Check out Kohl’s upcoming analyst/investor meeting.
 
Management at the mid-priced department store chain is expected to focus on the long-term at the meeting Tuesday, with an updated five-year plan, analysts said.
 
But after same-store sales declined unexpectedly in August and missed analysts expectations, Wall Street is also looking for an update on third-quarter expectations, JP Morgan analyst Charles Grom said in a research note.
 
“It’s our understanding that in order for KSS to hit the low-end of its 3Q07 $0.67-$0.71 EPS range, it needs to deliver a flat comp in September and a ‘mid-to-high’ single digit comp in October,” he said.
 
Adds Stifel Nicolaus analyst Richard Jaffe, “given the trends evident quarter to date, we anticipate that management will provide a guarded outlook for 2H07.”
 
Kohl’s said last week that the impact of the housing meltdown in some states and promotions from competitors like Macy’s and J.C. Penney have been reasons for its disappointing sales in recent months.
 
One plus in recent weeks is the strong sales of the new Vera Wang (pictured) line of apparel, accessories and home goods, analysts said. 
 
 
Also in basket:  

U.S. August consumer spending up

Citi sends unrequested credit cards to Macy’s customers (USA Today)

Yao gives Reebok an assist in China (WSJ.)

(Photo: Reuters)

Check out prescription drugs: Wal-Mart is making more of them available at $4 a prescription, while Rite-Aid is barely seeing any increase in the number of prescriptions sold at stores open at least a year.

Wal-Mart on Thursday said it is now offering $4 prescriptions on drugs to treat glaucoma, fungal infection and acne, among other conditions. The move expands the world’s largest retailer’s $4 prescription program, which was launched with great fanfare last year.
 
That program had raised concerns that traditional drugstores would lose business. But that hasn’t not really been a big issue, Mitchell Corwin, analyst at Morningstar, said.
 
“I think there’s some impact on the margin, but I don’t think it is a significant factor,” he said.
 
Meanwhile, Rite Aid on Thursday reported a $69.9 million loss in the second quarter and cut its full-year sales outlook.

The bulk of the loss was due to costs related to its acquisition of the U.S. Brooks and Eckerd drugstore chains. But Rite Aid also filled only 0.4 percent more prescriptions at stores open at last a year.
 
Wal-Mart isn’t as much of a competitor with Rite Aid as it is with other drugstores, due to the location of Rite Aid’s stores. Corwin said that Rite Aid’s prescription growth trails competitors like Walgreen and CVS Caremark in part due to its older store base. It is easier for newer stores to show growth as they ramp up than it is for older, more establishes stores, he said.
 
Also in the basket:
 
Finlay to buy Bailey Banks & Biddle
 
McCormick profit rises along with costs
 
New bidders for Wendy’s join line for next round (WSJ, subscription required.)
 
Retailers and vendors hit by weakened dollar (Women’s Wear Daily)

Devil dogs, Spider-Men and princesses will roam darkened streets this Halloween this October 31 in search of candy and other treats.

Dressing your pet like the devil is the number one costume choice among the estimated 7.4 million households celebrating Halloween with their furry friends, according to the National Retail Federation’s Halloween Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, conducted by BIGresearch.

The average consumer will spend $23.33 on Halloween costumes, including those for children and pets, and total spending on Halloween is expected to reach $5.07 billion, including candy, costumes and decorations, says the NRF.

So what will the fashionable cat or dog be wearing this Halloween season? After devils, pumpkins run close behind and witches, princesses and angels round out the top five.

Among children, little girls ranked princess as their top choice for dressing up this year. Spider-Man costumes came in second, followed by pirates, witches and fairies.

One-third of adults will dress in costume this year, and of those, nearly three-quarters already have a costume in mind, such as witches, pirates, vampires, cat and princess.

The National Retail Federation is the world’s largest retail trade association.

Here are the top choices:

Top Pet Costumes:

1. Devil
2. Pumpkin
3. Witch
4. Princess
5. Angel
6. Pirate
7. Hot Dog
8. Bat
9. Black Cat
10. Clown

Top Children’s Costumes:

1.  Princess
2. Spider-Man
3. Pirate
4. Witch
5. Fairy
6. Disney Princess
7. Star Wars character
8. Pumpkin
9. Ghost
10. Power Ranger

Top Adults Costumes:

1. Witch
2. Pirate
3. Vampire
4. Cat
5. Princess
6. Fairy
7. Wench/Tart
8. Clown
9. Angel
10. Nurse

Check out retailers cutting back the number of stores they operate.

