Nearly two quarters into the U.S. economic recession, advertising appears to be outpacing the U.S. economy, according to an analysis of data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) and Standard Media Index (SMI). The BEA Thursday released estimates that real GDP (gross domestic product) contracted 32.9% during the second quarter of the year, following a contraction of 5% during the first quarter. By comparison, the U.S. ad economy contracted only 27.4% during the second quarter and 1.4% during the first quarter of the year. That analysis is based on the U.S. Ad Market Tracker, a collaboration of SMI and MediaPost that indexes at market growth monthly.

The Association of American Publishers (AAP) today released the StatShot Annual report for Calendar Year 2019, estimating that the U.S. book publishing industry generated $25.93 billion in annual revenue, up by 1.1% as compared to 2018. In terms of units the report estimates that 2.76 billion units were sold. All figures represent publishers’ net revenue from tracked categories (trade, higher education course materials, PreK-12 instructional materials, professional books, and university press), in all formats, from all distribution channels. Overall publishing industry revenue was essentially flat, coming in at $25.93 billion for the year, which was a 1.1% increase as compared to $25.63 billion in 2018.

On July 27, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) put a new rule into effect that allows employee benefit plan administrators to use an electronic “notice-and-access” disclosure system as the default method of communication, making it much more difficult for millions of Americans who currently receive critical, paper-based information about their 401k, pension and retirement plans to access this information. This includes information called for under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), including quarterly benefits statements, plan summaries and plan changes. This new rule puts many at a disadvantage, particularly the 10% of Americans who say they do not use the internet. According to a 2019 Pew Research Center survey, the size of this group has changed little in recent years, despite ongoing government and social service programs to encourage internet adoption in underserved areas. Among those most disadvantaged by this new rule are senior citizens, (27% of whom do not use the internet), low-income families, people with disabilities and those living in rural or other areas with little or no access to the internet.

*Operating cash flow increased 42% to $51.2 billion for the trailing twelve months, compared with $36.0 billion for the trailing twelve months ended June 30, 2019. *Free cash flow increased to $31.9 billion for the trailing twelve months, compared with $25.0 billion for the trailing twelve months ended June 30, 2019. *Net sales increased 40% to $88.9 billion in the second quarter, compared with $63.4 billion in second quarter 2019. Excluding the $582 million unfavorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the quarter, net sales increased 41% compared with second quarter 2019. *Operating income increased to $5.8 billion in the second quarter, compared with operating income of $3.1 billion in second quarter 2019. *Net income increased to $5.2 billion in the second quarter, or $10.30 per diluted share, compared with net income of $2.6 billion, or $5.22 per diluted share, in second quarter 2019.

Staffers at Hearst Magazines digital and print properties voted overwhelmingly yesterday to unionize with the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE). The election, which happened by mail ballot, follows Hearst management’s refusal to voluntarily recognize its staff’s efforts to unionize in November of last year. Roughly 500 Hearst employees make up the new bargaining unit and work across editorial, video, design, photo and social. The unionized staff seeks to address issues that include diversity, transparency, compensation and editorial standards through its contract.

Pursuant to the terms that will apply to borrowing under the CARES Act, the Postal Service will provide the Department of the Treasury with certain information regarding our costs, revenues, and overall financial position. This includes providing Treasury, under strict terms of confidentiality, with those contracts that generate the most revenue for the Postal Service. Providing this information is merely an acknowledgment of the fact that Treasury has been designated by Congress as the lender for the Postal Service, and it therefore has a legitimate interest under certain circumstances in understanding those factors that affect our current and projected financial position. Other conditions, such as the requirement that borrowed funds only be used for operating expenses, and not for capital expenses, were expressly mandated by Congress in the language of the CARES Act. Contrary to insinuations made in the Washington Post article, nothing in these terms confers upon Treasury any role whatsoever in Postal Service pricing, management, or strategy.

The U.S. Postal Service announced a loyalty program designed to help smaller businesses, according to a press release obtained by Total Retail. Registered business users of USPS Click-N-Ship will earn credits by purchasing postal products they're already using for their shipping needs. Priority Mail and Priority Mail Express postage purchased online through Click-N-Ship will generate credits that can then be applied to future purchases of these products. Click-N-Ship business account users will earn $40 credits for every $500 spent on Priority Mail and Priority Mail Express labels. The program will launch nationally on Aug. 1. Existing business accounts will be auto-enrolled in the program. New Click-N-Ship business account users will earn a one-time $40 Welcome Bonus for the first $500 spent on Priority Mail and Priority Mail Express postage. In addition, the Postal Service is offering a one-time $20 Introductory Bonus for any registered Click-N-Ship business user for $500 spent in August and September this year.

UPS announced second-quarter 2020 consolidated revenue increased to $20.5 billion, a 13.4% increase from the second quarter of 2019. Net income was $1.8 billion for the quarter; adjusted net income was $1.9 billion, 8.8% above the same period in 2019. Operating profit was $2.2 billion, and adjusted operating profit was $2.3 billion, up 7.4% compared to last year’s second quarter. Diluted earnings per share was $2.03 and adjusted diluted earnings per share was $2.13, up 8.7% from the same period last year. GAAP results included a pre-tax transformation charge of $112 million, equivalent to $0.10 per share. In the prior year period, GAAP results included a pre-tax charge for transformation costs of $21 million, equivalent to $0.02 per share.

United States Postmaster General Louis DeJoy announced today that the United States Postal Service (USPS) has reached an agreement in principle with the United States Department of the Treasury on the terms and conditions associated with $10 billion lending authority provided in the CARES Act. The USPS Board of Governors unanimously approved the agreement in principle yesterday and expects that the parties will formally memorialize the agreement through loan documents that will be jointly developed over the coming weeks. DeJoy expressed his appreciation to U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin for working with him to reach mutually acceptable terms and conditions. DeJoy said, “Access to an additional $10 billion in borrowing authority will delay the approaching liquidity crisis.”

Meredith Corp. doesn't just publish magazines. It manufactures them. That was the conclusion of a three-year legal battle that ended last week when attorneys for the U.S. Department of Justice dropped an appeal against Meredith. The conclusion of the civil lawsuit clears the path for the Des Moines-based publisher of titles such as Better Homes and Gardens, People, Magnolia and Southern Living to collect a $12.2 million tax deduction. At issue was whether Meredith is technically a manufacturer, which would qualify the company for the tax break, which is designed to keep production jobs in the U.S. Although it does not print its magazines, Meredith argued it broadly fits the description of a manufacturer because of all the other work it does to make the product.

Torstar Corporation announced that the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (Commercial List) has approved its previously announced plan of arrangement involving NordStar Capital LP ( “NordStar”), pursuant to which NordStar will, among other things, acquire all of the issued and outstanding Class A shares and Class B non-voting shares of Torstar (the “Shares”) at a price of $0.74 per Share (the “Arrangement”). The Arrangement is expected to be completed on or about July 30, 2020 and remains subject to the satisfaction or waiver of certain customary closing conditions.

Amazon announced it has delivered more than 6 million meals with 7.4 million pounds of food since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic to people in need in over 25 cities across the U.S.—with plans to deliver a million more meals by the end of summer. With communities facing record-high unemployment and many observing strict social distancing guidelines, food banks have experienced unprecedented demand. Amazon delivery drivers are stepping in to help by safely delivering meals directly to clients’ homes. Amazon has donated delivery services to food banks and community organizations since March through its Amazon Flex network and other delivery partners. “Amazon has a longstanding commitment to addressing right now needs – with over $100 million in donations to homelessness, hunger, and disaster relief,” said Alice Shobe, Director of Amazon in the Community. S&P Global Revenue Increased 14% In Second Quarter

*Revenue and Operating Profit Grew Across All Four Divisions *Diluted EPS Increased 46% to $3.28; Adjusted Diluted EPS Increased 40% to $3.40 *Operating Profit Margin Improved 920 Basis Points to 56.9% *Adjusted Operating Profit Margin Improved 740 Basis Points to 58.7% *Several New Products Launched During the Quarter

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy issued the following statement on July 27, 2020: “The Postal Service is in a financially unsustainable position, stemming from substantial declines in mail volume, and a broken business model. We are currently unable to balance our costs with available funding sources to fulfill both our universal service mission and other legal obligations. Because of this, the Postal Service has experienced over a decade of financial losses, with no end in sight, and we face an impending liquidity crisis. Congress and the Postal Regulatory Commission must enact legislative and regulatory reforms to help address the situation. At the same time, it is imperative for the Postal Service to operate efficiently and effectively. Indeed, there are alternatives to every product that we offer, and the only way that the Postal Service can continue to provide prompt, reliable, and affordable universal postal services for all Americans over the long-term is by vigorously focusing on the efficiency of our operations." click read more below for additional comments

McClatchy announced that it filed an asset purchase agreement with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, formalizing the details of Chatham Asset Management's successful bid for ownership of McClatchy in the Chapter 11 sale process. The filing is a key milestone in the reorganization and paves the way for a change in control of the 163-year-old news company. Under Chapter 11 rules, the proposed asset purchase is scheduled for consideration by the Court for approval at a hearing on August 4. Under the agreement, Chatham will acquire McClatchy for $263 million in a credit bid of the Company's first-lien debt, plus new money consideration of $49 million in cash and the assumption of additional liabilities.

Highlights:*Underlying revenue down 17% on prior year largely due to COVID-19*Group sales decline largely reflects test centre and school closures in Global Assessment and International. After deterioration from March to May we saw improving sales trends in June.*Global Online Learning sales grew 5% due to strong enrolments in new and existing schools in Virtual Schools and slight revenue growth in OPM with good growth in continuing programs offset by discontinued programs.*Global Assessment declined 27% due to the impact of test centre closures in Professional Certification (Pearson VUE), cancellation of spring testing in Student Assessment and school closures impacting Clinical Assessments.*North American Courseware declined 14% with US Higher Education Courseware declining in line with expectations due to the continuation of trends seen in 2019, and a modest impact from the closure of campus-based bookstores. We saw a weaker performance in courseware in Canada largely as a result of school and bookstore closures. *International declined 23% due to the disruption in businesses which rely on physical locations including school and test centre closures.

Amazon.com, Inc. announced plans to open a fulfillment center in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee. The site, which is anticipated to launch in late 2021, will create more than 1,000 new, full-time jobs with benefits and opportunities to engage with advanced robotics. The company currently has fulfillment and sortation centers in Charleston, Chattanooga, Lebanon, Murfreesboro, Memphis and Nashville. “Tennessee is a great state for business and gives us the opportunity to better serve our customers in the region,” said Alicia Boler Davis, Amazon’s vice president of global customer fulfillment. “We are excited about our growth and remain committed to creating a positive economic impact in the region with job opportunities with great pay and industry-leading benefits.”

Second Quarter Financial Highlights: - Sales of $2.8 billion with significant share gain in the U.S. - Generated reported operating earnings of $205 million; adjusted operating earnings of $315 million - Over $75 million in sequential SG&A cost savings - Generated $232 million in operating cash flow and returned $86 million to shareholders through dividends

Oprah Winfrey's monthly magazine will cease printing after its December 2020 issue, according to a report by Business of Fashion. Asked for comment, a rep for Hearst Magazines emphasized to The Hollywood Reporter that the brand is not going away but will become "more digitally centric." Said Winfrey in a statement: "I'm proud of this team and what we have delivered to our readers over the past 20 years. I look forward to the next step in our evolution."

With another strong showing by the juvenile nonfiction category, unit sales of print books rose 16.6% in the week ended July 18, 2020, over the comparable week in 2019, at outlets that report to NPD BookScan. Units were up 40.9% in juvenile nonfiction from the week ended July 20, 2019, led by a new surge of sales for one of this year’s biggest bestsellers, My First Learn-to-Write Workbook by Crystal Radke, which sold nearly 40,000 copies in the week. The adult nonfiction category also did well, with unit sales increasing 19.9% over 2019, helped by Mary L. Trump’s Too Much and Never Enough, which sold 337,473 print copies in its first week. White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo was #2 in the category, selling nearly 49,000 copies.

Walgreens announced this week that it has joined a groundbreaking consortium that aims to reinvent the single-use plastic retail bag. Teaming up with other major retailers and with non-profit organizations in the Consortium to Reinvent the Retail Bag, Walgreens is committed to being part of the solution to the waste and recycling issues associated with the use of more than 100 billion retail plastic bags every year in the U.S. The goal of the Beyond the Bag initiative is to identify, test and implement viable design solutions and models that more sustainably serve the purpose of the current retail bag. Current alternatives to the plastic retail bag have yet to garner industry-wide support or widespread use by the public and many still have significant environmental impacts.

The ACMA is excited to release the agenda for our upcoming virtual National Forum. Registartion will be announced very soon, but for now, please save the dates and plan on attending. Here are the key facts: No 'Zoom overload' promised! This year’s Forum will be held entirely via a series of Zoom meetings. Following an opening session focused on the upcoming elections on September 2nd, there will be back-to-back 45-minute online sessions held on the three subsequent Wednesdays. Cost & Attendance: Although the issues and focus will on C-level executives, attendance is complementary to all catalog/online/direct merchants and their suppliers, both ACMA members and non-members, as long as you completely fill out the brief registration form (coming soon). See the agenda at: https://catalogmailers.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/ACMA-Virtual-Forum-Agenda-2020.pdf - click read more below for additional info

The New York Times Company announced that it would acquire Serial Productions, the company that produces the groundbreaking “Serial” podcast. In addition to the acquisition, The Times also announced that it had entered into an ongoing creative and strategic alliance with “This American Life” that will enable it to continue to collaborate on long-form audio stories with Serial Productions and to collaborate on marketing and advertising sales with The Times. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Serial Productions is a team of audio’s best and most successful long-form journalists and narrative storytellers led by Julie Snyder, Sarah Koenig and Neil Drumming. Each episode of “Serial’s” first season was downloaded 20 million times on average and is credited with igniting the current podcast boom. “This American Life” is the iconic, long-running, weekly public radio program, founded by host and executive producer Ira Glass.

The total invoiced value (or publishers' sales to accounts) of U.K. publisher sales rose to £6.3 billion in 2019, 4% higher than in 2018 and 20% higher than in 2015, making 2019 the biggest year ever for U.K. publishing. The Publishers Association’s new figures, released in its annual "Yearbook" report, shows growth in both print and digital sales. The significance of export sales is underlined by the report: exports accounted for 59% of total sales. Other headline facts include: print sales up 3% to £3.5 billion; digital sales up 4% to £2.8 billion; home sales up 4% to £2.4 billion; export sales up 3% to £3.7 billion; consumer audiobook downloads sales up 39% to £97 million, and nonfiction and reference sales up to 6% to £1 billion.

Torstar Corporation announced that, at its special meeting of shareholders held today, shareholders of Torstar voted to approve the previously announced plan of arrangement involving NordStar Capital LP pursuant to Section 182 of the Business Corporations Act. Pursuant to the Arrangement, NordStar will, among other things, acquire all of the issued and outstanding Class A shares and Class B non-voting shares of Torstar at a price of $0.74 per Share.

John Wiley & Sons Inc., and CPI Group, the largest book printer in Europe, announced a partnership bringing together a total supply chain solution including demand planning, print and distribution, customer service, and credit collection. The partnership will establish a state-of-the-art inkjet print production facility within Wiley’s European Distribution Centre (EDC) in Bognor Regis, United Kingdom. “We have a fantastic relationship with CPI and are thrilled to partner with them on this exciting project,” said Cary Hamill, VP of Global Supply Chain and Strategic Sourcing for Wiley. “We believe our collective expertise will provide an innovative solution to publishers for their print, inventory management and distribution needs - whilst continuing to provide our customers and clients with an even better level of service.”

Looks like the long, good read continues. Dennis Publishing just announced subscription rates across all titles have increased by 9% overall during the lockdown and ongoing pandemic. “Since the beginning of lockdown the number of people subscribing to all Dennis titles has increased by 9%,” notes this article on the publisher’s website. “To ensure an uninterrupted service of their favourite magazines, all titles have offered free digital access to subscribers throughout the pandemic, which has been met with glowing reviews by readers. The team didn’t rest on their laurels though, instead implementing engagement campaigns to get new subscribers to the titles, with huge success.” The company decided early on to unlock free digital access to all subscribers, to ensure the mail delays wouldn’t cause readers to lose interest. At the same, they implemented new engagement campaigns to reach new subscribers … with great success.

