Less is more: Your local Kohl’s may be getting smaller. In a bid to bolster its digital sales, the department store chain has announced that it is reducing its retail space in almost half of its stores by the end of the year, USA Today reports. The company also plans to reduce the number of products available in stores as part of an ongoing plan to shrink. The company is not cutting any jobs or removing any square footage as part of the plan. Unlike competitors Macy’s and J.C. Penney, Kohl’s has avoided major rounds of closures in recent years despite struggles for department stores. Shifting products into backroom space can boost profits because it’s cheaper to maintain. Read more from USA Today.
If you’re lucky: Tonight’s $700 million Powerball prize is the second-largest lottery jackpot in its history, The Washington Post reports. And if you’re thinking about playing, beware: The math is working out in favor of lotto commissions. Two years ago, your chances of becoming an instant millionaire were 1 in roughly 175 million. Now, the odds are 1 in roughly 292 million. Tweaks to the game in October 2015 increased the number of total balls, from 59 to 69, from which players need to pick five. It may seem like a modest change, but the odds of winning the jackpot plummeted. So now it’s even harder to strike it rich with Powerball, leading to fewer chances of big payouts, which in turn rolls over to gigantic prizes like today’s. Read more from The Washington Post.
Speak up: Wal-Mart is diving into voice-activated shopping. But unlike online leader Amazon, it’s not doing it alone. The world’s largest retailer said Wednesday it’s working with Google to offer hundreds of thousands of items from laundry detergent to Legos for voice shopping through Google Assistant. The capability will be available in late September. It’s Google’s biggest retail partnership—and the most personalized shopping experience it offers—as it tries to broaden the reach of its voice-powered assistant Home speaker. And it underscores Walmart’s drive to compete in an area dominated by Amazon’s Alexa-powered Echo device. Read more from The Associated Press.
