Thanksgiving Price War Begins 🦃

With Thanksgiving around the corner, major retailers have rolled out fresh price cuts and deep discounts in an effort to attract cautious consumers and protect their valuable market share.

💵 Price War: Walmart is matching last year’s prices with a slimmer bundle that feeds 10 for about $4 a person, while Aldi offers a $40 meal for 10 that includes a 14-pound turkey.

Lidl has dropped its meal to $36 with turkeys at 25 cents a pound, and Kroger has revived its Freshgiving bundle for under $4.75 per person, its cheapest in four years.

Target has cut prices on 3,000 items and brought back its meal for four under $20, while holding the price of turkey at 79 cents per pound.

🍗 Fewer Flocks: The nation’s turkey supply has fallen to its smallest level in 40 years, and a rebound in avian flu cases this fall is tightening pressure on production and prices. Nearly 1.3 million birds have been hit by outbreaks since October, largely in Minnesota and surrounding states.

🦃 Cold Turkey: The National Turkey Federation says there should be enough birds for Thanksgiving, though supplies of fresh and specialty turkeys could tighten if avian flu cases continue to rise.

Walmart CEO Doug McMillon will retire early next year, having led the nation’s largest retailer for more than a decade, during which time the company has undergone sweeping technological upgrades, implemented higher wages, and experienced rapid e-commerce expansion.

🛍️ Retail Revamp: McMillon, who started at Walmart as a teenager and became CEO in 2014, oversaw a 40% jump in annual revenue, major investments in AI and robotics, and the launch of Walmart+, while improving the company’s reputation and workplace culture.

🔀 Leadership Shuffle: John Furner, head of Walmart’s U.S. operations, will take over on February 1, although McMillon will continue to advise for a year. The announcement surprised investors, briefly pushing shares down before a partial recovery.

Under Armour and Stephen Curry have cut ties after 13 years, giving Curry full ownership of his brand and the freedom to seek a new retail partner. The final Under Armour–backed Curry 13 shoe will still launch in February.

The split comes as Under Armour expands its restructuring plan to $255 million, adding costs tied to the separation, contract terminations, and impairments. CEO Kevin Plank said the move allows Under Armour to refocus on its core brand during a difficult sales slump that has stretched across eight quarters.

The breakup is notable because Curry had been central to Under Armour’s basketball strategy for nearly a decade. His departure forces the company to rethink how it competes in a crowded market led by Nike, Adidas, and newer challengers.

Kim Kardashian’s Skims has raised $225 million in fresh funding, pushing the shapewear and apparel brand’s valuation to $5 billion and marking another significant milestone for the company founded in 2019.

The round was led by Goldman Sachs Alternatives, with additional participation from affiliated funds of BDT & MSD Partners.

Skims said it plans to use the new capital to accelerate product innovation and expand into more categories. The company currently operates 18 stores across the United States, along with two franchise sites in Mexico, and expects to surpass $1 billion in net sales this year.

In 2025, Skims deepened its reach in sports and performance apparel through a high-profile partnership with Nike.

Gopuff has secured $250 million at a sharply reduced valuation of $8.5 billion, down from its $15 billion peak during the pandemic, as slowing demand and a tougher funding environment weigh on rapid-delivery firms.

The round, led by Eldridge and Valor Equity Partners with backing from Baillie Gifford and other investors, will fund new AI investments, customer experience enhancements, and infrastructure improvements. The company says it is entering its “strongest financial position” after achieving record revenue, although it did not disclose specific figures.

The Philadelphia-based startup has spent the past two years cutting more than a thousand jobs and retreating from its earlier global ambitions, now operating only in the U.S. and the U.K.

Shein is entering the U.S. book market for the first time through a new partnership with Alibris, adding more than 100,000 titles to its platform as it pushes deeper into lifestyle categories beyond fast fashion.

By expanding its offerings to include books and other non-apparel categories, Shein is working to diversify its product range and retain U.S. shoppers in a more challenging regulatory environment.

Alibris says the partnership gives its independent booksellers access to a new base of Gen Z and millennial readers, while offering Shein customers a more convenient way to discover and purchase books directly through the platform.

U.S. online grocery sales climbed to $11.6 billion in October, up 10.47% from a year earlier, according to Brick Meets Click and Mercatus. The growth rate slowed from last year as more households shopped online but placed fewer and smaller orders. Monthly active users reached a record 83.3 million, fueled by returning infrequent shoppers and first-time adopters.

All three fulfillment methods — pickup, delivery, and ship-to-home — saw user gains, with adults over 60 becoming the fastest-growing segment. Average order values declined by nearly 3% for pickup and delivery, but rose by almost 5% in the ship-to-home channel. Ship-to-home now accounts for more than 20% of online grocery spending.

Online groceries captured 16.3% of total weekly grocery spending in October, rising 1.1 points year over year as medium-sized metro areas and younger and older shoppers increased usage. Walmart held the largest share of online grocery spending at 21%, followed by Kroger, Costco, and Albertsons.

TreeHouse Foods will be taken private by European investment group Investindustrial in a $2.9 billion all-cash deal. Shareholders will receive $22.50 per share plus a contingent value right tied to potential proceeds from a long-running antitrust lawsuit against Keurig Green Mountain.

The company withdrew its annual guidance after announcing the deal and reported third-quarter sales of $840.3 million, which fell short of Wall Street expectations. TreeHouse, which has faced margin pressure as shoppers shift to smaller, cheaper pack sizes, has struggled to regain momentum amid supply chain uncertainty and uneven demand.

The acquisition is expected to close in early 2026, after which TreeHouse will be delisted from the New York Stock Exchange.

Uber Freight is expanding its partnership with last-mile carrier Better Trucks to prepare for a jump in holiday e-commerce deliveries. The deal includes a new strategic investment, which will provide Uber Freight with additional capacity and faster delivery options for retailers.

The partnership enables Uber Freight to utilize Better Trucks’ technology, including address verification, geocoding, sortation, and integrations with major e-commerce platforms. The companies say this will help shippers extend deliveries directly to customers with better speed and tracking.

With Better Trucks’ capacity added, Uber Freight now covers about 68% of the U.S. population and aims to reach 85% by the end of 2026. Better Trucks, meanwhile, gains access to a broader customer base and plans to expand into more cities next year.

Wendy’s reported Q3 net income of $44.25 million, down 12% from last year, as weaker U.S. restaurant margins, lower royalty revenue, and higher asset impairments pulled operating profit slightly lower. Revenue also slipped to $549.5 million amid reduced advertising fund income, though sales at company-operated restaurants edged up.

Global systemwide sales declined 2.6% to $3.5 billion, primarily due to softer U.S. same-restaurant sales, while international markets grew 8.6%. The company opened 54 new locations in the quarter and 172 so far this year, supported by early progress from its newly launched Project Fresh turnaround plan.

Interim CEO Ken Cook said U.S. operations are improving, but confirmed that a “mid single-digit percentage” of roughly 6,000 U.S. restaurants — about 200 to 350 stores — will close due to consistent underperformance.