point to a shortfall that likely surfaces at the March or May 2027 call.
Leslie’s filed prearranged Chapter 11 petitions on September 30, 2026 and closed 76 underperforming stores, with lenders holding over 80% of its debt backing the plan. The restructuring targets elimination of roughly $685 million, about 90% of funded debt, and hands majority ownership to the lender group.
Starbucks is shutting about 250 North America coffeehouses before its fiscal year ends on September 27, roughly 1% of a base above 18,000 locations. The company expects approximately $300 million in restructuring charges even as North America comparable sales run 8.1% higher.
Chewy’s 10-Q, Petco’s Q2 call and IDEXX’s CoVetAI deal point to both pet chains guiding to 25 or more new veterinary clinics for 2027 by their March earnings calls. Chewy’s two-teams line is the tell.
Costco UK, 29 warehouses with no on-demand delivery partner, is likely to appear on Uber Eats or Deliveroo by March 31, 2027. Three signals from the past month, led by Uber and DoorDash going nationwide in the US, point to the UK as the next box on Costco’s per-country checklist.
The Cato Corporation will close about 120 stores in fiscal 2026 after adding roughly 70 lease-end exits on September 18, citing pressure on customers’ discretionary income. Second-quarter sales fell 6% and gross margin dropped to 32.8%, while a $5.7 million IEEPA tariff refund had flattered the first quarter.
Costco reports fourth-quarter and fiscal 2026 results on September 24 with net sales of $93.9 billion already disclosed and consensus EPS near $6.54. Gasoline inflation, tariff refunds and renewal rates will decide how the print is read.
TJX, Ross and Burlington are likely to guide at least 400 combined net new stores for calendar 2027, a record for the trio, when they report fourth-quarter results in late February to early March 2027. Three August earnings tells point that way: a raised TJX target with a 4% pace, two in-year plan raises at Ross, and a 115-store, $875 million capex year at Burlington.
Marks & Spencer has put Too Good To Go surprise bags of surplus bakery items into more than 350 M&S Food stores, priced at £3.80 with a £10.20 minimum value. The move follows a trial and months of scrutiny over food in M&S bins.
Tesco has made Whoosh rapid delivery free on orders over £25 from 14 September 2026 to 11 January 2027, but only for Anytime Delivery Saver members who join by 18 October. Here is what the offer saves, what it excludes and how it stacks up against Sainsbury’s, Asda and Ocado.