Several retailers have talked about shutting down stores in the past week. Timberland today said it would close most of its specialty retail stores as it shifts its focus to smaller, footwear-focused stores in the United States. The move also comes as Timberland’s trademark work boots are becoming less of a fashion statement.
 
Movie Gallery said yesterday that it would close 520 underperforming stores, or 13 percent of its chain. Movie Gallery has been in a fierce battle for market share with Blockbuster and has slashed prices. Store revenue for the rental industry has fallen as a result of competition from online renters like Netflix.
 
Sometimes new ideas don’t quite work out or lose out to new priorities. Home Depot has said it would close 11 Landscape supply concept stores to focus on its core retail warehouses.
 
But as one door closes, another one opens, either for the retailer or a competitor. Women’s’ apparel company Guess has been closing poor performing stores. But its chief operating officer said last week it could actually double the number of Guess stores in North America, where it currently has 347 outlets.
 
And as competitors like Circuit City, CompUSA and Tweeter close stores, Best Buy has seen a somewhat better competitive landscape. It also saw a 9 percent jump in its second-quarter profit.
 
Also in the basket: 
H&M third-quarter profit misses estimates
 
Anheuser-Busch stock left on tap as other brewer stocks rise

Even with rampant concerns about a lackluster holiday shopping season this year, retailers appear to be in for happy Halloween next month, a recent survey showed.

The average person plans to spend $64.82 on the holiday, up nearly 10 percent from the $59.06 they spent a year ago, according to the National Retail Federation’s Halloween Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, conducted by BIGresearch.

Total spending on Halloween this year, including candy, costumes and decorations, is expected to reach $5.07 billion, says the NRF. 

The average ghoul will spend $23.33 on Halloween costumes, including those for children and pets, because we all know how much Fluffy loves being dressed up like a pumpkin so you can take his picture.

Young adults will spend the most - 18 to 24 year olds will spend $34.06 on costumes, nearly twice as much as the $19.65 they’ll spend on candy. Average spending is expected to rise in all categories to $19.84 on candy, $17.73 on decorations and $3.92 on greeting cards.

Also, nearly three-fourths of consumers said they plan to stay at home and hand out sugar-laden treats to children. More than 43 percent said they’d be carving a pumpkin, almost 48 percent will be decorating the home and yard, and 28 percent will be throwing a Halloween party.

The National Retail Federation is the world’s largest retail trade association.

Check out the sales warning from Target and the earnings warning from Lowe’s.

In the latest sign of retail weakness amid the credit crunch, housing slump and rising prices for food and fuel, Target said on Monday that it now expects September sales to rise only 1.5 percent to 2.5 percent, not the 4 percent to 6 percent it originally forecast.

Home improvment retailer Lowe’s, meanwhile, warned that earnings for the fiscal year ending in February will be at or below the low end of its previously lowered forecast. The reason? Drought conditions. It seems that dry conditions in some parts of the United States hurt sales of things like lawn mowers and patio furniture.

The retailer also said current pressures will likely continue into next year and only forecast a mid-single digit earnings increase for that year, well below its average forecast of 12 percent to 15 percent for 2008-2010.

As Credit Suisse analyst Gary Balter put it, “either they have a better weather forecaster than the rest of us, or they are projecting that housing will not be recovering any time soon (we would go with the latter.)”

Lowe’s will give more details about its business prospects today during a conference call with investors.

Target’s sales forecast came in a recorded message and the disocunt retailer gave few details. Charles Grom of J.P. Morgan speculated that the previous forecast was aggressive, given tough comparisons; that some sales might have been pulled into August from September; and that higher energy prices, falling housing prices and higher adjustable rate mortgage payments are weighing on consumers.
“All in, consumer spending is certainly slowing, which isn’t good for a single retailer we cover,” he said in a research note.

Also in the basket:

Amazon launches early verison of music service (Reuters)
 
Microsoft launches “Halo 3″ (Reuters, Wall Street Journal (subscription required) )
 
Seeking Young Designers: new Wave of Money Men Scout Market for Brands (Women’s Wear Daily)

In the end, it Death won out at Life & Death. 
 
Blue Holdings today announced it would discontinue its underperforming Life & Death brand, exit its existing two retail stores and cut its workforce by about 25 percent.
 