Meredith Corporation announced that it has begun making Traditional Home available for home delivery via the Meredith Magazine Store, beginning with the Fall/Winter 2020 issue. The quarterly continues to be available at newsstands with a $12.99 cover price. "We're thrilled to provide annual and biannual subscriptions to readers of this beloved home brand," said Doug Olson, President, Meredith Magazines. "Offering consumers home delivery is a logical next step based on the overwhelmingly positive response of readers and the success of Cooking Light and Coastal Living's pivot to Meredith's consumer-driven model. It's a profitable and innovative way for us to deliver our desired print brands like Traditional Home to our passionate and loyal readers." An annual subscription costs $20 for four issues. The brand, which includes growing interior design-enthusiast followings on Facebook and Instagram, is directed by Editor In Chief Jill Waage, based in Des Moines, Iowa.

Ulta Beauty, Inc. shared further updates to its operations as it continues to navigate the impact of COVID-19. Ulta Beauty has completed its phased reopening process. To meet individual comfort levels, guests can shop via Curbside Pickup, Buy Online Pickup in Store, on ulta.com, via the Ulta Beauty app and in Ulta Beauty stores. In addition to our Shop Safe Standards, starting today Ulta Beauty will require all guests and associates to wear facial coverings when in stores. As different parts of the country manage rising COVID-19 cases, the Company will maintain its close monitoring of government and health guidance as well as local case prevalence to inform nimble actions where necessary. Mirroring its thoughtful reopening approach, the Company began welcoming back furloughed employees consistent with individual store operational needs. To date, approximately 50% of those furloughed in April have been reactivated.

Bloomsbury announces its trading update for the four months ended 30 June 2020, ahead of the Company’s Annual General Meeting at 12.00pm today. Bloomsbury experienced strong trading for the first four months of its financial year, ahead of the Board’s expectations, with year-on-year sales growth of 18% during a period of unprecedented disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Our revenue and earnings are weighted towards the second-half, with sales of trade titles rising for Christmas and sales of academic titles being strongest at the beginning of the academic year in the Autumn.

Torstar Corporation announced that the Torstar board of directors has determined to continue to recommend the proposed acquisition by NordStar Capital LP of all of the issued and outstanding Class A shares and Class B non-voting shares of Torstar by way of a statutory plan of arrangement at a price of $0.74 per Share. On July 11, 2020, Torstar announced that it had entered into an amendment to the arrangement agreement dated May 26, 2020 between Torstar and NordStar to provide for the increased purchase price, which constitutes an increase of 17.5% from the $0.63 per Share payable under the original NordStar Agreement.

Pro Carton has launched new home-schooling intiative, EduCarton. The educational resources assist parents and carers of children in lockdown to teach them about the environment and the benefits of cartonboard. All materials are FREE to download. There are a range of materials to explore, including; Crafts, worksheets and colouring: A range of printable activities for children, with many themed around “Carton Campaigners”. Find out more about the intiative at: https://www.procarton.com/publications-news/educarton-home-schooling-initiative/

David Ritchie has been named CEO of Bonnier Corp., it was announced today by Jens Mueffelmann, Executive Chairman of Bonnier Corp. His appointment is effective August 1. Ritchie is succeeding Eric Zinczenko, who will be departing the company. “David’s track record and deep understanding of all facets of the company as former COO and CCO make him the right choice to lead Bonnier Corp. into the future,” Mueffelmann said. “What impressed me working with David in the past couple of months was his true passion for our brands, paired with a strong business acumen and a structured and hands-on approach to execution. These qualities will be critical to us in this pivotal time as we conclude efforts on mergers and acquisitions opportunities for our media properties, transform and restructure operations, and execute a clear go-forward plan for our nonmedia activities. On behalf of the Board of Directors, I wish Eric the very best and thank him for his 14 years of service at Bonnier.

Barnes & Noble CEO James Daunt began his tenure with a baptism by fire. He took over the role in September and made some tweaks to B&N’s holiday merchandising and a few personnel changes. He was expecting to make more extensive changes early this year. But then Covid-19 forced B&N to close all but 24 stores to in-person shopping. By early July, all but one store had been reopened, Daunt told PW. The company is following all local mandates, including limiting the number of customers in each store at a given time, establishing social distancing protocols, and creating designated areas where customers can leave books they have touched but decided not to buy (those books are then sanitized before being returned to shelves).

InnerWorkings, Inc. and HH Global Group Limited announced that they have signed a definitive agreement to combine operations. Under the terms of the agreement, HH Global will acquire InnerWorkings for $3.00 per share in an all-cash transaction representing approximately $177 million in equity value. This represents a premium of 127% to the closing price, and a premium of 104% to the 90-day volume weighted average price as of July 15, 2020. The transaction has been unanimously approved by the Boards of Directors of both companies. “Over the past several months, we’ve been taking actions to put InnerWorkings in the best position to weather the challenging environment in which we’re operating,” said Rich Stoddart, Chief Executive Officer of InnerWorkings. “In these times of significant economic uncertainty, the Board of Directors and management determined to undertake a comprehensive process to preserve and enhance value for shareholders. After exploring a range of financing and strategic alternatives, and implementing meaningful cost saving measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’re confident this combination represents the best path forward for our shareholders and InnerWorkings. In addition to delivering an immediate cash premium to our shareholders, the combination will create a company with a stronger balance sheet and will enhance our ability to accelerate our transformation and serve our client base.”

Office Depot announced a new collaboration with Canva, the world’s fastest growing design platform. Canva’s high-impact, professional and visually-appealing graphic design solutions paired with the high-quality printing services offered on officedepot.com are now available to help small business customers keep business going during this pivotal time. “Whether small businesses are preparing to open their doors or never shut down, we’re here to help them accomplish more as they restore operations, restock their office and reconnect with their customers,” said John Gannfors, executive vice president and chief merchandising and supply chain officer for Office Depot. “The addition of Canva’s easy-to-use graphic design functionality enables our small business customers to easily build their brand with eye-catching print marketing materials that can help them keep business going.”

J. C. Penney Company, Inc. announced that it is aligning its workforce with its store optimization strategy and reduced store footprint. JCPenney has identified 152 store closures following a comprehensive evaluation of store performance and strategic fit for the Company and is having ongoing productive negotiations with landlords. The announcement follows a lengthy, structured, and thoughtful decision-making process. In connection with this organizational realignment, the Company will reduce its workforce by approximately 1,000 corporate, field management, and international positions. This organizational restructuring will create a smaller, more financially flexible company, and will help ensure JCPenney emerges from both Chapter 11 and the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic as an even stronger retailer.

Global online spending rose 28% in June compared to the year-ago period, making it the largest year-over-year increase in sales since COVID-19 restrictions were put in place in March, according to an analysis by ACI Worldwide of hundreds of millions of e-commerce transactions from global merchants. In the U.S., online spending rose 25% in June, which was steady with May’s increase. The report also showed a continued increase (117%) in athletic, footwear and sporting goods sales. Outdoor equipment was among the most popular purchase categories with an increase of 10% in June. In the U.S., consumer purchases were driven largely by apparel, as well as a continued demand for online games.

In response to the COVID-19 crisis that has left many Canadians struggling to provide basic necessities for their families, Gap (Canada) Inc. will be donating more than $3 million of new Gap, Banana Republic and Old Navy (Canada) clothing to those in need, including unemployed Canadians who need support getting back to work and getting back on their feet. In partnership with Delivering Good – a non-profit organization that unites retailers, manufacturers, foundations and individuals to support those affected by poverty and tragedy – Gap (Canada) Inc. will donate the clothing to LIFE*SPIN in London, Ontario. This donation will help people as they build a brighter future and is the latest in the company’s ongoing efforts to support its communities and be the change, together.

Office Depot announced that it is providing $1.5 million to Feeding America®, the largest domestic hunger-relief organization in the country, in support of its COVID-19 Response Fund to help local food banks across the country distribute more than 1.3 billion pounds of food to communities in need. “We are proud to support the Feeding America network of food banks as it works tirelessly to address the increased demand for food assistance resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Gerry Smith, chief executive officer for Office Depot and The ODP Corporation. “Now more than ever, we are committed to strengthening local communities and hope that this donation will help to provide relief for families that are struggling to put food on the table.”

The Association of American Publishers released its StatShot report for May 2020 reflecting reported revenue for all tracked categories, including Trade (consumer publications), K-12 Instructional Materials, Higher Education Course Materials, Professional Publishing, and University Presses. Total revenues across all categories for May 2020 were approximately $1.0 billion, a decline of 12.1% as compared to May 2019. Year-to-date sales were $4.3 billion, a decline of 4.5% as compared to the same period last year. Trade sales were down 7.9% year-over-year. Religious press revenues were up 7.0% year-over-year in May. Professional Books, including business, medical, law, technical and scientific, declined 3.7% for the month. University Presses declined 5.4% as compared to May of 2019.

Meredith Corporation's PARENTS magazine's August "Raise a Reader" issue, available now, debuts its first-ever list of 100 Books to Inspire Your Kids covering a wide range of titles to help turn children of all ages into readers. To create the list, PARENTS asked celebrated authors to share the book that opened their or their children's eyes to the joy of reading. The issue's cover story features NBC's TODAY co-host Jenna Bush Hager, who shares how literacy has touched her life. Other features include tips on how to Raise a Child Who Loves to Read and the announcement of Raising the Future Book Club that will launch August 7. The Raising the Future Book Club launches with its first selection, Antiracist Baby by Ibram X. Kendi, Ph.D., who will lead a discussion of the book on PARENTS' Instagram on August 7 at 3:00 P.M.(ET). For details, visit http://parents.com/bookclub.

In what is perhaps the biggest surprise in publishing since the Covid-19 pandemic sent the U.S. economy into turmoil this spring, print unit sales saw a 2.8% increase in the first half of 2020, over the comparable period in 2019, at outlets that report to NPD BookScan. The number of copies sold was 322.1 million in the six-month period, up from 313.5 million in the first half of 2019. The increase was led by a combination of children’s nonfiction books aimed at helping parents educate and entertain their children following the closing of most schools in March, as well as a spike in sales of books on race relations and social justice following the killing of George Floyd by members of the Minneapolis police department in late May.

McClatchy announced that the auction held as a part of its court-supervised sale process has concluded with Chatham Asset Management deemed the successful bid. Under terms of the proposed agreement, which will be finalized and filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the coming days, McClatchy will transition out of Chapter 11 as it entered it: in its totality, as one company serving 30 communities across America through its iconic local news titles, from the Miami Herald and The Charlotte Observer to The (Raleigh) News & Observer, The Kansas City Star, Fort Worth Star-Telegram and The Sacramento Bee.

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra has already sent warning notices to online companies over alleged violations of the state's new privacy law, a state official said Thursday. Companies that receive the notices will have 30 days to come into compliance, or risk lawsuits by the state. The California Consumer Privacy Act gives state residents the right to learn what information has been collected about them by companies, have that information deleted, and prevent the sale of that data to third parties. The measure went into effect in January, but wasn't enforceable until July 1.

Torstar Corporationannounced that it has entered into an amendment to the arrangement agreement dated May 26, 2020 between Torstar and NordStar Capital LP, pursuant to which NordStar has agreed to acquire all of the issued and outstanding Class A shares and Class B non-voting shares of Torstar (the “Shares”) by way of a statutory plan of arrangement at an increased price of $0.74 per Share. The amended purchase price constitutes an increase of 17.5% from the $0.63 per Share payable under the original NordStar Agreement. The amendment to the NordStar Agreement results from discussions with NordStar following Torstar’s receipt of an unsolicited offer from a private investor group, pursuant to which such group proposed to acquire all of the issued and outstanding Shares for a combination of $0.72 per Share in cash and the issuance of one non-transferable contingent value right per Share, with payments (if any) on such right being based on proceeds of dispositions of, and distributions from, select Torstar non-core assets in certain circumstances following issuance.

Sur La Table is slashing its store footprint as it seeks to prosper under new ownership. The nearly 50-year-old, upscale kitchenware retailer said it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after considering the "rationalization of its national store footprint and “certain store closures to prosper in the current retail environment.” On its FAQ page, the privately held Sur La Table said it has decided to close over 50 of its 121 stores (see list at end of article). Great American Group LLC and Tiger Capital Group LLC will conduct the liquidation sales, which are expected to last eight to 12 weeks. “We have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection to reduce the company’s expenses and recover from the financial impact of the COVID-19 crisis,” the company stated on its FAQ page.

Barnes & Noble Inc. announced that booksellers from across the U.S. selected ten titles as the Best Books of 2020 (So Far), including books that address our current moment, share lessons from the past, and bring memorable characters—both real and imagined—to life. “Our passionate bookselling team has undertaken the distinct challenge of narrowing down our favorite books from the first half of 2020 into a short list of ten diverse and thought-provoking titles. The result is a unique range that includes the informative and historical, to electrifying new novels and even a heartwarming children’s tale about a dog, a gorilla, and an elephant,” Jackie De Leo, Vice President, Bookstore, Barnes & Noble. “I am really impressed with our booksellers’ selections, and I am pleased to recommend these titles to our customers.”

Citing industry shifts as well as disruptions in the publishing supply chain caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, Ingram Content Group said it is investing millions of dollars in an upgrade to its global printing and distribution network. In the U.S., Ingram said it is investing “millions of dollars” to increase capacity in its print-on-demand manufacturing plants located in Allentown, Pa., Jackson, Tenn., and La Vergne, Tenn. New printing, binding, trimming, and shipping/sortation equipment will be installed now through October, which the company said will increase U.S. capacity “by double-digit percentages,” adding that it expects to “hire hundreds of new associates in these facilities.”

Torstar Corporation confirmed that it has received a non-binding unsolicited offer from a private investor group, pursuant to which the New Offeror has offered to acquire all of the issued and outstanding Class A shares and Class B non-voting shares of Torstar. The Torstar board of directors has determined that the New Offer may reasonably be expected to constitute or lead to a “Superior Proposal” under the arrangement agreement dated May 26, 2020 entered into between Torstar and NordStar Capital LP, and is engaging in discussions and negotiations with the New Offeror regarding its non-binding proposal.

Fiscal 2020 third quarter net loss attributable to WBA was $1.7 billion compared with net earnings of $1.0 billion the same quarter a year ago. Net loss per share1 was $1.95 compared with net earnings per share (EPS) of $1.13 the same quarter a year ago. The results reflect $2 billion in non-cash impairment charges related to goodwill and intangible assets in Boots UK reflecting deteriorated business conditions including the adverse impact of COVID-19 and resulting future uncertainty. Sales in the third quarter were $34.6 billion, an increase of 0.1 percent from the year-ago quarter, and an increase of 1.2 percent on a constant currency basis, as the pandemic sharply curtailed footfall in retail pharmacies. The company had an operating loss of $1.6 billion in the third quarter, compared to operating income of $1.2 billion in the same quarter a year ago, primarily due to impairment charges in Boots UK of $2 billion.

Bed Bath & Beyond plans to close about 200 stores during the next two years as it looks to return to profitability. The embattled home furnishings retailer, which operated a total of 1,478 stores as of May 30, announced the decision to “right-size” its real estate portfolio in reporting its first-quarter results. Bed Bath & Beyond said the closings, which will mostly affect its 955 namesake locations, and other cost restructurings should generate annual cost savings of between $250 million and $350 million, excluding related one-time costs. The company reported that its net loss narrowed to $302.29 million, or $2.44 per share, for the quarter ended May 30, from $371.09 million, or $2.91 a share, in the year-ago period. Sales tumbled 49% to $1.31 billion from $2.57 billion a year ago, as the retailer’s stores were temporarily shuttered for much of the quarter amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Costco Wholesale Corporation reported net sales of $16.18 billion for the retail month of June, the five weeks ended July 5, 2020, an increase of 11.1 percent from $14.57 billion last year. For the forty-four weeks ended July 5, 2020, the Company reported net sales of $136.37 billion, an increase of 8.1 percent from $126.13 billion during the similar period last year.

