Protests & Violence

ORC Looting?
Feds Determining if Chicago Looting Was Organized; Possible Conspiracy Charges

New Chicago looting video released as feds investigate hundreds of digital leads

For law enforcement in Chicago the resurgence of looting this week has created an all-hands-on-deck situation, with the FBI tonight zeroing in on on several aspects of apparently organized attacks. FBI officials in Chicago tell the I-Team they have received "several hundred" leads from the public since creating a dedicated digital media tip line on Monday following the overnight looting.

FBI-Chicago officials tell the I-Team they are working with local law enforcement to "identify actors instigating and conducting violent criminal activity." Experts say the aim is to put names with faces and determine if it was all part of an overarching plan by a street gang or other organized crime group, that could result in a federal conspiracy case.

Federal authorities have jurisdiction with the possible addition of conspiracy charges or suspicion of moving stolen goods across state lines. The feds also have jurisdiction over the ATM attacks Monday as they did with similar crimes during the Chicago riots in late May and early June. abc7chicago.com

  See more footage posted by Chicago PD here.

42 felony charges approved in Chicago looting incident, prosecutors say
The charges included 1 attempted murder charge, 28 burglary/looting charges, 5 aggravated battery/resisting an officer charges, 1 theft charge, 1 criminal damage to property charge and 6 gun possession charges. usatoday.com

In Lori Lightfoot's Chicago, Bridges Have Become Barricades
Mayor Lori Lightfoot has repeatedly ordered Chicago's river bridges raised to keep people out of downtown. She said the move was to protect businesses and residents. But it is also a symbol of the city's divisions. propublica.org

Chicago: Police to flood downtown with 1K officers this weekend;
Mayor Lightfoot releases plan to protect businesses, neighborhoods


Namesake of 'Operation LeGend'
Kansas City police arrest alleged killer of 4-year-old LeGend Taliferro
The Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department announced on Thursday the arrest of a suspect in the murder case of 4-year-old LeGend Taliferro, whose tragic killing in late June inspired the namesake for the Justice Department's "Operation Legend" law enforcement initiative.

Police charged 22-year-old Ryson Ellis with second-degree murder, unlawful use of a weapon and two counts of armed criminal action, saying in a press release that Ellis fired shots into the apartment where Taliferro was sleeping on the night of June 29.

Since its launch in Kansas City, the DOJ has expanded Operation LeGend to multiple other cities, including St. Louis, Cleveland, Detroit, Milwaukee and Memphis, Tennessee. The effort involves the deployment of agents from the FBI, ATF, Drug Enforcement Administration and U.S. Marshals to assist in investigating violent crimes in cities that have experienced recent surges. But it has been met with considerable skepticism, at least initially, from local leaders who believe Trump and Barr are working to target cities led primarily by Democrats with aggressive and visible federal responses like have been seen in Seattle and Portland. abcnews.com

Operation Legend Expanded to Indianapolis
The Operation was first launched on July 8 in Kansas City, MO., and expanded on July 22, 2020, to Chicago and Albuquerque, to Cleveland, Detroit, and Milwaukee on July 29, 2020, and to St. Louis and Memphis on August 6, 2020.

Indianapolis is experiencing a significant increase in violent crime, with homicides currently up more than 51% and non-fatal shootings up more than 34%.

In Indianapolis, the Department of Justice will supplement state and local law enforcement agencies by dedicating 40 federal investigators to Operation Legend for 45 days. The Department of Homeland Security will also make 17 agents available. These investigators will complement the work already underway by existing joint federal, state and local task forces focused on combating violent gangs, gun crime, and drug trafficking organizations. justice.gov

FBI: $160K+ seized from Milwaukee gang, part of Operation Legend

Mayors Worry Trump's Operation Legend Is More About Politics Than Law Enforcement


Oregon State Police leaving Portland over lack of prosecutions
Oregon State Police on Thursday said they were withdrawing protection from Portland's federal courthouse over frustration at a prosecutor's decision not to indict many people arrested in protests there.

