This week, Kanye West, Kim Kardashian, and daughter North West took a trip to Build-A-Bear Workshop. After an experience that was supposed to be all smiles and lollipops, we had one question: Kanye, you OK?
North West wore a tiny version of the off-duty model uniform: https://t.co/syUf1AlblM pic.twitter.com/p6MKzB6aBn
— Racked (@Racked) March 14, 2016
This is the face of disgust, trepidation, maybe a hint of fear, all wrapped into one heavily layered and gold-accented package.
The face of a man that just heard killing apps on your iPhone does nothing to help your battery life.
The face of a man that was promised a $1,768 hamburger and you gave him a gas station sandwich.
The face of a man who LOVES shopping, and yet the only store he gets to visit now is Build-A-Bear.
Alas, we regress. Here are some of our (other) favorite retail reads from around the Web.
Back to the future (which is now technically the past?)
Remember these?
Nike is making them a reality, with the athletic apparel and footwear giant announcing this week that its HyperAdapt 1.0 shoes will be available in stores later this year. First hinted at in an October meeting, the shoe uses a battery-powered system to tighten the shoe based on a sensor that reads the wearer’s foot position. After a few times of being worn, the shoe will learn the wearer’s preferences (laces tight, laces loose), automatically lacing the shoe to the preferred setting.
Jungle roots
Ad Week took a look at Banana Republic’s more “out there” past. The company was founded as a safari-themed retailer, bedecking its stores with Jeeps, jungle foliage, and even a bush plane hanging from the ceiling. Capitalizing on the “safari craze” sweeping America in the 1980s, Gap bought the company in 1983—only to dump the Indiana Jones hats and khaki jackets a couple of years later, in favor for the soccer-mom-approved garb it sells today.
King of all the oil
Costco wants to be known not for its $1.50 hot dog and soda deal (I know, shocker), but something a little more distinguished: Olive oil. The aptly-named Olive Oil Times spoke with Costco buyer Chad Sokol on its “On Olive Oil” podcast, who described the retailer’s rigorous process of sourcing its house brand olive oil.
Happy birthday, Vans
In honor of Vans’ 50 anniversary, Fortune rounded up some of the brand’s top cultural moments, from an appearance in “Fast Times at Ridgemont High” to the viral “Damn, Daniel” video. But here at Retail Dive, we’ll always be partial to “Damn, Spaniel.”