The Retail Industry Leaders Association on Tuesday sent a letter to the National Governors Association in which it urged every governor to require customers to wear a mask when entering a retail store or other enclosed public space. The letter encourages uniform, statewide orders “to create clarity for businesses, customers and law enforcement,” noting that different rules around the country have made it confusing for shoppers and often lead to arguments between customers and store employees who trying to enforce company policies.

In our digital world, you can pay bills and bank online, sign online contracts with an e-signature and click to accept terms and conditions. In fact, you don’t need to use a written signature for most day-to-day transactions. But there are still plenty of situations where it’s legally required to put pen to paper, and often those legal documents require a seal from a notary public. “People appreciate the added security that a notarized piece of paper brings,” says Ginger Shore, senior funding sales officer and notary public at North Carolina State Employee’s Credit Union. “I find myself providing notary services every single day. It’s still a very necessary part of the business and legal world.” A notary public is an official appointed by the state government to serve as an impartial witness and fraud deterrent during the signing of important documents.

As people get ready to reopen many businesses, SAGE (the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies that provides scientific and technical advice to support government decision makers during emergencies) has reviewed the evidence on the spread of COVID-19 and the efficiency of mitigation measures. One of the issues considered is washroom hygiene with a large amount of useful information on cleansing and air flows. Specifically on hand drying the documents states: Replacement of jet dryers with paper towels. Rationale: Jet air dryers can aerosolise microorganisms from poorly washed hands. Incomplete drying of hands means that contamination can persist on hands. The full SAGE document can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/transmission-of-sars-cov-2-and-mitigating-measures-update-4-june-2020

Meredith Corp. is launching a company-wide, cross-platform editorial initiative this fall in response to the difficult events this year, called “Reasons for Hope in America.” The project will focus on the “inspiring stories of community, giving thanks, inspiring change and reflecting on what matters most,” according to the publisher. "Reasons for Hope in America" — which will span across print, digital, video, broadcast and social — is inspired by the People franchise “100 Reasons to Love America.”

With all major categories posting gains, unit sales of print books jumped 18% in the week ended June 27, 2020, over the comparable week in 2019, at outlets that report to NPD BookScan. The YA nonfiction category had the biggest increase over the week ended June 29, 2019, with unit sales skyrocketing 111.6%. The increase was led by Stamped: Racism, Antiracism and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi, which sold more than 30,000 copies, a 145% increase over the week ended June 20. The adult nonfiction category also had a big increase over 2019, with John Bolton’s The Room Where It Happened selling more than 221,000 print copies in its first week, making it the #1 title overall for the week.

Despite objections by the ad industry and business groups, California's Attorney General Xavier Becerra said Wednesday he will begin enforcing the state's new privacy law. “Today we begin enforcement of the California Consumer Privacy Act,” Becerra stated. “We encourage every Californian to know their rights to internet privacy and every business to know its responsibilities.” He added: “The website of every business covered by the law must now post a link on its homepage that says ‘Do Not Sell My Personal Information.'”

Macy’s, Inc. reported results for the first quarter of 2020. As previously reported, the company had net sales of $3.017 billion. Nearly all of the company's stores have now reopened, including stores in the major metropolitan regions. Stores continued to perform ahead of expectations through May and June, and the company's digital business sales remained strong across geographies. The company continues to expect a gradual sales recovery. Primarily as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the company’s long-term projections and market capitalization changed, requiring interim impairment assessments for its goodwill and long-lived assets. As a result of these assessments, the company recognized pre-tax, non-cash goodwill and long-lived asset impairment charges of $3.1 billion and $80 million, respectively, during the 13 weeks ended May 2, 2020. The company is now reporting a Diluted loss per share of $11.53 and Adjusted Diluted loss per share of $2.03.

Active Interest Media has sold off its healthy living, fitness and outdoor divisions, collectively representing several of its largest publications, to Pocket Outdoor Media, a Colorado-based publisher of a handful of enthusiast magazines, the two companies announced Tuesday. Included in the sale are Backpacker, Better Nutrition, Clean Eating, Climbing, Muscle & Performance, NatuRx, Oxygen, Ski, Vegetarian Times and Yoga Journal magazines, as well as the digital outlet SNEWS and the action sports film studio Warren Miller Entertainment, among other properties.

Net loss for the first quarter of 2020 was $(65.7) million or $(1.38) per diluted share compared to net income of $4.0 million or $0.08 per diluted share for the first quarter of 2019. First quarter 2020 results include non-cash pre-tax asset impairment charges of $10.3 million or $0.22 per diluted share. Net sales for the first quarter of 2020 were $134.3 million compared to $314.2 million for the first quarter of 2019. Net sales were impacted by the temporary store closures related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Omni sales for the first quarter increased 17 percent over last year. In April, omni sales were 47 percent higher than last year driven by fulfillment from closed stores where allowed. Gross profit for the first quarter of 2020 was a loss of $(10.0) million or (7.5) percent of sales compared to $87.5 million or 27.8 percent of sales in the comparable period last year. The lower gross profit reflects deleverage of occupancy costs as a percentage of sales and higher markdowns.

July 1 is National Postal Worker Day and National U.S. Postage Stamp Day. This special day recognizes the men and women who deliver our mail, rain or shine, and the many unsung heroes who also play an important role in mail delivery, like the workers who process the mail, drive the trucks, and fly the planes. It also celebrates the ease and simplicity with which we can send and receive mail thanks to the humble postage stamp and the United States Postal Service (USPS). For nearly 250 years, the USPS has kept pace with evolving technology and expanded its services to include package delivery and retail sales. That agility has kept the organization relevant and capable of adapting to the fluctuating needs and culture of the country.

In early spring, when the Covid-19 pandemic forced most bookstores to close and disrupted print book sales through Amazon, no one could have predicted that by summer unit sales of print books would be up 1.4% for the year to date over the same period in 2019, nor that sales would hit a weekly high for the year. But that is what happened in the week ended June 20, when unit sales from outlets that report to NPD BookScan topped 15 million—22.9% higher than the similar week last year—and total units sold for the year hit 295.7 million, up from 291.6 million in the first 24 weeks of 2019. The increase came from a combination of continued strong sales of books on racism and social justice, as well as from Father’s Day books. Sales also benefitted from the slow reopening of more bookstores and continued solid online orders.

Microsoft said on Friday it will permanently close all of its 83 store locations and will instead focus on its e-commerce business, where customers can visit for support, sales, training and more. The decision comes after Microsoft temporarily closed stores in March due to the spread of the coronavirus. Microsoft said the thousands of workers from these stores have already transitioned to new roles where they're providing sales, training, and support to customers from Microsoft corporate facilities or remotely. Total Retail's Take: Microsoft opened its first brick-and-mortar store in 2009, where people could go to try the company's software and hardware. This decision was made after Apple, its main competitor, was enjoying great success and popularity with its modern, clean retail outlets. Over the past decade, Microsoft expanded its retail presence in an effort to create a shopping experience similar to Apple’s.

The Washington Post plans to add 14 new positions to the graphics and design teams. “We live in an increasingly visual society, and communicating information with the powerful visual tools we now have is proving to be particularly effective – in explaining complex subjects, encouraging readers to explore subjects more deeply and attracting more readers and subscribers,” Marty Baron, executive editor of The Washington Post, told Publishers Daily. Six of the seven most visited stories in WaPo's history have been graphics, including the coronavirus simulator that became the most visited article in the publisher's history.

Alongside its year-end results the postal operator's interim executive chair, Keith Williams, outlined a new three-step plan to get the business back on track. "In recent years, our UK business has not adapted quickly enough to the changes in our marketplace of more parcels and fewer letters. Covid-19 has accelerated those trends, presenting additional challenges,” he said. Some 2,000 management jobs will go, more than 20% of the current total of 9,700 management positions. Royal Mail said the biggest reductions would be in “senior executive roles and non-operational functions”. The restructure will cost about £150m, and will result in annual savings of £130m. Capex will be reduced by £300m across the group over the next two years, with £250m of the cutbacks affecting the UK.

Average student spending on college textbooks and digital course materials has steadily declined in recent years, according to new data unveiled from Student Watch, which is funded by the National Association of College Stores Foundation, and Student Monitor, an independent research firm. In its new annual report, Student Watch reports a decline in student spending on course materials of 35 percent over the past six years, while Student Monitor’s semi-annual report similarly indicates a 39 percent decline over the same time period. “Students are actually spending less on college course materials than we have seen them spend before,” commented Brittany Conley, Research Analyst, On Campus Research for the National Association of College Stores (NACS). “We saw that students spent about $413 across the academic year on course materials. Ten years ago, that number was closer to $700.”

Amazon announced its choices for 2020’s Best Books of the Year So Far, selecting Abi Daré’s debut novel, The Girl with the Louding Voice, as the top pick. Throughout the year, the Amazon Books editorial team pores over thousands of pages to determine the Best Books of the Month, Best Books of the Year So Far, and Best Books of the Year, debating new releases across various categories—including literary fiction, mystery and thriller, biography, children’s books, and young adult—all to help customers find their next great book. For Best Books of the Year So Far, the Amazon Books editorial team read and selected titles released between January 2020 and June 2020. This year’s list includes the first adult novel of a longtime children’s book author, a sought-after tattoo artist’s memoir on assimilating to American culture after leaving Vietnam, and a gripping true story of a family trying to understand how schizophrenia has affected their lives and future.

GNC Holdings Inc. has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection with plans to close at least 800 to 1,200 stores as it looks to cut its debt and restructure amid the COVID-19 crisis. The struggling, 85-year-old vitamin and supplement retailer said it has reached an agreement with the majority of its secured lenders and key shareholders to pursue a dual-path restructuring process that will allow the company to emerge as a standalone business or for it be sold as a going concern. The plan allows GNC to restructure its balance sheet and accelerate its store optimization strategy.

Macmillan Publishing's trade group will establish a new 13-member "trade management committee" to set goals and objectives for all publishers, divisions, and departments under its purview, the company announced in two letters to staff on Monday, one from CEO John Sargent and another from president Don Weisberg and COO Andrew Weber. The new management team will set company-wide goals and objectives, though the publishing houses will remain as independent companies, and the publishers will continue to report directly to Weisberg. As for his role, Sargent said he will "step back from day-to-day management to make room for new voices" in the U.S. trade publishing operation, although he will remain in charge of the overall Macmillan global businesses. Macmillan's college operations are not part of the new initiative. The move is the most significant to date at Macmillan to address issues of diversity and representation in the publishing business, and comes two weeks after an industry-wide collective action protesting racism initially organized by five Macmillan employees took place (an action on which the publisher declined to comment).

Macy’s, Inc. announced details of a restructuring that will align its cost base with anticipated near-term sales as the business recovers from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the closure of stores from March 18 through May 4, 2020 and gradual re-opening. The company will reduce corporate and management headcount by approximately 3,900. Additionally, Macy’s, Inc. has reduced staffing across its stores portfolio, supply chain and customer support network, which it will adjust as sales recover. The company expects the actions announced to generate expense savings of approximately $365 million in fiscal 2020 and approximately $630 million on an annualized basis. These savings will be additive to the anticipated $1.5 billion in annual expense savings announced in February, which the company expects to fully realize by year-end 2022.

Amazon announced it has established a new Counterfeit Crimes Unit, dedicated to bringing counterfeiters that violate the law and Amazon’s policies by listing counterfeit products in its store to justice. Amazon’s Counterfeit Crimes Unit is a global, multi-disciplinary team composed of former federal prosecutors, experienced investigators, and data analysts, and will join Amazon’s extensive work to drive counterfeit to zero. Amazon’s first objective is to prevent a counterfeit from ever being listed in its store, and its comprehensive proactive anti-counterfeit programs have ensured that 99.9% of all Amazon products viewed by customers did not have a valid counterfeit complaint. In 2019, Amazon invested over $500 million and had more than 8,000 employees fighting fraud, including counterfeit. Amazon’s efforts have blocked over 6 billion suspected bad listings in 2019 and blocked over 2.5 million suspected bad actor accounts before they were able to make a single product available for sale.

Ink is proud to announce that we have just won a huge number of awards in two prestigious international media competitions. Firstly, our video series for American Airlines, "One Day, Two Ways," has just won two Silver Telly Awards for Travel/Tourism and Non-Broadcast Production at the 41st annual competition. The Telly Awards “honour video and television across all screens to winners that tell great stories.” Secondly, we we have won an astonishing 21 Communicator Awards! In fact, 11 of our projects received the competition’s highest honour, the Award of Excellence – on top of 10 awards of Distinction.

Cochrane is delighted to announce the signing of a new contract with John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., to publish the Cochrane Library for the next 10 years from January 2021. The agreement guarantees major investment into future development of the Library to sustain Cochrane as the world’s pre-eminent collection of high-quality evidence to inform global healthcare decision making. Cochrane’s Chief Executive Officer, Mark Wilson, warmly welcomed today’s announcement: “The Cochrane Library is central to Cochrane’s mission of producing and making available to the world high-quality, relevant, accessible systematic reviews and other evidence synthesis. Traffic to the Library has greatly increased over the past seven years as we have made it accessible in 12 languages and we have built a publishing platform that will enable us to deliver new journals, new databases and new features that will help us meet that mission as never before. We are confident we have a strong strategic partner with whom to work on the longer-term publishing challenges and opportunities.”

Paper plays a special role in our everyday lives, bearing witness to our achievements, our relationships, our intentions and our creativity. It’s also an important link to the past. Valuable papers, such as historical documents and original works of art, offer a tangible way to connect with our ancestors and the people who shaped the world. From time to time, valuable papers come up for auction, where they can attract bids in the millions of dollars from collectors who want to own a piece of history. Check out these valuable papers that made headlines at auction. click read more below for details

The Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) and the National Pensioners Federation (NPF) filed yesterday a Petition to Cabinet of the Federal government to reverse the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission’s (CRTC) decision to allow Koodo Mobile (owned by TELUS Communications Inc.) to change their customers’ monthly bill from paper to electronic format. “Canadian consumers deserve a paper bill if they want or need one,” said John Lawford, Executive Director and General Counsel of PIAC. “The CRTC and wireless companies pretend that seniors and others will not be hurt but that’s not what we heard,” he added. PIAC and NPF’s Petition asks the government to reverse the CRTC’s decision in order to ensure that customers know what their bill is, to be able to control their payments, and to avoid late fees and extra charges and possible disconnection.

10 Missions Media, the leading business-to-business publisher in the automotive industry, has acquired the automotive aftermarket division of Bobit Business Media, a deal that adds Modern Tire Dealer and Auto Service Professional to 10 Missions Media’s publishing portfolio that already includes FenderBender, Ratchet+Wrench, National Oil and Lube News, and ADAPT. In the deal, which closed June 11, 10 Missions Media also takes on ownership of Dealer Strategic Planning (DSP) 20 Group, a training operation for tire dealers.

Gannett Co., Inc. announced that the Board of Directors has decided to streamline the operating structure of the Company by eliminating the position of CEO of the operating company, Gannett Media Corp. Given this decision, the Board and Paul Bascobert have mutually agreed for Mr. Bascobert to terminate his employment with the Company. Mr. Bascobert’s departure is not the result of any inappropriate action by Mr. Bascobert, any violation of company policy, any accounting irregularity or any material deterioration in the business of the Company. Michael Reed, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Gannett, has assumed Mr. Bascobert’s responsibilities. While the Board does not intend to conduct a search to fill the role of Chief Executive Officer of Gannett Media, the Board does remain focused on attracting and retaining individuals whose skills and diversity will contribute to the Company’s digital transformation.“

Grainger announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its distribution business in China, Grainger China LLC (Grainger China), to a purchaser owned by the Grainger China management team and Sinovation Ventures, a China-based venture capital firm. This divestiture will better enable Grainger to focus on its key businesses and geographies. To support this portfolio, the company will maintain its Global Sourcing operations based in China. Grainger's Global Sourcing provides the company with private label products in categories that include safety, cleaning, electrical, motors and tools.

