Amazon Unveils New Warehouse Robots 🤖

Amazon has unveiled a new wave of warehouse automation — including robots, AI agents, and AR glasses — designed to speed up fulfillment and cut labor costs. Analysts say the shift could save the company billions annually while reshaping its warehouse workforce.

🦾 The Tech Trio: The company introduced three innovations: Blue Jay, a robotic arm that sorts packages; Eluna, an AI assistant for warehouse managers; and AR glasses for delivery drivers that identify packages, provide navigation, and flag potential hazards. Blue Jay is being tested in South Carolina, while Eluna will debut in a Tennessee facility before broader rollout.

🤖 Reign of Robots: According to a WSJ report, the average headcount per warehouse fell to around 670 in 2024, the lowest in 16 years. Roughly 75% of Amazon deliveries are now assisted by some form of robotics.

📉Job loss: According to The New York Times, internal Amazon documents reveal plans to replace over 600,000 warehouse jobs with robots by 2033. Analysts estimate the automation wave could yield up to $4 billion in annual savings by 2027.

Gucci's parent, Kering, has agreed to sell its beauty division to L’Oréal for €4 billion ($4.66 billion), marking a major strategic pivot under new CEO Luca de Meo. The move aims to cut debt and refocus Kering on its core fashion and leather goods brands, following a period of weaker luxury demand and margin pressure.

What’s the big deal? Under the agreement, L’Oréal will acquire Creed, the luxury fragrance house that Kering bought in 2023 for €3.5 billion, along with exclusive 50-year rights to develop fragrance and beauty lines for Kering’s fashion brands, including Bottega Veneta and Balenciaga.

💄 Biggest Beauty Buy: The Kering Beauty acquisition marks L’Oréal’s largest deal ever, surpassing its $2.5 billion purchase of Aesop in 2023 — underscoring the French giant’s push deeper into the luxury fragrance and fashion beauty market.

💲 Market Reaction: Kering shares jumped 5% in early Paris trading, while L’Oréal gained nearly 1%, as investors welcomed the deal.

Target Corp. announced its largest round of layoffs in 10 years, eliminating 1,800 corporate roles — roughly 8% of its headquarters staff — as part of a major restructuring effort.

Incoming CEO Michael Fiddelke, who will assume the top job in February 2026, said the move is intended to “simplify how we work” and remove internal bottlenecks that have slowed operations and decision-making.

The cuts come amid stagnant sales and a 65% drop in Target’s share price from its all-time high, signaling continued challenges for the retailer in a shifting consumer landscape. Target’s sales have largely flatlined since 2021, even as rivals like Walmart and Costco posted steady growth, buoyed by investments in grocery, e-commerce, and private-label expansion.

Amazon has launched a new AI-powered tool called Help Me Decide to guide indecisive shoppers by recommending the best-fit product based on their browsing and purchase history.

The tool uses large language models to analyze reviews, descriptions, and customer behavior before presenting a single curated suggestion — complete with a brief explanation of why it’s ideal.

Currently rolling out to millions of U.S. users on the Amazon app and mobile browser, the feature will expand nationwide in the coming months.

The company says the system is designed to simplify shopping when consumers face “too many choices,” signaling Amazon’s push to make product discovery more conversational and intuitive.

Marks & Spencer has ended its long-running IT service desk contract with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) — India’s largest IT outsourcing firm — months after a cyberattack crippled the British retailer’s online operations in April.

TCS, a key technology partner to M&S for over a decade, was tasked with managing the company’s IT service desk and support systems. Following the attack, which forced M&S to suspend online orders and left some store shelves empty, the Mumbai-based company launched an internal probe and cleared itself of responsibility.

The breach, which M&S Chair Archie Norman said involved “sophisticated impersonation” through a third party, is expected to cut operating profits by up to £300 million this year. Although both sides maintain that the contract termination was part of a routine renewal process, M&S opted to bring in a new provider in July, signaling a shift in its digital operations strategy.