The police force is angry at Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt's decision not to prosecute many people arrested during weeks of protests at the courthouse. Schmidt on Tuesday said he would only press charges against protesters arrested for assault, theft or property damage in Portland protests that began in late May after the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Schmidt signaled he would be dropping lesser charges such as rioting and disorderly conduct. reuters.com

Austin, TX: City Council votes to cut police dept. budget by 1/3, reinvest money in social services

At Least 13 Cities Are Defunding Their Police Departments

The real cost of the police, and why the NYPD's actual price tag is $10 billion a year

COVID Update

US: Over 5.4M Cases - 170K Dead - 2.8M Recovered
Worldwide: Over 21.1M Cases - 758K Dead - 14M Recovered

Private Industry Security Guard Deaths: 183   Law Enforcement Officer Deaths: 80
*Red indicates change in total deaths

CDC warns US faces 'worst fall' ever if Americans ignore COVID-19 guidelines
A top CDC official has warned that the US must brace for the "worst fall" ever in the history of public health disasters if Americans don't follow coronavirus guidelines.

"For your country right now and for the war that we're in against COVID, I'm asking you to do four simple things: wear a mask, social distance, wash your hands and be smart about crowds," Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told WebMD.

If people fail to follow those tips, next season could be "the worst fall, from a public health perspective, we've ever had," he said. nypost.com

McKinsey & Company Survey
How US companies & people are adjusting to the pandemic

A nationwide survey measures views on mental-health impacts, safety measures, and new working models.

Faced with the persistent threat of COVID-19, companies and people in the United States must make tough decisions about when to return to workplaces and resume normal activities. To help address the issues they face, McKinsey conducted a nationwide survey and interview program in partnership with Business Roundtable. Scroll down to view findings with respect to four topics: the mental-health impact of the crisis, the factors that people say would make them feel safer returning to normal activities, the safety measures employers are implementing, and the need for new working arrangements if schools partially reopen. mckinsey.com

COVID Impact - Resurgence Slowed it Down
July Retail Sales Up 1.2% Following June's 8.4% Boom
Here's where people were spending in July, compared with a month earlier:

• Electronics stores: +22.9%
• Gas stations: +6.2%
• Clothing and accessories stores: +5.7%
• Restaurants and bars: +5%
• Online retailers: +0.7%
• Grocery stores: +0.4%
• Department stores: +0.1%
• Big-box stores: -0.2%
• Home improvement and gardening stores: -2.9%
• Sports, music and other hobby stores: -5% npr.com

COVID: The Single Biggest Disruptive Event of the Past Decade
COVID-19 five times more disruptive to supply chains than cyberattacks

6/10 businesses target geographic diversification of supply chains to build resilience

If they can't move it you don't get it. According to the Supply Chain Resilience Report 2020 from 3D Hubs, cybersecurity issues have affected less than 10 percent of firms over the past 10 years, compared to 60 percent that have suffered directly as a result of COVID-19 disruption.

In 2020, the pandemic has emerged as the most potent threat to economic growth, more than trade sanctions, natural disasters and cyberattacks combined. Over 96 percent of global companies are now planning to take measures to boost the resilience of their manufacturing supply chains (retail's providers). However, more than half (52 percent) admit they are yet to embark on that journey. As businesses develop long term strategies, over 59 percent of companies say geographic diversification of their supply chains is the most effective way of building resilience.

For more information, please visit 3dhubs.com/get/supply-chain-resilience-report/

COVID Driving C-Store Industry Rapid Changes & Tech
Circle K is opening what's believed to be the world's first convenience store retrofitted with AI technology for autonomous checkout in Tempe, Arizona, the company announced this morning.

The chain is partnering with San Francisco-based Standard to equip the location with 80 to 100 ceiling cameras that record which products customers who sign in with the app take off the shelves.

"If you don't want to, you don't have to interact with anyone. You could just walk in, grab what you want, and walk out. That resonated very much with social distancing and a low-touch environment."

Mergers, drive-throughs, and delivery

Circle K isn't the only convenience chain making changes. Last week, 7-Eleven's parent company announced it was buying Speedway for $21 billion. The week before that, Wawa revealed plans for its first-ever freestanding drive-through, which will be built in suburban Philadelphia. In April, DoorDash started delivering from more than 1,800 convenience stores across the country, such as 7-Eleven, Wawa, Casey's General Store, and Circle K, and last week, it launched DashMart in a number of cities. fastcompany.com

World Mask Week Aims to Inspire Global Movement to Wear Face Coverings in Public

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It's Not About the Money Any More
This is the thing employees want most from their employers

It's All About the Culture & Values

For the modern workforce, relationships, environment, and structure are no less important than the work itself. Increasingly, employees are more interested in a clear alignment and understanding of a company's culture and values than they are in benefits like flexible working, training, access to tech, and even bigger paychecks.