Experts say the frenetic days when new pricey labels hit the market in droves — and generated mind-boggling sales rises — are over, with the stalwarts in the market now taking market share and pushing out younger, less-established rivals. That frenzy especially happened in jeans, one of Blue Holdings’ main businesses. Life & Death, a knits brand, was acquired to complement the denim business and broaden Blue’s product range. 
 
But Life & Death was not as well-known as lines from True Religion, Seven For All Mankind or Citizens of Humanity. 
 
Commerce, California-based Blue Holdings expects savings of $750,000 this year and about $2.8 million next year from its actions, with its two stores in Los Angeles and San Francisco to close within three months. Some 35 employees will lose their jobs by October’s end, the company said.
 
Other lines by Blue Holdings include Antik Denim, Taverniti So Jeans, and Yanuk.

( This blog was updated to correct that Life & Death sold knits, not jeans.)

Hasbro is getting into the online pet game after watching privately-held Ganz gobble up the lion’s share of children’s attention — and their parent’s dollars — with Webkinz, stuffed animal’s that come alive online.

The world’s second-largest toy maker behind Mattel is looking to duplicate the success of its smaller rival with Littlest Pet Shop Virtual Interactive Pets, which will debut in the New York market in mid-October, while launching globally early next year.

Webkinz, however, will be a tough act to follow. Retailers have said demand for Webkinz is skyrocketing at a rate not seen since the Beenie Babies craze of the late 1990s. And analysts say the toys are expected to be one of the hottest items of the upcoming holiday shopping season.  

Nevertheless, Hasbro is plowing ahead with the $14.99 VIP’s, which feature five animals including a dog, cat, turtle, penguin and panda.

Like Webkinz, VIP’s come with a special code on their collars that unlocks a virtual world where players interact with each other and aim to keep their pets healthy and happy.  Potential users can try it out at littlestpetshop.com. 

(Picture: Littlest Pet Shop Web site.)

Want to live like an internationally renowned fashion designer? You can, for $35 million.

Vera Wang’s apartment on Manhattan’s Upper East Side is under contract. There’s no word on who the buyer might be. The building, at 778 Park Avenue, is where the late socialite and philanthropist Brooke Astor resided, and ”is one of the most coveted buildings in New York City,” the listing says.

Whoever purchased the apartment must have mighty deep pockets - the list price is $35 million and requires 100 percent down. That’s right, you need $35 million just to set foot in the place.  Not only that, the maintenence fee, which is similar to a condo fee, is $10,717 a month.

For that much money you get a lot of space, which at Manhattan is at a premium. The apartment boasts 14 rooms, 6 bedrooms and 5.5 baths. It’s also got 2 maids rooms that share an additional bath. Amenities include a private elevator, library and wood-burning fireplaces. Needless to say, it’s a doorman building.

Wang, best known for her wedding gowns, earlier this month debuted a line of apparel, accessories, shoes, lingerie, bedding and bath items and jewelry  at mid-priced department store Kohl’s in an attempt to broaden the appeal of her clothing line. The line has received mostly positive reviews and Kohl’s expects it to generate $150 million in annual sales. 

You can get a preview of the apartment at real estate agent Corcoran’s web site — the closest most of us will ever get.  Click here for the listing.

(Photo by Reuters)

Today a new item starts on Reuters Shop Talk. Check Out Line aims to highlight an upcoming retail story to watch, or one of the bigger or more interesting retail stories of recent days. It will also provide a smattering of headlines and links to retail stories of interest on Reuters and other web sites. We welcome your feedback on this new item. So now …
Check Out: Target’s mid-month update. The discount retailer will put out an update on sales for the month of September after the market closes today.

The report will be one of the first glimpses of the retail sector since the government said U.S. employers cut 4,000 jobs in August, spurring some concerns that holiday season sales could be at recessionary levels.

On Sept. 6, a day before the jobs report — and nearly two weeks before the Federal Reserve cut the federal funds rate one-half point — Target forecast a 4 percent to 6 percent rise in same-store sales for September.

Generally, Target has held up well in what has been a sluggish environment for some retailers.  In the second quarter, the retailer posted a 4.9 percent increase in sales at stores open at least a year. Wal-Mart Stores, in contrast, saw same-store sales rise only 1.9 percent.

Also in the basket:
 
Wal-Mart to look at suppliers’ greenhouse gases
 
Finish Line says Genesco in breach of merger deal
 
China seizes on Mattel apology to emphasize safety
 
Prada H1 profit jumps
 
Retailer’s shortcut from desktop to store (New York Times)
 
Account number, name not on credit card (USA Today)