Swiss-based Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company (HBC) will acquire a 75% stake in Coca-Cola Beverages Africa (CCBA) for $2.6 billion, marking one of the largest-ever consumer goods deals in Africa.

The transaction, which values CCBA at $3.4 billion, includes Coca-Cola’s 42% stake and the Gutsche Family Investments’ full share, expanding HBC’s presence to 14 new African markets.

The deal positions HBC as the world’s second-largest Coca-Cola bottler by volume, behind Mexico’s Coca-Cola FEMSA, and gives it access to over half of Africa’s population. HBC said it will list shares on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and has an option to purchase Coca-Cola’s remaining 25% stake in CCBA within six years.

Walmart is rolling out radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology across its fresh food categories, in partnership with Avery Dennison, to tackle food waste and improve inventory tracking.

The companies co-developed a solution that can operate in high-moisture, cold environments, such as refrigerated sections — a long-standing challenge for RFID systems. The technology assigns a unique digital identity to each product, allowing employees to track freshness, manage expiration dates, and automate markdown decisions.

Walmart said the rollout supports its broader goal of halving global food waste intensity by 2030, while reducing unsold inventory and enhancing operational efficiency. The initiative builds on Walmart’s long history of RFID adoption, which has expanded from general merchandise into grocery. Retailers such as Kroger and Chipotle have also deployed Avery Dennison’s RFID systems across their supply chains.

Tractor Supply Co. shares dropped as much as 7.4% after the rural retailer narrowed its full-year guidance toward the lower end of its prior range, signaling weaker consumer spending and tariff-related cost pressures.

The company now expects comparable sales growth of 1.4%-2.4%, down from a previous 0%–4% forecast, and an operating margin of 9.5%–9.7%, down from the earlier top-end estimate of 9.9%.

Management cited greater clarity on tariffs and softening demand among rural consumers, who continue to face budget strain from inflation and higher essential costs. The Tennessee-based company, which operates about 2,400 stores nationwide, joins peers Lowe’s and Home Depot in reporting mixed performance amid uneven home improvement and rural retail demand.

Procter & Gamble Co. reported better-than-expected quarterly results, driven by strong demand for its beauty and grooming products, including Gillette razors and Secret deodorant. The consumer goods giant posted 2% organic revenue growth for the quarter ended Sept. 30 — topping analyst estimates — with both volume and sales rising faster than expected in key categories.

Gains in beauty and grooming offset softer sales in baby, feminine, and family care divisions. P&G said its strategy of premium pricing and performance-focused marketing continues to resonate with consumers. P&G maintained its fiscal-year outlook but reduced its expected after-tax tariff impact to $400 million, down from $800 million, citing easing cost pressures.

The company also plans to cut about 15% of its corporate workforce over the next two years to boost efficiency and is undergoing a leadership transition.

The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) will open 14 new sorting and delivery centers next month — seven of them in California — as part of its “Delivering for America” 10-year modernization plan.

The new facilities will consolidate work from smaller delivery units into larger, centralized hubs, designed to boost efficiency, cut costs, and improve service reliability.

USPS said the conversions will not lead to Post Office closures or affect retail or PO Box services, but will streamline parcel and mail distribution across key ZIP code regions. The agency is also installing parallel induction linear sorters at six processing centers — machines capable of handling 7,000 packages per hour, double the speed of older models.

Mattel Inc. missed Wall Street’s Q3 earnings and revenue forecasts, hurt by weaker North American demand and tariff-related disruptions to retailer orders.

The toymaker reported adjusted EPS of $0.89 versus the expected $1.07, and revenue of $1.74 billion, below analyst estimates of $1.83 billion. Net income fell to $278 million, down from $372 million a year earlier — marking the first dual miss in three quarters.

CEO Ynon Kreiz cited “industry-wide shifts in retailer ordering patterns” but said U.S. orders have rebounded early in Q4. Sales in North America tumbled 12%, while international markets grew 3%, highlighting diverging demand trends.

Barbie and Fisher-Price sales plunged 17% and 19%, respectively, while Hot Wheels gained 8%.