HarperCollins Christian Publishing is moving the Zondervan Books and Zondervan Thrive imprints from Grand Rapids, Mich., to HCCP’s corporate office in Nashville. The move, HCCP said, will allow it to share best practices across the company’s trade book publishing program for both the Thomas Nelson and Zondervan publishing groups. “Creating a more cohesive structure for our trade book publishing imprints allows for us to manage our nonfiction brands under Don Jacobson’s leadership,” said Mark Schoenwald, president and CEO of HarperCollins Christian Publishing and HarperCollins Focus, in a statement. “We believe that having the Zondervan Books and Zondervan Thrive leadership in Nashville will help the teams better manage author relationships and allow them to collaborate on larger corporate initiatives.”

The U.S. may be reopening, but Shutterfly, the personalized products company, wants the gratitude for essential workers to keep on flowing. It’s featuring children’s thank-you drawings in out-of-home installations in a new campaign, kicking off in New York City’s Times Square and Grand Central Station. Throughout the pandemic, Shutterfly has been encouraging users to make messages of gratitude with its “Create Thanks” campaign. People all over the U.S. have been touched by kids’ homemade “Thank you, essential workers” messages. Besides taping the drawings up in living room windows, making sidewalk chalk drawings or tacking them up on front porches, many uploaded their handiwork to the company's content hub, says Jim Hilt, president of Shutterfly’s consumer products divisions.

The drawn-out saga of the potential sale of the Bertram Group, one of two major U.K. wholesalers, came to a conclusion today with the news that the business has gone into administration. A statement on behalf of administrators Turpin Barker Armstrong (TBA) was received by the U.K. publishing newsletter BookBrunch confirming the company had gone bankrupt. “We can confirm that Bertram Trading Limited, the global book wholesaler, has entered administration along with Education Umbrella Limited, a supplier of textbooks and digital education resources and Dawson Books Limited, an academic and professional library supplier," the statement reads.

Meredith Corporation announced its intention to raise $710 million aggregate principal amount of proposed new secured debt, subject to market and other conditions. A combination of cash on hand and proceeds of the new debt will be used to redeem all of its outstanding Series A preferred stock ("Series A Preferred Stock") and pay fees and expenses incurred in connection with the financing and redemption transactions. The company also announced it has secured an amendment with its revolving line of credit lenders allowing for greater access to the credit facility. "We believe these steps will create significant benefits for all of our stakeholders as we pursue our previously communicated strategy to ensure ample liquidity and enhance our financial flexibility," said Meredith President and Chief Executive Officer Tom Harty.

German-based Bauer Media Group has sold the print and digital assets of the magazines it operates in Australia and New Zealand, to Australian private equity firm Mercury Capital. The firm’s newly expanded portfolio includes 43 brands across women’s entertainment and lifestyle, fashion, beauty and health; homes; food; motoring and trader lifestyle categories. Titles include the Australian and New Zealand Women’s Weekly, Harper’s Bazaar Australia, Elle Australia and New Zealand Listener, among others. The deal also includes Pacific Magazines, which publishes Better Homes & Gardens, New Idea and Marie Claire.

REI Co-op applauds the June 17 passing of the Great American Outdoors (GAO) Act by a resounding 73-25 bipartisan vote in the U.S. Senate. The Great American Outdoors Act ends a history of underfunding the Land and Water Conservation Fund and not addressing the maintenance backlog on federal public lands - efforts that have been attempted in the past and have been unable to move through the legislative process. It provides $9.5 billion to address that backlog, and $900 million annually for the LWCF.   This legislation will help dramatically reduce the growing maintenance backlog on federal public lands and will – for the first time -- provide full and consistent funding for the LWCF’s conservation and recreation goals.

♦ Company is experiencing strong ecommerce demand in its Gourmet Foods and Gift Baskets brands and its 1-800-Flowers Consumer Floral business, including a strong Mother’s Day holiday period as well as increased demand for every-day gifting occasions. ♦ Total consolidated revenues for Fiscal 2020 are now expected to grow in a range of 16-to-18 percent, compared with the prior year, up from a previous range of 8-to-9 percent.

A team of disposition firms consisting of Gordon Brothers, Hilco Merchant Resources, Great American Group, and Tiger Group announced that they have commenced store closing sales at 137* J. C. Penney Company, Inc. stores across the United States. The closures are the Company’s first step in implementing a planned store optimization strategy. As the Company remains focused on its Plan for Renewal transformation strategy and driving sustainable, profitable growth, it intends to reduce its store footprint and focus resources on its strongest stores and powerful eCommerce flagship store, jcp.com. Throughout all closing stores, customers can take advantage of storewide discounts of 25-40% off original prices. All merchandise is on sale, including deeper discounts of 40% on all fine jewelry and window treatments. New seasonal essentials, such as swimwear and sunglasses, are also discounted at 25-30% off. All sales will be final starting June 25.

Print sales of unit books rose 1.6% last week over the week ended June 6, 2020, at outlets that report to NPD BookScan. While the juvenile categories have usually led the week-to-week gains since the pandemic hit, last week it was the adult categories that led the increase, in particular adult nonfiction. Unit sales rose 4.4% last week in the adult nonfiction segment. According to BookScan, print sales in the history/law/political science segment, where most titles about race and social justice are classified, jumped 28.7% in the week.

Bookstore sales took an unprecedented plunge in April, tumbling 65.3% compared to April 2019, according to preliminary estimates released by the U.S. Census Bureau. April sales fell a total of $412 million from 2019, dropping to an anemic $219 million. In March, bookstore sales fell 33.4% compared to a year ago. March sales were $392 million, meaning April sales declined 44.3% from March to April. Total retail sales dropped 19.4% in April compared to 2019 after falling 6.6% in March from 2019.

Financial and Business Highlights: *Gross revenue was $261.4 million in the first quarter of 2020, a decrease of 2% compared to $267.2 million in the first quarter of 2019. Excluding currency impact, gross revenue decreased 1% in the first quarter of 2020. *Gross profit was $63.4 million, or 24.3% of gross revenue in the first quarter of 2020, compared to $62.0 million, or 23.2% of gross revenue, in the same period of last year. *Net loss for the first quarter of 2020 was $(2.8) million, or $(0.15) per diluted share, compared to net loss of $(2.0) million, or $(0.04) per diluted share in the first quarter of 2019.

After a gruesome showing in April with U.S. total retail sales plummeting to recession-level numbers, May spending made an unexpected recovery as states allowed more retail stores to reopen. The easing of coronavirus-related business closures and stay-at-home orders gave overall retail a much-needed boost, yet the recent surge in online and other nonstore sales as people were forced to place orders from the safety of their own homes showed no signs of slowing last month, new U.S. Department of Commerce data shows. Consumer spending through nonstore channels increased 24.6% year over year in May—the highest growth rate ever recorded for the month, according to a Digital Commerce 360 analysis of the Commerce Department’s advance monthly figures released Tuesday. Numbers exclude estimated fuel sales. The jump also represents the second-largest year-over-year uptick of any month in the history of the agency’s available data, falling behind only December 2019, when nonstore sales swelled by 25.7%.

Ulta Beauty, the nation’s largest beauty retailer, today announced its partnership with clean beauty pioneer, Credo Beauty. The unique collaboration will offer Ulta Beauty guests an exclusive, clean beauty collection with more choices and unrivaled transparency related to sourcing, fragrance and ingredients. The clean beauty collection will premiere with eight exciting clean beauty brands, including EleVen by Venus Williams x Credo SPF, Innersense Organic Beauty and One Love Organics, among others, across 100 Ulta Beauty stores and on Ulta.com this fall. The collaboration reinforces the companies’ shared leadership in educating, guiding and simplifying clean beauty choices. As the partnership grows, Credo Beauty and Ulta Beauty will leverage their collective expertise to continue pushing this important space forward.

Since the coronavirus pandemic began, people have been loading their pantries with household staples like toilet paper, paper towels, wipes, diapers and hand sanitizer. This panic buying — sometimes even hoarding — has depleted store shelves and disrupted supply chains. It’s also exacerbated a growing problem in the United States: diaper need. Low-income families and parents who have lost jobs due to the pandemic are struggling to afford diapers for their babies. Diminished diaper supplies and concerns about going to the store have put added pressure on families. Even senior adults with incontinence and adults with disabilities are experiencing greater diaper need during these challenging times. Under normal circumstances, one in three families experience diaper need. Diaper banks try to fill the gap by distributing free diapers to those who need them. Now, with widespread unemployment and a disrupted diaper supply chain, such organizations are struggling to meet increased demand with fewer resources.

When San Diego magazine abruptly ceased operations and laid off nearly all of its employees in late March, mere days after a statewide shelter-in-place order took effect in California, CEO and publisher Jim Fitzpatrick stressed that it was only a temporary pause and that he hoped the magazine would return when the local economy began to reopen. Three months later, the 72-year-old publication says it’s back in business. “This month, we are happy to announce that we have reopened our doors. We’re excited to once again tell the stories of the people and businesses making San Diego the incredible city it is,” wrote editor-in-chief Erin Meanley Glenny in a note posted on the the magazine’s website on Wednesday, adding that a “very small staff” is currently at work on an August/September print edition, in addition to resuming regular editorial content online.

GroupM is now forecasting a 13% drop in U.S. ad expenditures for 2020 (excluding political) to about $208 billion, followed by a rebound of 4% in 2021 to $216.6 billion. According to the company’s revised ‘This Year Next Year’ forecast, the drop won’t be as sharp as the 16% drop that occurred during the 2009 financial crisis. And given that the state of the economy, driven to its worst decline since the Great Depression by the ongoing pandemic, the decline in ad spending could be a lot worse.

Unit sales of print books rose 6.8% in the week ended June 6, 2020, over the similar week last year, at outlets that report to NPD BookScan. The increase brought unit sales into positive territory for the year, up 0.2% over the comparable period in 2019. The juvenile nonfiction segment saw the biggest gain over the week ended June 8, 2019, with units up 25.9%. Carson-Dellosa’s Summer Bridge Activities titles had a good week, with eight books selling a total of approximately 80,000 copies. The small YA nonfiction category saw unit sales skyrocket 52.3% over 2019. Stamped by Jason Reynolds was #1 on the category list, selling more than 10,500 copies. Sales in the juvenile fiction category increased 16.2%, boosted by the release of Kristen Bell’s The World Needs More Purple People, which sold nearly 24,000 copies. Emily Griffin’s The Lies That Bind sold nearly 22,000 copies in its first week, landing it in the third spot on the adult fiction bestseller list.

For years, building an eCommerce Marketplace customers trust has been a priority for our business. That’s why we are joining forces with Shopify, an all-in-one commerce platform used by more than 1 million businesses, to open the Walmart Marketplace to their sellers. As our CEO Doug McMillon recently said, competition is good in the retail business, and we want more retailers not fewer. The U.S. eCommerce business grew 74% in total last quarter, and growth in marketplace outpaced the overall business even as first-party sales were strong. As we launch this integration with Shopify, we are focused on U.S.-based small and medium businesses whose assortment complements ours and have a track record of exceeding customers’ expectations. We’re excited to be able offer customers an expanded assortment while also giving small businesses access to the surging traffic on Walmart.com. Shopify powers a dynamic portfolio of third-party sellers who are interested in growing their business through new, trusted channels.

Second Quarter Fiscal Year 2020 Financial Highlights *Adobe achieved record quarterly revenue of $3.13 billion in its second quarter of fiscal year 2020, which represents 14 percent year-over-year growth. Diluted earnings per share was $2.27 on a GAAP basis, and $2.45 on a non-GAAP basis. *GAAP operating income in the second quarter was $1.02 billion, and non-GAAP operating income was $1.34 billion. GAAP net income was $1.10 billion, and non-GAAP net income was $1.19 billion. *Cash flows from operations was $1.18 billion.

Cross-border shipping rates will go up for many U.S. shippers on July 1. This change comes after countries began to self-declare postal rates based on the deal reached by the Universal Postal Union (UPU) in September, Supply Chain Dive reported. Many postage sellers, consolidators and other cross-border service providers such as FedEx, UPS and Stamps.com, received new contracts from USPS last month, but many haven't yet alerted shippers of the change. Without direct communication from service providers, shippers may be confused when their rates go up, unsure what the increase is for. Supply Chain Dive reported that any business that is a bulk cross-border shipper will see a rate increase.

The Association of American Publishers (AAP) today released its StatShot report for April 2020 reflecting reported revenue for all tracked categories, including Trade (consumer publications), K-12 Instructional Materials, Higher Education Course Materials, Professional Publishing, and University Presses. Total sales across all categories for April 2020 declined 3.5% as compared to April 2019, reaching $783.9 million. Year-to-date sales were flat with an increase of 0.7%, totaling $3.4 billion for the first four months of 2020. Trade sales were down 6.6% as compared to April of 2019, coming in at $548.8 million. Year-to-date Trade sales were flat at +0.5%, totaling $2.2 billion for the first four months of the year.

Fourth Quarter 2020 Summary: *GAAP Results: Revenue of $475 million (-3%) and EPS of -$2.83, primarily due to impact of unusual items totalling -$3.49 per share, including non-cash goodwill and trade name impairments *Strong momentum in Open Access research publishing and digital courseware *Addition of four new university partners in Education Services (Drake University, University of Iowa, Methodist University, and Point University). Fiscal Year 2020 Symmary: *GAAP results: Revenue of $1,831 million, and EPS of -$1.32 primarily due to fourth quarter non-cash goodwill and trade name impairments *Free Cash Flow of $173 million, up $24 million (+16%) from prior year *Digital products and tech-enabled services rose to nearly 80% of total revenue.

Kroger and British online grocery retailer and technology vendor Ocado Group Plc plan to build the centers in the West, Pacific Northwest and Great Lakes regions of the United States. The new center in the West will measure 300,000 square feet, the Pacific Northwest center will be 200,000 square feet and the facility in the Great Lakes region facility will be 150,000 square feet. Kroger did not disclose the exact locations but says it plans to reveal them soon. The newly planned facilities join six similar facilities now planned or under construction. Those previously announced sites are Monroe, Ohio; Groveland, Florida; Fredericksburg, Maryland; Atlanta, Georgia; Dallas, Texas; and Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin. Kroger has said its goal is to build 20 “Ocado-powered” ecommerce fulfillment centers in the United States. Each fulfillment center will use Ocado’s robotic warehouse technology. Kroger says the center in Monroe, Ohio, a suburb of Cincinnati, will be the first to open in early 2021. The retailer also plans to make it operational in early 2021.

Enforcement of the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) begins on July 1st. Are you fully prepared? If not, your company risks being subject to non-compliance fines from California’s regulators. You can avoid this, of course, by being fully prepared. Join ACMA’s expert and diverse panel, including an attorney, a service provider, and a merchant, as they will provide all you need to know within the course of the can’t-miss, free webinar, "California Consumer Privacy Act: Are You Fully Prepared?" Who Should Not Miss This Presentation: Online/direct/catalog merchants who do business not only in California but the growing number of states aiming to follow California’s privacy blueprint, as well as their suppliers, consultants and other advisors. This event is open to both ACMA members and non-members. What You Will Learn: • How to identify any non-compliance risks • How a catalog/online merchant has prepared for the July 1st compliance date • Steps a service provider is taking to support its clients' compliance • Which other states to be on the lookout for. click read more below to register

Bloomberg Media launched Bloomberg Green, a new quarterly print magazine focused on climate change solutions. The latest offshoot of the “Bloomberg Green” brand, which first debuted in January, the print edition complements an existing web vertical and daily newsletter of the same name. Spread over more than 90 pages (of 100% recycled paper), the debut issue includes a cover story about how stimulus spending to help the economy emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic can be used to combat climate change, an opening column by Mike Bloomberg and a feature well that dives into Australia’s water crisis, plastic waste and an assessment of Disney’s impact on a Peruvian rainforest, in addition to data- and infographic-heavy regular departments that will look at both current climate-related news as well as emerging issues and solutions.

