Two months after federal regulators imposed a $185 million fine and other sanctions against Wells Fargo for its fake account fiasco, one of those agencies — the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency — has rolled back some of the terms of its deal, signaling it will require more oversight of the company. [More]
Retail Services
Amid Fake Account Fiasco, Wells Fargo Must Now Get Permission to Hire Or Fire Executives
By 11.21.16
Toys “R” Us Pulls Tonka Riding Truck After One Catches Fire, Explodes, In Real Truck
By 11.21.16
If your Black Friday shopping list included purchasing a rideable Tonka Mighty Wheels Ride-On dump truck from Toy “R” Us, you’ll need to revisit your game plan. The toy retailer announced that it has pulled the truck after a couple says it exploded in the back of their own life-sized pickup truck over the weekend. [More]
Symantec Buys LifeLock In $2.3B Marriage Of Online Security, Privacy Services
By 11.21.16
With cybercriminals increasingly using malware and phishing attacks to steal sensitive personal information, it’s perhaps not surprising that a company that makes online security software would want to acquire a business that offers identity theft protection services — even one that has been heavily penalized for not living up to its promises. [More]
Which Stores Are Open On Thanksgiving & When Do They Open On Black Friday?
By 11.19.16 — Updated: 11.21.16
Thanksgiving is usually the big day on the calendar in November, but this year the holiday took a backseat to Election Day — so much so that many people say they delayed the start of their holiday shopping until after the votes had been counted. Now here we are, with only a few days to go before Thanksgiving (and, more importantly to some folks, Black Friday); you’ll need to know which stores are opening when in order to maximize your shopping efficiency. [More]
The Limited Starts To Explore Options, Maybe A Sale
By 11.18.16
Since all of its buddies in the mall are filing for bankruptcy, maybe it’s time for The Limited to do it, too. The mall clothing chain is currently exploring its options, including sale to a competitor, to a new large investor, or restructuring. [More]
Burning Down The Mall Because You Can’t Find A Shopping Cart Joins Long List Of Customer Overreactions
By 11.18.16
When you’ve been wronged by a business — or believe you have been — there are two ways you can try to resolve the situation: one, you can take a deep breath and calmly address the issue at hand by using your words; or, you can go the opposite route and overreact completely, and woe betide the poor mortals caught in your way. [More]
Man With Guide Dog Kicked Out Of Popeyes, Told ‘No Pets Allowed’
By 11.18.16 — Updated: 2.10.17
Guide dogs and other service dogs are not pets, and federal law protects their right to go anywhere that their owners are allowed to be. Yet the owner of a Popeyes restaurant in Brooklyn wasn’t clear on that concept, and used the “no pets” policy to kick a blind man and aspiring chicken-orderer out of the establishment. [More]
Senator Calls For Investigation Into Office Depot’s Alleged Computer Scanning Scheme
By 11.18.16
Following a whistleblower report that some Office Depot staffers are allegedly falsely telling customers their computers are infected with viruses in order to sell them on unnecessary repair services, one lawmaker is calling on federal regulators to investigate. [More]
Amazon To Sell Fiat Chrysler Vehicles — But Only In Italy
By 11.18.16
You really can buy anything on Amazon. Fiat Chrysler says it has inked a deal with the e-commerce giant to sell its vehicles for a discount online, but only if the buyers live in Italy. [More]
Navajo Nation, Urban Outfitters Settle Lawsuit Over Clothing Designs
By 11.18.16
Urban Outfitters is no stranger to accusations that it’s ripped off designs belonging to others, or offended an entire culture with its clothing, but it can now put one more of those claims behind it after settling a lawsuit brought by the Navajo Nation in 2012. [More]
Amazon Offering $79 Prime Memberships To New Subscribers Just For Today
By 11.18.16
If you’ve been thinking about signing up for Amazon Prime but balked at the $99/year membership price, check your calendar: if it’s still Nov. 18, that annual subscription will cost just $79. [More]
Walmart Plans To Track Fresh Produce Like Bitcoin
By 11.18.16
Blockchain is a type of secure database that serves as an unchangeable ledger of information about an object. It was invented to track the movements of the cryptocurrency bitcoin, creating records that are anonymous but can’t be tampered with. Blockchain has applications outside of electronic currency, though, like tracking where your pork and vegetables have been. Wait, what? [More]
New Account Openings At Wells Fargo Drop 44% A Month After Fake Account Fiasco
By 11.18.16
Since Wells Fargo’s decade-long fake account fiasco came to light in September, analysts have warned that revelations about bank staffers opening millions of unauthorized accounts would result in consumers shying away from Wells. Those analysts may be right, with the bank confirming that new customer accounts fell dramatically during October. [More]
Abercrombie & Fitch Having A Tough Time Luring Shoppers Despite Rebranding Efforts
By 11.18.16
Abercrombie & Fitch has been trying hard to shed its former image, one strengthened by “cool” executives who didn’t want to deal with any uncool customers, but it seems those turnaround efforts aren’t proving as fruitful as the retailer would like: profits for the company tumbled in the last quarter, and sales figures are far from promising. [More]
Your McDonald’s Could Soon Offer Touch-Screen Ordering & Table Service
By 11.17.16
Last December, McDonald’s began showing a fancier side by testing table service at hundreds of locations in California. Now the company is rolling out its so-called “experience of the future” concept — which also includes touch-screen kiosk ordering but not all-you-can-eat fries — to all of its U.S. locations. [More]
AT&T Customers Can Now Use Amazon’s Alexa To Send Text Messages
By 11.17.16
Amazon is adding another feature to make life easier for Echo users, well, at least those with AT&T wireless plans: AT&T customers can now tell Alexa to send text messages. [More]
Amazon Using Merchants’ Warehouse Space So It Can Ship More Prime Orders, Faster
By 11.17.16
What’s an e-commerce giant supposed to do when it needs more warehouse space? If you’re Amazon, you just ask the merchants whose stuff you’re selling to share, by offering to let them slap Prime labels on their products. [More]
Why Do Fast Food Restaurants Test New Menu Items In Ohio?
By 11.16.16
From McDonald’s mac & cheese cups and Shakin’ Flavor Seasoned Fries to Taco Bell’s Quesalupa, Ohio tends to be the place where fast food restaurants go to find human guinea pigs to test revamped menu items — and apparently not without good reason. [More]