It's likely that experiential considerations will only get more important with employers recalibrating to make staff feel comfortable, safe, secure, and supported as we all prepare to emerge into a dramatically changed post-pandemic environment.

According to further data, what CEOs think a new generation of talent wants (practical perks like flexible hours) deviates from what Glassdoor reported millennials are actually most concerned with (the wider sense of connection and purpose that underpins employee experience and engagement). It's also becoming increasingly clear that millennial and Gen Z employees want a work experience that's not only emotionally intelligent on an interpersonal level, but one that prioritizes ethical and sustainable practices in the big picture.

Even pre-COVID, stats on millennial expectations at work were actually generally in line with multigenerational data in LinkedIn's Global Talent Trends report. fastcompany.com

Retail Equation Class Action Update
Multiple Retailers Sued Under CCPA for Sharing Data Used to
Identify Fraudulent Returns
Earlier this year, The Retail Equation and Sephora were hit with a class action lawsuit in which the plaintiff claimed Sephora improperly shared consumer data with The Retail Equation without consumers' knowledge or consent to generate risk scores that allegedly were "used as a pretext to advise Sephora that attempted product returns and exchanges are fraudulent and abusive."

On August 3, 2020, the plaintiff, now joined by others, amended her complaint to cast an even wider net. The amended complaint now asserts claims against 12 additional retailers based on their alleged use of The Retail Equation's services to identify fraudulent returns. As against the retailer defendants, the plaintiffs assert claims for invasion of privacy, violations of California's unfair competition law, unjust enrichment, and, most notable, violations of the California Consumer Privacy Act ("CCPA").

The CCPA's private right of action is limited to situations where personal information is "subject to unauthorized access and exfiltration, theft, or disclosure as a result of the business's violation of the duty to implement and maintain reasonable security procedures and practices." The plaintiffs' claims, however, concern the voluntary transfer of data to a third-party service provider. Contrary to a data breach, a voluntary transfer arguably does not involve any alleged violation of duty.

This same theory has been asserted against Zoom based on its alleged sharing of data with Facebook. Zoom's response to the complaint in that action, is due Sept. 14th. natlawreview.com

New Shared Services Model Coming?
New Retail Group Emerging - Sparc Group
Simon Property Group & Authentic Brands keeps expanding. Gobbling up retailers mostly in malls.

They now own Lucky Brands, Aeropostale, Forever 21,Nautica, and potentially Brooks Brothers and possibly if Simon and Brookfield win the bid for JC Penney. chainstoreage.com

Editor's Note: We're going to be hearing a lot about this group in the coming years. Do we dare think shared services from the support groups outside of merchandising? Including a new LP and IT Security group. Which would mean a new corporate LP structure with pyramid head and supporting services and staff. Keep your eye out on this one. It's coming.

And remember most of these services in the original businesses had been stream lined down and probably suffering budget cuts. This could be a growth vehicle next year. As they look to drive profit they'll inevitably look to shared services and shrink. With the obvious security issues already at play they'll have to address the basics relatively quickly. Similar to Vans and even the Ahold shared services business support group model.

And I don't think they're done. We're talking fire side sales of some great specialty retailers already sitting in Simon's properties.

Limited's Leslie Wexner subpoenaed in connection with Jeffrey Epstein disputes

Justice in Mexico releases 2020 Organized Crime and Violence in Mexico Report

Coresight Research
Week 33 - US & UK Store Tracker
6,650 2020 YTD Closures
3,305 2020 YTD Openings

Senior Job Posted Again: Director of Loss Prevention job posted for 10 Spot/MadRag in North Bergen, NJ Manager will report directly to VP of Stores. indeed.com

Quarterly Results
SpartanNash Q2 comp's up 17.1%, net sales up 9.4%

Fossil Q2 sales down 48%

Dillard's Q2 no comp store number, total retail sales down 35%

Good Times Restaurants Q3 comp's down 36.7%, total sales down 17.3%

Tapestry Q4 by brand; Coach net sales down 53%, Kate Spade net sales down 50.6%, Stuart Weitzman net sales down 61%, net sales down 52.6%

Tapestry Full Yr. be brand; Coach net sales down 17.3%, Kate Spade net sales down 19%, Stuart Weitzman net sales down 36%, net sales down 17.7%

Canada's Indigo Books & Music Q1 retail sales down 73.8%, digital sales up 214%, total sales down 29.8%