While none of the major New York City publishers who took part in PW’s survey about their efforts to return employees to their Manhattan headquarters had fixed plans, no companies said they expected to begin bringing staff back in a meaningful way before Sept. 1. For the most part, they see the week of Labor Day as a target, but acknowledged that date may not be realistic. Several said they see a limited reopening coming after Labor Day (which is September 7 this year). PW sent a brief questionnaire to all of the Big Five trade houses plus Abrams, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books & Media, Kensington, Norton, Scholastic, and Workman. While all said there are too many uncertainties about the future course of the virus to make final plans, there was consensus around some issues. There was widespread agreement that the top consideration before publishers will fully reopen will be the condition of New York City’s mass transit and how comfortable workers will be using subways, buses, and trains. Several publishers said they plan to stagger work hours, something that has been recommended by New York City officials to ease overcrowding during usual rush hours.

For the first quarter, the Company reported a net loss of $178.3 million, or $1.55 loss per diluted share, compared to net income of $2.0 million, or $0.02 earnings per diluted share, for last year's first quarter. For the first quarter, net sales were $280.3 million compared to $517.7 million in last year's first quarter. This decrease of 45.9% reflects the impact of our closed stores during the second half of the first quarter and 78 net store closures since last year's first quarter, partially offset by strong digital commerce performance. During the initial four weeks of fiscal 2020, the Company's comparable sales increased 2.7% compared to the same period last year, building on the positive sales momentum reported in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2019.

1-800-Flowers.com®, one of the world's leading floral providers, announced it has collaborated with global design talent, Jason Wu, to release an exclusive assortment of modern and elegant bouquets. The Jason Wu for Wild Beauty™ collection, which is now available nationwide, features on-trend arrangements that embody the designer's signature aesthetic of femininity and sophistication. Behind-the-scenes content, specially designed 'thank you' notes and the ability to preview select bouquets in 3D will allow customers to have an immersive digital experience as they are introduced to the new collection. This marks Jason Wu's first collaboration with a floral and gifting brand. "Jason Wu is one of the world's most renowned fashion designers and we are thrilled to collaborate with him on this truly original collection, which reflects his unique point of view in floral design and bouquet presentation," said Valerie Ghitelman, Vice President, Product Development and Design, 1-800-Flowers.com. "We are excited to not only share these beautifully crafted arrangements with our customers, but to engage them with distinctive content that provides insights into Jason's design influences and more." "Playing a role in the intimate decision of what one chooses to wear each day is such an important part of what I do," said Jason Wu. "To extend this concept to the graceful details people bring into their homes is an honor. This collection with 1-800-Flowers.com is especially meaningful to me because of my lifelong love of flowers. Floral elements continuously inspire me and have been a consistent theme throughout my entire career. I'm thrilled to celebrate the beauty of flowers in this new and special way."

*Diluted loss per share of $(2.10) and Adjusted Diluted loss per share of $(2.03) *Reopened stores performing better than anticipated *E-commerce trend improved in May; curbside pickup performing well *Anticipate exiting Q2 in a clean inventory position - “The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted our first quarter sales and earnings results, but I am proud of the way our team navigated this difficult period and maintained the business while our stores were closed,” said Jeff Gennette, chairman and chief executive officer. “Our strong digital business sales trend continued throughout May, and it is encouraging to see that as we reopen a store, the digital business in that geography continues to be strong. By June 1, we had approximately 450 stores reopened, with the majority opened in their full format. Our reopened stores are performing better than anticipated. Importantly, we are receiving positive feedback on the curbside pickup experience and our efforts to create a safe and welcoming shopping environment."

ACMA has made the difficult decision to cancel our in-person Forum for 2020 altogether. Instead, we will hold a virtual event culminating in a virtual fly-in with lawmakers in September. The Zoom-based event will run for two 45-minute sessions, first starting at 1:00 pm (EDT), then following a short break, the second one at 2:00 pm each Wednesday of the month – September 9th, 16th, and 23rd - for a total of six separate sessions. Then the fly-in will take place all day on September 30th on a rotating schedule to be announced. What To Expect...You can expect us to focus on the many moving policy issues that have direct bearing on catalog/online/DM interests: among them, postal affairs, sales tax developments, privacy law, trade and tariffs, and extra-jurisdictional (foreign) regulation. A full agenda and registration details will be made available shortly. In the meantime, we wanted to ask you to reserve these times on your schedule. Both member and non-member companies are invited to attend. Our generous sponsors have made this event possible in order to ensure that all of our attendees can be brought up to speed on the important work of the ACMA, so there will be no registration fee, although tax deductible (to 80%) donations are gratefully accepted.

Hearst - Steven Swartz has issued two statements pledging his company’s commitment to supporting “a fairer and more just society,” which he stated was “a core principle” of the company. In his second memo, he also announced the company’s fundraising initiative to support the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund and Equal Justice Initiative. In addition to already donating $500,000, the company is pledging to match up to another $500,000 from employee donations. Reader’s Digest Foundation - The Reader’s Digest Foundation is committing $2 million to United Through Reading, a nonprofit organization dedicated to connecting military families with the experience of shared storytimes. Seeker - Group Nine Media’s science publication is releasing a free educational offering for home education, “Seeker Learning.” In addition to offering access to its library of content, Seeker will open up a dialogue between the brand, teachers and parents looking for specific content.

Barnes & Noble, Inc. announced a new online book portal for schools across the country to get the books and products they need from Barnes & Noble’s extensive catalog. This free portal is an easy, fast, and efficient way for educational institutions K-12 to purchase and track ordering from Barnes & Noble as well as get access to curated book recommendations and personalized support. Educational institutions should look for an invitation to join Classroom by Barnes & Noble from their local Business Development Manager or put in a request by emailing BulkOrders@bn.com. “In a time when online ordering options for educators are essential, we’re so excited to launch Classroom by Barnes & Noble for educational institutions K-12 across the country to access our extensive and trusted catalogue of books,” said Tracy Vidakovich, Vice President, Business Development for Barnes & Noble. “We have been working closely with educational institutions for decades through our Institutional account/discount program and believe this new portal for buying and managing book and instructional material purchases comes at just the right time.”

Net sales by brand for the first quarter 2020 compared to the first quarter 2019 were as follows: *Old Navy Global: Net sales were down 42%; store sales were down 60% with online sales up 20%. Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Old Navy has seen a meaningful acceleration in its digital business. The Company noted it expects the off-mall, strip real estate that makes up approximately 75% of the fleet to be an advantage as customers return to stores and expects traffic in these locations to ramp up more quickly than other formats. *Gap Global: Net sales were down 50%; store sales were down 64% with online sales down 5%. Prior to the onset of the pandemic, Gap brand performance continued to be pressured by inconsistent execution of product and marketing messages. However, the Company noted the brand did experience steady improvements in its online performance throughout the quarter, attributable to the Company’s strategy to migrate customers online as the brand’s fleet rationalization efforts continue. *Banana Republic Global: Net sales were down 47%; store sales were down 61% with online sales down 2%. While the move to casual fashion during the stay-at-home requirements has benefited other brands in Gap Inc.’s portfolio, this shift left Banana Republic disadvantaged in its product mix. As a result, Banana Republic is taking aggressive action to adjust to consumer preferences and improve inventory mix. *Athleta: Net sales were down 8%; store sales were down 50% with online sales up 49%. Customer response to Athleta was strong given the values-driven active and lifestyle space the brand participates in as well as the brand’s deep customer engagement through its powerful omni-channel model. Operating loss was $1.2 billion. This reflects the decline in gross margin, as well as a non-cash impairment charge of $484 million related to the Company’s stores to reduce the carrying amount of the store assets and the corresponding operating lease assets to their fair values, which have dramatically declined as a result of the pandemic. The Company noted that as part of its ongoing specialty fleet optimization efforts, the Company has undertaken a strategic review of its real estate portfolio to further advance its long-term strategic priorities that include a smaller, healthier fleet, particularly as it relates to its Gap brand and Banana Republic specialty fleets.

Gap Inc. announced the decision to wind down its Hill City brand, prioritizing resources against its larger brands. Launched in Fall 2018, Hill City was a way to go after the growing men’s active apparel market and operate DTC in a nimble manner. The small but mighty team worked passionately to build a loyal customer base by connecting with wear testers that helped make the best product possible, sharing stories of everyday heroes and athletes, reaching customers with pop-up shops and a mobile truck, and giving back to its community.

J. C. Penney Company, Inc. announced that it has received authorization from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, in Corpus Christi, Texas (the “Court”) to access its debtor-in-possession (“DIP”) financing, which includes $450 million of new money from its existing First Lien lenders. The Company had previously received approval to access and use its approximately $500 million in cash collateral. Under the terms of the DIP agreement, JCPenney has access to up to $225 million immediately, and will have access to an additional $225 million as needed after July 15, 2020, subject to certain conditions. In addition, the Company’s Ad Hoc Crossholder Group of lenders has agreed to participate in the rollup portion of the DIP in the amount of $53 million. Jill Soltau, chief executive officer of JCPenney, said, “We are pleased to have received Court approval to access $450 million in new money, $225 million of which will be drawn immediately. This is a positive step forward that will help us execute our Plan for Renewal and store optimization strategy, continue working seamlessly with our vendor partners, fund our ongoing business operations, and continue our focus on further developing the Company’s go-forward business plan to successfully restructure JCPenney. In recent weeks, we have safely welcomed back valued customers to nearly 500 JCPenney stores, and we look forward to opening additional stores while following guidance from local and state orders. This progress would not be possible without the hard work and dedication of our associates, and we remain confident we will emerge from both Chapter 11 and this pandemic as a stronger retailer.”

J. C. Penney Company, Inc. announced that it has taken the first step in implementing its store optimization strategy. Following a comprehensive evaluation of its retail footprint and a careful analysis of store performance and future strategic fit for the Company, JCPenney identified the first phase of 154 store closures. Following entry of an order at the June 11, 2020, hearing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, in Corpus Christi, Texas, store closing sales will begin at 154 locations. The Company expects additional phases of store closing sales will begin in the coming weeks. As the Company remains focused on its Plan for Renewal and driving sustainable, profitable growth, it intends to reduce its store footprint and focus resources on its strongest stores and powerful eCommerce flagship store, jcp.com. Store closing sales for the first round of store closures are expected to take 10-16 weeks to complete. The list of 154 stores that will begin closing sales can be found on the JCPenney Blog.

Unit sales of print books fell 5.5% in the week ended May 30, 2020, compared to the week ended May 23, at outlets that report to NPD BookScan. The decline was mainly due to a 25.5% drop in unit sales in the young adult category, in which The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins sold about 270,000 copies when it was initially released. Even with the decline compared to the prior week, unit sales were up 8.1% compared to the similar week in 2019.

First Quarter Results Overview: *Total net sales were $77.3 million, a decrease of $53.0 million or 40.7%, compared to $130.3 million last year. As previously announced, the Company temporarily closed all of its 239 stores on March 18, 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. All stores remained closed to the public for the final 45 days of the 91-day fiscal quarter, including during the peak weeks of the quarter surrounding normal school spring breaks and Easter. Net sales from physical stores for the first quarter of fiscal 2020 were $47.0 million, a decrease of 57.5% compared to $110.6 million for the first quarter of fiscal 2019. The Company's e-commerce business continued to operate throughout the first quarter, and increased significantly following the closure of the Company’s stores. Net sales from e-commerce for the first quarter of fiscal 2020 were $30.3 million, an increase of 54.2% compared to approximately $19.7 million for the first quarter of fiscal 2019. The Company ended the quarter with 239 total stores, including one RSQ-branded pop-up store, all of which were closed as of the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2020, compared to 229 total stores, including three RSQ-branded pop-up stores, last year. *Gross profit was $1.6 million, or 2.1% of net sales, compared to $35.7 million, or 27.4% of net sales last year. Product margins decreased 770 basis points as a percentage of net sales primarily due to an estimated inventory valuation reserve of $4.7 million and increased markdowns. Occupancy costs deleveraged 1,250 basis points as a percentage of net sales despite being $0.5 million lower than last year, primarily due to the significant net sales decline resulting from the store closures noted above. Distribution costs deleveraged 440 basis points as a percentage of net sales primarily due to an increase in e-commerce shipping charges of $0.9 million resulting from a greater volume of e-commerce orders. Buying costs deleveraged 70 basis points as a percentage of net sales despite being $0.1 million below last year. *Operating loss was $28.4 million, or 36.7% of net sales, compared to operating income of $0.1 million, or 0.1% of net sales, last year. The decrease in operating results was directly attributable to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business, including as noted above. *Net loss was $17.4 million, or $0.59 per share, compared to net income of $0.7 million, or $0.02 per diluted share, last year.

Amazon continues to adapt to meet the changing needs of customers by investing in ways to provide fast, free delivery. Today, the company announced the lease of 12 Boeing 767-300 converted cargo aircraft from Air Transport Services Group (ATSG). These aircraft will join Amazon’s existing fleet of 70 aircraft to bring its total network to over 80 aircraft. One of the new aircraft joined Amazon’s air cargo operations in May 2020, with the remaining 11 to be delivered in 2021. Amazon Air’s fleet expansion comes at a time when people in communities across the country continue to adjust to this unprecedented time, with many relying on having the items they need delivered directly to their doorstep. Amazon Air has played a central role during the COVID-19 pandemic by transporting essential PPE supplies for Amazon associates, frontline health workers and relief organizations across the U.S., all while maintaining capacity for regular cargo operations to ensure customers continue to receive the items they need. Now, with expanded cargo capacity to come, Amazon will continue to meet evolving demand and a growing customer base.

Costco Wholesale Corporation reported net sales of $12.55 billion for the retail month of May, the four weeks ended May 31, 2020, an increase of 7.5 percent from $11.67 billion last year. For the thirty-nine weeks ended May 31, 2020, the Company reported net sales of $120.19 billion, an increase of 7.7 percent from $111.56 billion during the similar period last year.

*First quarter net sales decrease 57% *Reopened 90 percent of stores to date with reduced hours *Actions taken in response to COVID-19 to preserve liquidity. The decrease in net sales for the first quarter of 2020 compared to the prior year reflects the temporary closure of all stores on March 19 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Omni sales for the first quarter increased 17 percent over last year. In April, omni sales were 47 percent higher than last year driven by fulfillment from closed stores where allowed. Beginning April 23, the Company began the staggered reopening of stores with reduced hours. To date, the Company has reopened 255 of its 281 stores in accordance with local government guidelines. Traffic in stores has steadily increased each week since reopening and omni sales have continued to be strong, even as more stores opened. Sales continued to recover in May, but remained well below last year.

Adweek has been sold from one private equity firm to another. The advertising industry publication, which marked its 40th anniversary last year, has been acquired by Los Angeles-based private equity firm Shamrock Capital Advisers, both parties announced Tuesday morning. The seller, Toronto-based PE firm Beringer Capital, had owned Adweek for the past four years, acquiring it in July 2016, about six months after the breakup of its former parent company, Prometheus Global Media, by then-owner Guggenheim Partners.

As a brand that believes in freedom, equality and a life with no boundaries for all – not just some, Banana Republic aims to continue empowering people through clothing. In response to the current crisis in America, Banana Republic Will Work for a Better Republic by donating more than $20 million of new clothing to those in need, including millions of unemployed Americans who need support getting back to work and getting back on their feet. In partnership with Delivering Good – a nonprofit organization that unites retailers, manufacturers, foundations and individuals to support Americans affected by poverty and tragedy – Banana Republic will donate clothing to a variety of partner organizations in states that have been most impacted, including Hour Working Women Program in New York, Central City Neighborhood Partners in Los Angeles, Family Focus Englewood in Chicago, among others. This donation will help people as they build a brighter future.

Grainger announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell Fabory Group to Torqx Capital Partners, a Dutch private equity company. Grainger will continue offering broad line MRO products to customers in Western Europe through Cromwell and Zoro. "I want to thank the Fabory team for their innovative and customer-focused approach," said DG Macpherson, Chairman and CEO of Grainger. "I'm confident the acquisition by Torqx will better align with Fabory's growth objectives. At the same time, Grainger remains focused on providing value to our customers, executing our strategy and delivering profitable growth through our high-touch and endless assortment offerings."

Environmental media organization Grist announced today that it has acquired the digital archives and brand assets of online social and environmental-social justice magazine Pacific Standard. Through the agreement, Pacific Standard’s content, which includes written stories in addition to audio and video, will be available for free via its original URL, psmag.com, which Grist now owns. Pacific Standard, which features a combination of deeply reported journalism and peer-reviewed research, was forced to shutter in August of last year after one of its major financial backers pulled funding. The magazine was founded by Sara Miller McCune in 2008 and was first called Miller-McCune.

The Postal Regulatory Commission issued its analysis of the United States Postal Service Fiscal Year 2019 Annual Performance Report and FY 2020 Performance Plan. The FY 2019 Report discusses the Postal Service’s progress in meeting its performance goals during FY 2019, while the FY 2020 Plan describes the Postal Service’s plans for meeting its performance goals in FY 2020. Each year, the Commission must review the Postal Service’s performance goals and evaluate whether the Postal Service met those goals in the previous fiscal year. The Commission may also offer recommendations to the Postal Service regarding the protection or promotion of public policy objectives in title 39 of the United States Code. The FY 2020 Plan does not include the impact of COVID-19 on the Postal Service. The Postal Service established the FY 2020 targets before the pandemic. As such, the FY 2020 Plan does not include any expected effects of the pandemic.

Member companies of the Association of American Publishers (AAP) filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against Internet Archive (“IA”) in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. The suit asks the Court to enjoin IA’s mass scanning, public display, and distribution of entire literary works, which it offers to the public at large through global-facing businesses coined “Open Library” and “National Emergency Library,” accessible at both openlibrary.org and archive.org. IA has brazenly reproduced some 1.3 million bootleg scans of print books, including recent works, commercial fiction and non-fiction, thrillers, and children’s books. The plaintiffs—Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins Publishers, John Wiley & Sons and Penguin Random House—publish many of the world’s preeminent authors, including winners of the Pulitzer Prize, National Book Award, Newbery Medal, Man Booker Prize, Caldecott Medal and Nobel Prize. Despite the self-serving library branding of its operations, IA’s conduct bears little resemblance to the trusted role that thousands of American libraries play within their communities and as participants in the lawful copyright marketplace. IA scans books from cover to cover, posts complete digital files to its website, and solicits users to access them for free by signing up for Internet Archive Accounts.

Pier 1 Imports, Inc. announced that it has received approval from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Virginia for the Company’s planned wind-down of operations. Pier 1 intends to initiate store closing efforts and liquidation sales once store locations can reopen, in compliance with COVID-19 guidelines from local government and health officials. The Company plans to conclude its liquidation sales by the end of October. “This is not the outcome we hoped for when we began this process, and we are deeply saddened to move forward with winding down Pier 1,” said Robert Riesbeck, Pier 1’s Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer. “We are incredibly grateful to everyone who has supported Pier 1 since the Company’s inception nearly 60 years ago, including our committed associates, passionate customers and talented vendors.” In connection with the wind-down and as previously announced, Pier 1 intends to sell its remaining assets, including its intellectual property and e-commerce business, pursuant to the bidding procedures established in February 2020. The Court today set July 1, 2020 as the asset bid deadline, July 8, 2020 as the auction date and July 15, 2020 as the sale hearing date. Pier 1 is currently continuing to serve customers through Pier1.com, and orders are being processed and filled.

The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) released a letter that is being sent to local and state election officials and state party officials around the country. This letter highlights key aspects of Election Mail delivery processes — and ways to help educate the public on what to expect when using the mail to vote. The letter, signed by USPS General Counsel and Executive Vice President Thomas J. Marshall, is a continuation of an ongoing outreach effort aimed at educating all interested parties about the Postal Service’s mailing requirements and services in advance of the 2020 elections. “It is critical that the Postal Service’s delivery standards be kept in mind when informing voters how to successfully participate in an election using the mail,” says Marshall, noting the importance of this information “when state and local election officials are making decisions as to the establishment of deadlines and the means used to send a piece of Election Mail to voters.”

City and regional magazine publishers continue to be nimble and optimistic in an atmosphere that remains anxious about the future of print advertising. “We discovered that there were a lot of people in Seattle that loved what we were doing in Portland and wanted us to bring the same type of city magazine to the Seattle market. So, in quick order—about a year and a half later—we started Seattle Met,” says Jeff Adams, vice president of custom media at SagaCity. “We started pretty soon after that with our first customer, which was Travel Portland.” SagaCity continues to service Travel Portland, a private non-profit destination marketing organization, highlighting the company’s vested interest in tourism publishing. Additional custom work includes the Asheville, North Carolina visitor guide, a program for the Houston Ballet, a Houston visitor guide, and smaller consumer magazines, such as Jewish in Seattle. Click Read More below for additional information.

Hearst, one of the nation's largest diversified media, information and services companies with more than 360 businesses, announced today that Beth Buehler has been named vice president of operations, a new role. The announcement was made by Hearst President and CEO Steven R. Swartz and Hearst Chief Operating Officer Mark Aldam. Buehler begins her new role on July 2 and will report to Aldam. “Beth’s experience leading operations and strategy across business functions will be instrumental in our efforts to collaborate more effectively across the corporate boundaries and bring more value to each of our operating teams,” Aldam said. “Beth was a key contributor during the integration of Rodale into Hearst earlier this year and she will be a great partner to our leaders across the company.” Click Read More below for additional information.

Net sales for the first quarter of fiscal 2019 decreased 9.2% to $371.9 million, compared to $409.5 million for the first quarter of fiscal 2018. Company comparable sales decreased 8.2% versus the year-ago period. The Company operated 997 stores at the end of the quarter, a decrease of 19 from the first quarter of fiscal 2018. Gross profit for the first quarter of fiscal 2019 totaled $120.1 million, or 32.3% of net sales, compared to $151.6 million, or 37.0% of net sales, for the first quarter of fiscal 2018. Click Read More below for additional information.

For the first quarter, the company reported net loss from continuing operations of $41.7 million, or $0.04 per share, Adjusted net loss from continuing operations of $11.5 million, or $0.01 per share, and Adjusted EBITDA from continuing operations of $147.3 million, or 2.7 percent of revenues. For the first quarter of fiscal 2019, the company reported net income of $214.4 million, or $0.20 per share. Net income for the first quarter included an after-tax gain of approximately $268.6 million relating to the sale of 281 stores to Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. ("WBA"), which completed the sale of stores and related assets to WBA. The sale of the three distribution centers and related inventory is expected to occur after September 1, 2018. As a result of the proceeds received from the store sales, Rite Aid's debt, net of cash, was $3.0 billion as of June 2, 2018. Click Read More below for additional information.

Fiscal 2018 third quarter net earnings attributable to Walgreens Boots Alliance determined in accordance with GAAP increased 15.5 percent to $1.3 billion compared with the same quarter a year ago, while GAAP diluted net earnings per share increased 26.2 percent to $1.35 compared with the same quarter a year ago. Adjusted fiscal 2018 third quarter net earnings attributable to Walgreens Boots Alliance1 increased 5.6 percent to $1.5 billion, up 4.6 percent on a constant currency basis, compared with the same quarter a year ago. Adjusted diluted net earnings per share for the quarter increased 15.0 percent to $1.53, up 13.5 percent on a constant currency basis, compared with the same quarter a year ago. Sales in the third quarter were $34.3 billion, an increase of 14.0 percent from the year-ago quarter, and an increase of 11.8 percent on a constant currency basis. Click Read More below for additional information.

David Carey, the president of Hearst Magazines since 2010 and the architect of some of the most successful magazine launches at that company in recent decades, is stepping down at the end of the year, according to the company. Carey will serve next year as a fellow at the Harvard Advanced Leadership Initiative, a program designed to give business, government and other leaders a platform for social-impact initiatives. "Under David, we have become a preeminent global digital publishing company while continuing to launch innovative print editions," CEO Steven Swartz said in a memo to employees this morning. "Over the next few months, while continuing to run the group, David will help select the next leader of our magazine company. This kind of orderly transition is a hallmark of Hearst Magazines." Click Read More below for additional information.

The newspapers, like the staff, are leaner than they were a decade ago, with fewer reporters to write about crime, the school board and youth sports and to craft obituaries for their aging readership. And now they’re facing a new and unexpected threat: President Trump’s confrontational trade policies. Last year, in one of the Trump administration’s first actions on trade, the U.S. government imposed tariffs on Canadian lumber. A few months later, it added tariffs on Canadian uncoated groundwood paper. The result has been a jump in the cost of newsprint, the second-biggest operating expense, after salaries, for most newspapers. Rogers and fellow news executives across the country are now bracing for price increases that could exceed 30 percent, forcing tough budget decisions and potentially driving some community papers out of business. “This may be the thing that pushes us across the line,” Rogers said. “We’re all kind of close to that edge.” Click Read More below for additional information.

In its Government Reform Plan, the Administration made the case for privatizing the Postal Service, and preparing for an eventual change through recommendations coming in August from the President's Task Force on the Postal System. The business community – mailers and suppliers in the paper, printing and technology industries collectively generating $1.4 trillion in sales annually and supporting 7.5 million jobs – strongly believes privatization is not the answer for a postal system in financial distress. "Our troubled postal system can be fixed in a two-step process that does not resort to a draconian solution unproven at the gigantic scale of the U.S. Postal Service," said Art Sackler, Manager of the Coalition for a 21st Century Postal System (C21), which broadly represents the industry. Those two steps would be removing $tens of billions in liabilities to prefund retiree health care imposed on the Postal Service in the short-term, and considering whether and what business model or other changes would have to be made to sustain USPS in the long-term. "The mere prospect of privatization will sow confusion, uncertainty and concern about maintaining mail and package delivery around the country, and stimulating still more volume and revenue loss when the major problem has been a drop off in mail," Sackler added. Click Read More below for additional information.

Xerox Vice Chairman and CEO John Visentin sent a letter to Fujifilm Chairman Shigetaka Komori responding to the lawsuit filed by Fujifilm last week. “Fujifilm should realize that the internal accounting issues at Fuji Xerox were a result of their mismanagement, which made it impossible to close the announced transaction” said Visentin. “We cannot stand by and let them further harm our iconic brand. The lawsuit is nothing more than a desperate and misguided negotiating ploy to save their takeover attempt, which to this day remains enjoined by order of the New York State Supreme Court, and could take our focus away from serving our customers.” “Our focus is on running the business in the service of our thousands of customers and partners and delivering exceptional value through market-leading services, products and delivery capabilities,” added Visentin. Click Read More below for additional information.

The American Catalog Mailers Association (ACMA) and the catalog marketers and other remote merchants it represents are outraged that the Supreme Court today upended well-established precedent that has served the country well for more than half a century. “Small catalog and online retailers with little or no presence beyond their headquarters will be hurt the most – some will be forced out of business,” said ACMA President & Executive Director Hamilton Davison. “Rural Americans, shut ins and older consumers will be particularly hard hit by this decision.” By ruling against remote sellers and customers all across America, the High Court’s decision means companies who sell only 100 orders a year must now collect sales taxes for every South Dakota order. “This is a ridiculously small threshold,” Davison said. “A merchant might sell only 100 $20 orders and now be forced to comply with laws well outside its capacity and be subject to horrendous complexity.” Click Read More below for additional information.

Overstock.com Inc. is calling on Congress to pass legislation to simplify, or clarify, online sales tax collection in the wake of Thursday’s U.S. Supreme Court decision that enables states and local governments to force online retailers to collect sales taxes, even if they don’t have a physical presence, or nexus, in the state. “The U.S. Supreme Court has reshaped the interstate commerce landscape in a move that could impact small business innovation on the internet, which has been a driving force behind our nation’s economy for the last 15 years,” says Jonathan Johnson, an executive and board member at Overstock, No. 32 in the newly released Internet Retailer 2018 Top 1000, “The framers of the Constitution intended Congress to regulate interstate commerce by thoughtful legislation. To lessen the potential impact of today’s ruling on internet innovation, Congress can, and should, pass sound legislation allowing states to accomplish their aims while still permitting small internet business to thrive.” Click Read More below for additional information.

The 5-4 ruling Thursday is a win for states, who said they were losing out on billions of dollars annually under two decades-old Supreme Court decisions that impacted online sales tax collection. The high court ruled Thursday to overturn those decisions. They had resulted in some companies not collecting sales tax on every online purchase. The cases the court overturned said that if a business was shipping a product to a state where it didn't have a physical presence such as a warehouse or office, the business didn't have to collect the state's sales tax. Customers were generally supposed to pay the tax to the state themselves if they don't get charged it, but the vast majority didn't. Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote that the previous decisions were flawed. Click Read More below for additional information.

As it does twice each year, GfK MRI released its latest round of magazine audience estimates—the average per-issue readership among U.S. adults for about 200 of the most widely-read magazines—based on consumer research conducted over a nine-month period. The Spring 2018 figures—drawn from the two most recent waves of survey data, running from September 2017 to May 2018—reveal that AARP The Magazine has extended its lead over People as America’s most widely-read print magazine pound-for-pound, averaging an estimated 38.6 million readers per issue. Click Read More below for additional information.

It seems that Facebook has discovered what we all know – that print is the way to get your message across. The launch issue of Grow, “a quarterly magazine for business leaders” – by Facebook – quietly made its appearance in business class lounges at Heathrow and a few more exclusive spots in and around London in early June. Facebook explains its new print offering: The program is designed to deliver content in different formats that suit our audience. We know that business leaders have limited time for long reads at work, so we’ve also created a physical version with journeys in mind. We’re distributing this to clients directly as part of our marketing communications, and in selected airport and train business lounges where we know they are often to be found. Click Read More below for additional information.

Total sales were $786 million for the quarter and $3.7 billion for the full year, decreasing 4.3% and 6.0% over the prior year periods, respectively. Comparable store sales declined 4.1% for the fourth quarter and 5.4% for the full year. The consolidated fourth quarter net loss was $21.1 million, or $0.29 per share, compared to a loss of $13.4 million, or $0.19 per share, in the prior year. Fourth quarter results include $7.7 million of non-recurring charges associated with the Company’s strategic initiatives. The fiscal 2018 consolidated net loss was $125.5 million, or $1.73 per share, compared to net earnings of $22.0 million, or $0.30 per share, in the prior year. Fiscal 2018 results include non-cash asset impairment charges of $135.4 million, $16.2 million of severance charges and $15.3 million of strategic initiative costs. Click Read More below for additional information.

“I am proud of the financial and operational results FedEx delivered in fiscal 2018 and extend well-deserved congratulations to our more than 425,000 team members worldwide for their continued dedication to the Purple Promise, which simply states, ‘I will make every FedEx experience outstanding,’” said Frederick W. Smith, FedEx Corp. chairman and chief executive officer. “It was a year of opportunities and challenges—anticipated and unexpected—and FedEx emerged more competitive than ever. In all my years at FedEx, I have never been so optimistic and so sure of our strategy and our ability to deliver an exciting future.” Fourth quarter operating results benefited from higher base rates, increased volume and the favorable net impact of fuel at each transportation segment. Accelerated wage increases for certain hourly employees partially offset these benefits. Click Read More below for additional information.

Amazon.com announced its selections for Best Books of the Year So Far, naming Tara Westover’s memoir Educated: A Memoir the top pick overall. The annual list is hand selected by the Amazon Books Editors and features the Top 20 books released between January and June 2018—offering readers a mid-year look at the best books. The Amazon Books Editors’ picks for the first 10 of the Top 20 Best Books of the Year So Far are: 1. Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover: Tara Westover didn’t see the inside of a classroom until she was seventeen, but it was an experience that dramatically changed the trajectory of her life. This stirring memoir chronicles how she survived her survivalist upbringing, eventually earning a PhD from Cambridge University. It’s a rousing reminder that knowledge is, indeed, power. 2. The Great Alone: A Novel by Kristin Hannah: In this pressure cooker of a page-turner, a damaged Vietnam vet moves his family to the wilds of Alaska. Initially it’s a welcome change, but as winter approaches, and his mental state deteriorates, his wife and daughter find themselves in an increasingly precarious position. Like her mega-bestselling The Nightingale, Kristin Hannah’s The Great Alone highlights the heroics of everyday people, especially women. 3. The Feather Thief by Kirk Wallace Johnson: Clever, informative, and sometimes endearingly bumbling, this mix of natural history and crime opens up new worlds. Readers will never look at an old stuffed bird or an elaborately tied fishing fly the same way again. Click Read More below for additional information.

Midland Specialty Paper & Film, a division of Midland Paper, Packaging + Supplies, is excited to announce the official launch of two (2) new stand-alone Specialty Paper & Film Catalogs – Specialty Paper and Film for HP Indigo and Specialty Substrates for Offset Printing. These new catalogs provide a unique, powerful single source for all of a printer’s Digital and Offset Specialty Substrate needs: • HP Indigo Catalog – A 170 page catalog with the most extensive offering of Indigo-compatible Coated Paper, Uncoated Paper, Text & Cover, Pressure Sensitive Films, Non Pressure Sensitive Films and Pressure Sensitive Paper in the industry. • Offset Specialty Paper and Film Catalog – A 40 Page catalog containing Offset-printable Pressure Sensitive Film, Non Pressure Sensitive Film and Pressure Sensitive Paper Substrates. Click Read More below for additional information.

ACMA's Legal Team Successfully Leads Online Seller Newegg in 'Bama. While not necessarily a precursor to the forthcoming Supreme Court decision in South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc., we're excited to report a significant win for ACMA’s lawyers at Brann & Isaacson. Yesterday, the Alabama Tax Tribunal ruled in favor of e-commerce merchant Newegg in its challenge when the Alabama Department of Revenue sought enforcement of its economic nexus regulation in 2016. This ruling negates the first significant “Kill Quill” measure by Alabama Commissioner of Revenue Julie Magee, to promulgate the rule that required companies such as Newegg to register to collect the sales tax even though they did not have a physical presence. Newegg was one of the few companies that fought the Department. Click Read More below for additional information.

American Media, Inc. announced that it has reached an agreement to acquire 13 brands from Bauer Media USA. The addition of the Bauer titles, including In Touch, Life & Style, and Closer as well as the nine brands that make up the Bauer Teen Group, including J-14 and Girls World, will now be part of the AMI Entertainment Group. Combined, the new AMI Entertainment Group will reach 38 million readers and deliver the youngest median age in the category. Newsstand sales will average 1 million copies weekly with less than 25 percent reader duplication. Click Read More below for additional information.

China has pledged a tit-for-tat response. In April, it said it would levy 25% tariffs on imports of 106 U.S. products in response to proposed American duties. The White House on Friday imposed $50 billion of tariffs on Chinese goods—a move, it says, will protect American workers and businesses from unfair trade practices. But the country’s largest retail trade association and some analysts are not buying that argument. “Tariffs are taxes on American consumers, plain and simple,” Matthew Shay, CEO of the National Retail Federation (NRF) said in a statement. “These tariffs won’t reduce or eliminate China’s abusive trade practices, but they will strain the budgets of working families by raising consumer prices.” Click Read More below for additional information.

Today, in an effort to protect printers and publishers from unwarranted tariffs, Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Angus King (I-ME) introduced S. 2835, the “Protecting Rational Incentives in Newsprint Trade Act of 2018,” or “PRINT Act.” Senators Roy Blunt (R-MO), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Johnny Isakson (R-GA), Doug Jones (D-AL), Claire McCaskill (D-MO), Jerry Moran (R-KS) and Roger Wicker (R-MS) joined as original co-sponsors. The PRINT Act would suspend new tariffs currently being imposed on imported uncoated groundwood paper from Canada, which is the primary source of newsprint and other paper used by domestic newspapers, book publishers and commercial printers. Simultaneously, the legislation would require the Department of Commerce to review the economic health of the printing and publishing industries. Newspapers and printers across the United States have told Congress that the new import tariffs – as high as 32 percent – would jeopardize the viability of the industry and threaten to decimate the U.S. paper industry’s customer base. Click Read More below for additional information.

Financial Highlights • Adobe achieved record quarterly revenue of $2.20 billion in its second quarter of fiscal year 2018, which represents 24 percent year-over-year revenue growth. • Operating income grew 39 percent and net income grew 77 percent year-over-year on a GAAP-basis; operating income grew 33 percent and net income grew 62 percent year-over-year on a non-GAAP basis. • Cash flow from operations was $976 million, and deferred revenue grew 27 percent year-over-year to approximately $2.63 billion. Click Read More below for additional information.

The specialty outdoor retailer named Damien Huang as president. He was most recently Eddie Bauer’s senior VP of merchandising & design. In his new role, Huang will oversee the design, merchandising, marketing, retail, e-commerce, licensing, international, and wholesale functions of the business. He will report to Mike Egeck, CEO of PSEB, the new operating company composed of Eddie Bauer and PacSun. “He [Huang] has played a pivotal role in the transition of the Eddie Bauer business into a performance outdoor brand – and it comes as no surprise that performance product has grown at a double digit rate over the last five years under his leadership,” said Egeck. “His passion for the outdoors and his knowledge in building award-winning product will ensure that Eddie Bauer continues its strong momentum.” Click Read More below for additional information.

U.S. retailers’ nonstore sales reached $55.829 billion in May on a seasonally adjusted basis, a 9.1% increase compared with $51.155 billion in the same month of 2017, new monthly data from the U.S. Commerce Department shows. That’s a slower increase than in April, when nonstore sales grew 10.5% on an adjusted basis year over year. Nonstore sales mainly take place online but also include other channels, such as mail and telephone orders, door-to-door sales and sales through vending machines. Click Read More below for additional information.

Today, House Members Kenny Marchant (R-TX) and Brian Higgins (D-NY) penned a letter to Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer regarding the softwood lumber trade with Canada, calling for renewed negotiations with Canada for a softwood lumber trade agreement -- in lieu of the current enforcement of the U.S. trade laws through countervailing and antidumping duties on imports of unfairly traded Canadian softwood lumber. The letter states that anti-dumping and countervailing duties imposed by the U.S. Department of Commerce on Canadian softwood lumber are the chief driver of current lumber prices, a claim that is inaccurate. The price of lumber, like all commodities, fluctuates due to market forces. The trade measures -- imposed after a thorough year-long investigation by the U.S. Department of Commerce and the International Trade Commission -- are designed merely to offset the harm done to domestic producers from imports that are sold in the United States at less than fair value or which benefit from subsidies provided through foreign government programs. Click Read More below for additional information.

Gap Inc. announced the appointment of Neil Fiske as president and chief executive officer of Gap brand. Fiske will begin his new role on June 20, 2018, and will serve on the company’s senior leadership team, reporting to Art Peck, president and chief executive officer of Gap Inc. “Neil brings significant retail and apparel experience to Gap Inc. and a track record of transforming and repositioning brands,” said Peck. “He is an experienced leader who deeply understands the mechanics of this business, the value of an omnichannel strategy, and the need to build a progressive and relevant brand. I believe Neil is the right leader to strengthen Gap brand.” Click Read More below for additional information.

Group C Media—the New Jersey-based publisher of Business Facilities and Facility Executive magazines—announced last week its acquisition of Turf, Turf Design Build, and Tree Services magazines from Grand View Media, reuniting the brands with the online forums LawnSite and PlowSite, which Group C purchased from Grand View earlier this year. “We’re thrilled that Turf, Turf Design Build and Tree Services are back where they belong with the LawnSite Network,” said Group C co-president Ted Coene in a statement. “The acquisition of these industry-leading brands will give us the opportunity to create new offerings in print, online and face-to-face events.” Click Read More below for additional information.

The Wall Street Journal’s award-winning business news and analysis is coming to Canada! Effective Tuesday, June 12, Torstar daily newspapers and websites across the country will begin publishing a limited sample of articles from The Wall Street Journal, the world’s pre-eminent source of financial news and information. Also starting Tuesday, June 12, the Toronto Star, Torstar’s flagship newspaper, will launch Star Business Journal, a major new initiative with both print and online editions featuring articles on business, the economy, technology and markets from The Wall Street Journal. Click Read More below for additional information.

The Federal Communications Commission's repeal of the net neutrality rules took effect, leaving broadband providers in most states free to censor sites and slow down apps. The repeal, dubbed the "Restoring Internet Freedom Order," which took effect 6/11, also allows Comcast, AT&T and other broadband providers to charge companies like Netflix and Amazon higher fees for prioritized delivery. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, who spearheaded the deregulatory move, says the repeal will improve broadband service. Click Read More below for additional information.

FOURTH QUARTER 2018 HIGHLIGHTS • Reported results (GAAP) reflected growth in Revenue (+6%), Operating Income (+18%) and EPS (+16%), driven by strong operational performance and favorable impacts from foreign currency. • At constant currency, growth in Revenue (+1%), Adjusted Operating Income (+15%) and Adjusted EPS (+6%) resulted from strong performance in Research, growth in Solutions, and broader operating efficiencies. FISCAL YEAR 2018 HIGHLIGHTS • Reported results (GAAP) reflected growth in Revenue (+5%), Operating Income (+16%) and EPS (+70%), driven by strong operational performance, benefits from foreign currency, and a one-time benefit from US tax reform. • At constant currency, growth in Revenue (+1%), Adjusted Operating Income (+7%) and Adjusted EPS (+3%) resulted from strong performance in Research, growth in Solutions, and broader operating efficiencies, partially offset by higher taxes. Click Read More below for additional information.

Unit sales of print books fell 2% in the week ended June 3, 2018, compared to the similar week in 2017, at outlets that report to NDP BookScan. For the third week in a row, it was softness in the fiction categories that led to the decline. Unit sales dropped 5% in both the adult and juvenile fiction categories compared to the week ended June 4, 2017. Click Read More below for additional information.

Shane Wolf, L’Oréal’s global manager for Redken, Pureology and Mizani, is heading up a new project focused on seed diversity, small-scale organic farmers and sustainability. Seed Phytonutrients came to fruition due to a culmination of partners dedicated to creating a brand with four cores objectives: seed diversity, supporting organic farmers, promoting natural beauty and leading sustainability. Not only is the product sustainable and organic, but the packaging is also uniquely qualified to help the planet. The external shell is 100% paper-based and is recyclable and compostable. Shane Wolf tells Two Sides UK how important it was to use paper-based packaging for this brand and the positive impact it will have on the planet. Click Read More below for additional information.

United Parcel Service workers have given their union the go-ahead to call a strike in what would be their first walkout -- and one of America's most far-reaching picket lines -- in decades. The vote gives union negotiators more sway in contract talks with the shipping giant. The tally released by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Tuesday night had 93 percent of UPS members endorsing the authorization and 91 percent of UPS freight employees backing the measure. A national pact with the union covers about 260,000 UPS workers, and the current contract expires July 31. Click Read More below for additional information.

The era of white-collar organized labor is fully upon us: the editorial staff of The New Yorker wants to unionize. This morning, organizers sent a letter to the magazine’s editor, David Remnick, asking that the institution and its corporate owner, Condé Nast, voluntarily recognize their membership in the NewsGuild of New York. (Publications ranging from the New York Times to Jacobin have bargaining units with the NewsGuild.) Organizers say that of the 115 or so union-eligible employees, nearly 90 percent have signed union cards. The group includes copy editors, web producers, fact-checkers, photo and design staff, the social-media and publicity teams, editorial assistants, and assistant editors. Management and senior-level employees are excluded, as are staff writers, whose job title would not escape the red pen of the magazine’s fact department: Writers at The New Yorker are nearly all independent contractors, rather than staff, and thus do not receive health care or other benefits, despite being largely prevented from writing for other outlets. The relatively few editorial staffers who’ve expressed concerns with the unionizing effort say they are worried about retaliation in an industry where reputation is the coin of the realm. Click Read More below for additional information.

Golden Gate Capital has established a new operating company for two of its portfolio companies that it acquired out of bankruptcy. The new PSEB Group is composed of Eddie Bauer and Pacific Sunwear of California, both of which will maintain their distinct brand opportunities. It will have a retail footprint of more than 700 stores and is on track for approximately $1.5 billion in combined total sales in 2018, including $400 million in ecommerce sales. Although earlier reports suggested that Golden Gate might merge the companies in an effort to consolidate stores, there was no talk of store closings in the announcement. Click Read More below for additional information.

UPS announced a major expansion to its ocean Less-Than-Container Load (LCL) service with the addition of direct sailings in 130 lanes. The origin and destination countries cover most of the globe, including ports in Asia, Latin America, Africa, Europe, U.S. the Carribean and the Middle East. Customers who do not have enough cargo to fill an entire ocean freight container can still access cost-effective ocean transportation using UPS’s extensive network of capabilities and freight facilities. Customers benefit from an economical way to transport goods versus other modes of transportation while gaining access to a broad portfolio of value-added and alternative services. These services include cargo insurance and financing solutions from UPS Capital, customs brokerage services, supplier management, sea-air service, UPS Preferred ™ LCL, and China-Europe Rail service. Click Read More below for additional information.

The NRF called on lawmakers to pass bipartisan legislation introduced on Wednesday that would require congressional approval of “Section 232” tariffs. This includes the steel and aluminum tariffs recently imposed by the Trump administration, and any additional tariffs in the future. The legislation was introduced by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), and a bipartisan group of senators. The proposed tariffs have triggered widespread retaliation against United States exports. The administration is also considering tariffs on automobiles and auto parts. Click Read More below for additional information.

Costco Wholesale Corporation reported net sales of $11.02 billion for the retail month of May, the four weeks ended June 3, 2018, an increase of 14.1 percent from $9.66 billion last year. For the first thirty-nine weeks of fiscal 2018 the Company reported net sales of $103.26 billion, an increase of 12.1 percent from $92.11 billion last year.

Expressing concern for the environment and a desire to meet consumers' communication preferences, the SEC has voted to allow fund companies to post documents on websites and tell shareholders how to access them electronically. The move was a nod to a longstanding request from the mutual fund industry, which has pressed for email, rather than regular mail, to be the default method for disseminating shareholder reports, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. Technically, the shift involved a rule change passed on a 4-1 vote that will allow funds to post the documents on websites and tell shareholders how to access them electronically. Click Read More below for additional information.

L Brands, Inc. reported net sales increased 10 percent to $851.9 million for the four weeks ended June 2, 2018, compared to net sales of $774.3 million for the four weeks ended May 27, 2017. Comparable sales for the four weeks ended June 2, 2018, increased 5 percent compared to the four weeks ended June 3, 2017. The company reported net sales of $3.478 billion for the 17 weeks ended June 2, 2018, an increase of 8 percent compared to net sales of $3.211 billion for the 17 weeks ended May 27, 2017. Comparable sales for the 17 weeks ended June 2, 2018, increased 3 percent compared to the 17 weeks ended June 3, 2017. Click

Columbus Monthly, Seattle Met, and Denver’s 5280 earned top prizes for General Excellence at the 33rd annual City & Regional Magazine Awards, administered by the University of Missouri School of Journalism and announced Monday at the City & Regional Mag Association’s annual meetup in New Orleans. Twenty-five year-old 5280 and 12 year-old Seattle Met were first-time winners in the General Excellence category, which is split into three prizes based on circulation level. Columbus Monthly, which won among magazines with a circulation of 30,000 or less, had previously won a General Excellence award under a different format in 2001. All three were finalists in their respective categories last year. Click Read More below for additional information.

A U.S. Appellate Court ruling in Washington DC upheld the U.S. Postal Service’s pricing methodology, knocking down a challenge from UPS that categorized it as unfair and anticompetitive, according to a report in Bloomberg. The three-judge panel found that the USPS’s transfer of some profits from its monopoly on first-class mail delivery to offset parcel delivery costs did not amount to a subsidy of those operations, which is forbidden under the 2006 Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act. The USPS’s pricing is set by the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC). Click Read More below for additional information.

Wyndeham Group has secured a two-year extension of its print contract with Hearst UK which includes the addition of three new titles. The three new arrivals, Red, Red Travel and Country Living, bring the number of magazines Wyndeham prints for Hearst up to 18, and will be printed at Wyndeham Roche in Cornwall. Wyndeham's first magazine work for Hearst was the printing of lifestyle weekly Reveal in the early 2000s. It secured 10 titles in 2016 in the wake of Polestar’s collapse. Group sales director Jon Hearnden said: “We have a very strong relationship with Hearst UK and over its span we have proven ourselves to be reliable and capable of turning over a consistent product. Click Read More below for additional information.

Net sales were $730.9 million, up 11% from last year, with comparable sales up 5%. Changes in foreign currency exchange rates and the calendar shift resulting from the 53rd week in fiscal 2017 benefited first quarter net sales by approximately 4% and 1%, respectively, which do not impact comparable sales. By brand, net sales increased 13% to $423.6 million for Hollister and increased 7% to $307.3 million for Abercrombie from last year. By geography, net sales increased 10% to $449.1 million in the U.S. and increased 12% to $281.8 million in international markets from last year. Net other operating income was $2.6 million, compared to $1.7 million last year, primarily related to foreign currency gains. Click Read More below for additional information.

The Retail Industry Leaders Association voiced its opposition to the White House announcement on the Thursday that it will impose new steel and aluminum tariffs on imports from the European Union, in addition to Canada and Mexico. Quach said that imposing tariffs raises the stakes for U.S. allies to take retaliatory measures that will hurt the nation’s exporters while creating more uncertainty for American businesses. “The administration has created a three-front trade war, targeting NAFTA, China, and now the European Union, with no resolution to any of these disputes in sight,” Quach said. Click Read More below for additional information.

Costco Wholesale Corporation announced its operating results for the third quarter (twelve weeks) and the thirty-six weeks ended May 13, 2018. Net sales for the quarter increased 12.1 percent, to $31.62 billion, from $28.22 billion last year. Net sales for the first thirty-six weeks of fiscal 2018 increased 12.0 percent, to $95.02 billion, from $84.82 billion last year. Net income for the quarter was $750 million, or $1.70 per diluted share, compared to $700 million, or $1.59 per diluted share, last year. Click Read More below for additional information.

The operator of Sears and Kmart stores posted a first-quarter loss of $3.93 a diluted share. Revenue fell due to fewer stores and a 12% drop in comparable-store sales. The Hoffman Estates, Illinois-based retailer said Thursday that it has identified 100 unprofitable stores, and 72 of them will begin store-closing sales in the near future. It will announce the locations to close by midday. Click Read More below for additional information.

• Net sales increased 17.4% to $1,543.7 million compared to $1,314.9 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2017; • Comparable sales (sales for stores open at least 14 months and e-commerce sales) increased 8.1% compared to an increase of 14.3% in the first quarter of fiscal 2017. The 8.1% comparable sales increase was driven by 5.1% transaction growth and 3.0% growth in average ticket; • Retail comparable sales increased 4.7%, including salon comparable sales growth of 3.2%; • Net income increased 28.2% to $164.4 million compared to $128.2 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2017. Click Read More below for additional information.

•Total revenues increased 3% to $540.5 million. Comparable company sales increased 1% following a decrease of 8% in the first quarter last year. •J.Crew sales decreased 7% to $391.9 million. J.Crew comparable sales decreased 6% following a decrease of 11% in the first quarter last year. •Madewell sales increased 39% to $115.8 million. Madewell comparable sales increased 31% following an increase of 11% in the first quarter last year. •Operating loss was $0.9 million compared to $151.0 million in the first quarter last year. •Net loss was $33.9 million compared to $121.0 million in the first quarter last year. Click Read More below for additional information.

For the first quarter, net sales were $561.8 million compared to $583.7 million in last year's first quarter. This decrease of 3.8% primarily reflects a comparable sales decline of 5.9% and the impact of 41 net store closures since last year's first quarter, partially offset by the favorable impact of the calendar shift due to the 53rd week in fiscal 2017. The comparable sales decline was primarily driven by lower transaction count. For the first quarter, gross margin was $226.9 million, or 40.4% of net sales, compared to $237.4 million, or 40.7% of net sales, in last year's first quarter. This 30 basis point decrease primarily reflects the initial implementation costs and launch of a new expedited shipping program, partially offset by a 70 basis point improvement in maintained margin. Click Read More below for additional information.

Summer is a key time for booksellers around the country in regions that attract tourists during the season, and for those that see increased foot traffic from teachers and children. “Our Chamber of Commerce anticipates a 5% rise in visitors to Alaska this summer,” said Jenny Stroyeck at the Homer Bookstore in Homer, Alaska. “Our foot traffic does go up in the summer.” She noted that with the long driving distances between towns, parents like to buy their kids books to ensure peace and quiet on the road. The Homer Bookstore has had a slight dip in sales so far this year—it is down 2% compared to the same period in 2017—but, like many stores around the country, anticipates a boost from some big seasonal events. The Kachemak Writers’ Conference, which will be held in Homer in June and will feature Anthony Doerr as the keynote speaker, should produce some strong numbers for the indie. Click Read More below for additional information.

Earlier this month PrintWeek reported on the ‘perfect storm’ of global events that have tightened the supply of graphical papers and resulted in paper mills resorting to allocation for the first time since 2001. Factors in the mix are wide-ranging with the surging global demand for pulp being at the forefront, fuelled by its ever-expanding uses in new and existing markets, such as hygiene and tissue products, as well as the backlash against plastic with manufacturers seeking paper-based alternatives. “Pulp is no longer a one-trick pony,” says Mario di Lieto, managing director of Stora Enso division LumiPaper. “There’s a much broader use for cellulose today than just paper. It’s being used for plastic substitute, for clothing, for biomass for energy, all sorts of applications.” As a result of this soaring demand, pulp prices have been pushed up further and further from $700-$750 (£520-£557) a tonne a year ago, to nearly $1,200 causing a knock-on effect across the print and packaging industry, among others. Click Read More below for additional information.

With industry sales largely flat, one way publishers have maintained their profit margins in recent years is by operating more efficiently and taking costs out of the supply chain. But publishers’ ability to contain costs could be put to the test this year as the price of paper rises. As one publisher noted, because of an overall decline in demand, paper prices have been good for several years. In early 2018, however, a number of events have led to a decline in the paper supply and an increase in prices. A recent report by printer Quad Graphics noted that the cost of uncoated groundwork paper rose $35 per ton on February 1 and rose another $25 per ton March 1. Costs have risen in part because of a reduction in supply, as a number of Canadian mills have either closed or, in search of better margins, switched from producing paper to manufacturing other products, such as packaging, explained Matt Baehr, executive director of the Book Manufacturers’ Institute; the institute recently held its annual meeting, which focused on paper issues. Click Read More below for additional information.

Publishers’ revenue increased by $143.2 million (+6.2%) for the first quarter of 2018 (Jan - March) compared to the same period in 2017. These numbers include sales for all tracked categories (Trade - fiction/non-fiction/religious, PreK-12 Instructional Materials, Higher Education Course Materials, Professional Publishing, and University Presses). The increases are attributed primarily to strong growth in trade (consumer) books in January and February. Trade books increased by $94.7 million (+6.3%) to $1.59 billion in the first quarter of 2018 compared to the same period in 2017, with growth in Adult Books, Children & Young Adult Books and Religious Presses. Publishers also saw increased revenue for Professional Books, University Presses and Higher Ed Course Materials. Click Read More below for additional information.

For the first quarter ended May 5, 2018: • Net sales were $3.8 billion, an increase of 10% compared with last year. Excluding the impact from the adoption of the new revenue recognition standard, net sales increased 6% compared with last year. * The translation of foreign currencies into U.S. dollars positively impacted the company’s net sales for the first quarter of fiscal year 2018 by about $40 million. First quarter net sales details appear in the tables at the end of this press release. • Gross profit was $1.43 billion, an increase of 10% compared with last year. Excluding the impact from the adoption of the new revenue recognition standard, gross profit increased about 3% compared with last year. Click Read More below for additional information.

What could be more exciting than the end of the school year? For many students, the answer is graduation season. May and June mark the end of one chapter and the beginning of another in many families’ lives. And paper is there every step of the way, even in this digital world. What would graduation season be like without paper? Just imagine that you’re walking across the stage on your graduation day. A crowd of family and friends are in the audience to cheer you on. You reflect on your achievements and consider where you’ll hang your beautiful framed diploma. You shake hands with a school official, and then you hear, “Congratulations on your graduation! Log on to our website to access your diploma.” Click Read More below for additional information.

IntuIdeas' John Parsons, who co-authored "Introduction to Graphic Communication" with former Cal Poly Graphic Communication Department Head Harvey Levenson, describes release of the first textbook to use Ricoh's Clickable Paper technology. Printed by Edwards Brothers Malloy on its high-speed Ricoh Pro VC60000 inkjet press, the four-color book combines print and multimedia engagement, including access to related digital media content and reader-to-reader interaction. Click Read More below for additional information.

Earnings per share for the first quarter ended May 5, 2018, were $0.17 compared to $0.33 for the quarter ended April 29, 2017. First quarter operating income was $154.8 million compared to $209.2 million last year, and net income was $47.5 million compared to $94.1 million last year. The company reported net sales of $2.626 billion for the first quarter ended May 5, 2018, an increase of 8 percent compared to sales of $2.437 billion for the quarter ended April 29, 2017. Comparable sales for the first quarter ended May 5, 2018, increased 3 percent compared to the thirteen weeks ended May 6, 2017.

Domestic revenue of $8.41 billion increased 6.3% versus last year driven by comparable sales growth of 7.1%, partially offset by the loss of revenue from 17 large-format and 193 Best Buy Mobile store closures over the past year. International revenue of $697 million increased 13.1% versus last year. This increase was primarily driven by comparable sales growth of 6.4%, due to growth in both Canada and Mexico, and approximately 500 basis points of positive foreign currency impact. Domestic gross profit rate was 23.3% versus 23.6% last year. International gross profit rate was 23.4% versus 24.5% last year. Click Read More below for additional information.

During the first quarter of 2018, we adopted ASU No. 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606). As a result of the new accounting standard, income relating to our credit card program and gift card breakage that previously offset selling, general and administrative (“SG&A”) expenses has been recorded in other revenue in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income for all periods presented. The increase in other revenue for the first quarter of 2018 is the result of higher penetration from our growing credit card program. Gross profit for the first quarter of 2018 was $96.1 million or 29.4 percent of sales compared to $95.6 million or 28.3 percent of sales in 2017. Click Read More below for additional information.

Total Company net sales for the three months ended April 30, 2018, increased 12.4% over the same period last year to a record $856 million. Comparable Retail segment net sales increased 10%, driven by strong, double-digit growth in the digital channel and positive retail store sales. By brand, comparable Retail segment net sales increased 15% at Free People, 10% at the Anthropologie Group and 8% at Urban Outfitters. Wholesale segment net sales increased 13%. Net income for the three months ended April 30, 2018, was $41 million and earnings per diluted share was $0.38. Click Read More below for additional information.

Total revenue of $16.8 billion increased 3.4 percent from $16.2 billion last year, reflecting sales growth of 3.5 percent combined with a slight decline in other revenue. First quarter sales growth reflected comparable sales growth of 3.0 percent combined with the contribution from non-mature stores. Comparable digital channel sales grew 28 percent and contributed 1.1 percentage points of comparable sales growth. Operating income was $1,041 million in first quarter 2018, down 9.9 percent from $1,155 million in 2017. First quarter operating income margin rate was 6.2 percent, compared with 7.1 percent in 2017. First quarter gross margin rate was 29.8 percent, compared with 30.0 percent in 2017, reflecting pressure from digital fulfillments costs and sales mix, partially offset by the benefit of the Company's cost saving efforts and the net impact of changes to the Company's pricing and promotions. Click Read More below for additional information.

Much like photography itself, Shutterbug magazine is turning its focus to digital. Today, UK-based AVTech Media announced it is ceasing Shutterbug magazine’s print edition after 45 years in order to pour more resources into its website, citing a seven-fold increase in digital traffic over the last four years. Despite a circulation of nearly 100,000 readers, the cost of production and slipping ad revenues evidently called for a strategic shift. Click Read More below for additional information.

Second quarter net revenue of $7.5 billion was up 10% from the prior year and up 6% when adjusted for currency. Second quarter GAAP diluted net earnings per share (“EPS”) from continuing operations was $0.54, up from GAAP diluted net EPS from continuing operations of ($0.29) in the prior-year period. Click Read More below for additional information.

The four large publicly traded consumer publishers that recently reported their financial results for the quarter ended March 31 were all able to point to some good financial news. HarperCollins had the best results, with sales up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year and profits rising 16.2%. In a conference call discussing results, Susan Panuccio, CFO of HC parent company News Corp, said the sales gains were led by the general and Christian publishing divisions. Backlist titles did particularly well, accounting for 58% of revenue in the quarter, compared to 52% a year ago, Panuccio said. She added that the strong performance of the backlist helped to boost margins. Another important contributor was downloadable audiobooks. The format had strong gains in the quarter, helping to offset softness in e-book sales and leading to a 5% increase in overall digital sales at HC compared to the prior year. The company said that downloadable audio accounted for about 25% of all digital revenue in the recent period. Digital sales represented 22% of consumer revenue for the quarter—the same percentage the format accounted for in the quarter last year. Click Read More below for additional information.

Financial Highlights •Total revenues grew by 13% to £161.5 million (2016/17: £142.6 million). Revenues from overseas customers grew by 16% to £101.2 million, and are now 63% of total revenues •Profit before taxation and highlighted items* grew by 10% to £13.2 million (2016/17: £12.0 million), above market expectations •Proposed final dividend of 6.36p per share, making a total dividend of 7.51p per share for the year, up 12% (2016/17: 6.7p per share) •Diluted earnings per share, excluding highlighted items*, grew by 10% to 13.92p (2016/17: 12.63p) •Strong cash conversion of 161% (2017: 180%), with net cash of £25.4m at 28 February 2018 (2017: £15.5m) •Strong autumn book list and acquisition of I. B. Tauris & Co. Ltd ("IBT") will mean performance for 2018/19 will be well ahead of our previous expectations. Click Read More below for additional information.

President Trump has personally pushed U.S. Postmaster General Megan Brennan to double the rate the Postal Service charges Amazon.com and other firms to ship packages, according to three people familiar with their conversations, a dramatic move that probably would cost these companies billions of dollars. Brennan has so far resisted Trump’s demand, explaining in multiple conversations occurring this year and last that these arrangements are bound by contracts and must be reviewed by a regulatory commission, the three people said. She has told the president that the Amazon relationship is beneficial for the Postal Service and gave him a set of slides that showed the variety of companies, in addition to Amazon, that also partner for deliveries. Click Read More below for additional information.

Unit sales of print books fell by less than 1% in the week ended May 13, 2018, compared to the similar week in 2017, at outlets that report to NPD BookScan. Gains in nonfiction largely offset declines in fiction in the week. Units increased 4% in the adult nonfiction category over the week ended May 14, 2017, as the segment had the industry’s two biggest-selling books: Magnolia Table by Joanna Gaines sold more than 171,000 copies, while The Soul of America by Jon Meacham sold nearly 39,000 copies in its first week, landing it in the second spot on both the category and overall bestseller lists. Print unit sales in juvenile nonfiction rose 7% over 2017; a number of new books helped give the segment a boost. Click Read More below for additional information.

Total Company net sales increased 5.8 percent for the first quarter ended May 5, 2018 compared with the quarter ended April 29, 2017. This reflected an increase of approximately 250 basis points primarily due to the shift of a Nordstrom Rewards loyalty event into the first quarter relative to the second quarter last year. Comparable sales for the first quarter ended May 5, 2018 increased 0.6 percent, compared with the 13-week period ended May 6, 2017. First quarter net earnings were $87 million compared with $63 million during the same period in fiscal 2017. Results in 2017 included an interest expense charge of $18 million related to a debt refinancing. Click Read More below for additional information.

◾ Revenues rise to €3.99 billion ◾ Organic growth improves to 2.7 percent ◾ High-growth businesses show organic revenue growth of 7.9 percent ◾ Operating EBITDA before negative exchange-rate effects up year-on-year ◾ Group profit at €172 million. Click Read More below for additional information.