uAttention, Kmart Shoppers: The Bluelight Special Is Backr

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  Sirens are sounding and the blue light is flashing once again at Kmart, as the struggling retailer tries to lure shoppers through its doors and revive its sales: after retiring “Bluelight Specials” in the early ’90s, the chain will once again blast sirens and turn on the blue light to alert shoppers to surprise, 15-minute long deals in its 942 stores.

  You might’ve already witnessed the return of the blue light, as Kmart turned the sirens back on in all its U.S. stores Friday, reports Reuters.

  Nostalgia is a key part of Kmart’s plan here — the Bluelight Special started back in 1965 in a push to get rid of slow-moving merchandise, and continued to be a mainstay at Kmart until 1991. The retailer has revived it here and there for special promotions, but now it’s back for an extended stay, as the chain tries to revive its recently slumping sales.

  “This is intended to be an ongoing program of the way we actually will exist,” Kmart President Alasdair James told Reuters, adding that this time it’ll be a sustained campaign with specials happening throughout the day at stores as well as online.

  The brass at Kmart decided to turn to the past after customer research showed people remembered Bluelight Specials fondly.

  “It’s part of our DNA,” James said. “We think there is a real positive buzz coming out of it and we expect to see an increase in sales.”

  Struggling retailer Kmart turns the blue light back on [Reuters]

  
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by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

uThrowing Cold Chicken Nuggets At The Burger King Manager Won’t Get You New Onesr

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  For the most part, when ordering a meal from a fast food joint one usually expects to receive a bag full of hot items. That apparently wasn’t the case for an Iowa woman who allegedly threw chicken nuggets and fries at the restaurant’s manager because they were cold. 

  The Des Moines Register reports that the incident occurred on Saturday afternoon when the customer ordered a 10-piece nugget meal from the drive-thru.

  After receiving her order, the customer entered the store to complain they weren’t hot. Police say the woman threw the bag containing the nuggets and fries at the restaurant manager, hitting the employee in the back of the head.

  “You can give me my (expletive) money back because that (food) is cold,” the customer said after throwing the bag, according to the police report.

  The suspect then left the Burger King, but police located her vehicle at a nearby home. Police say they will review video footage of the incident before issuing a warrant for arrest.

  Customer throws chicken nuggets at Burger King manager [The Des Moines Register]

  
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by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

uAmazon Shutters Local Deals Service, Credit Card Processing Unitr

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  While it might seem like Amazon opens a new store or launches a different service every week, the e-commerce giant announced over the  weekend that it would actually close two units: one offering local deals and a small business credit card processing service. 

  The Wall Street Journal reports that Amazon will shutter its mobile credit card processing division – dubbed Local Register – on Feb. 1, and stop offering its daily-deals coupon unit – Amazon Local – starting Dec. 18.

  The e-tailer didn’t specify why it chose to close the units, but a spokespersons said the company had “learned a great deal” from the services and “will look for ways to apply these lessons in the future.”

  Local Register launched in August 2014 as a competitor for Square, PayPal and other mobile payment systems. The service was aimed at small business owners.

  Amazon Local, which launched about four years ago, was meant to be a rival for services like Groupon and LivingSocial, offering customized coupons for local restaurants, spas and other businesses.

  The closure of Amazon Local and Local Register comes just two weeks after the e-commerce company shuttered its hotel booking site just six months after it launched.

  Amazon to Shutter Two Units, Including Daily-Deal Division Local [The Wall Street Journal]

  
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by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

uMan Accused Of Drunkenly Attacking His Uber Driver Gets A Face Full Of Macer

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  An Uber driver in California recently had to make a quick decision: continue to let a drunken passenger beat him over the head and pull his hair, or spray mace right in the guy’s face. He chose the latter, and captured the incident on camera.

  The 32-year-old customer appeared to be “incredibly intoxicated” when his Uber driver picked him up in Costa Mesa, CA, reports NBC 4. He said the passenger refused to give him an address and instead, would just tell him where to go.

  But the driver says the man was having a hard time staying awake, and wouldn’t wear a seat belt. He finally gave up, pulled into a well-lit shopping center and told the passenger to get out of his car or he would call the police.

  That didn’t go over well: at this point in the video, the customer started hitting the driver over the head and yanking his hair while swearing profusely.

  “He was grabbing my head and was trying to smash it against the window,” the driver told NBC 4.

  As seen in the video, this is when the driver grabbed a can of mace and sprayed it into the passenger’s face, which made him stop the attack. Police responded to the scene soon after, and arrested the passenger on public intoxication and assault charges.

  “I wanted to make sure he didn’t get away,” the driver said. “I have lost so much money on people like him and I’m done dealing with it. They take the food right out of my mouth.”

  Uber said it has banned the rider from using the platform ever again in the future, and offered to reimburse the driver to cover the cost of cleaning the mace from his car. But it seems this was the last straw for the driver — he says he’s done with Uber.

  “I don’t feel safe driving for Uber any more,” he said. “The quality of the passengers has gone down over the last couple of weeks and I know a lot of drivers will agree with me.”

  Uber Driver Sprays Mace in Customer’s Face After Attack [NBC 4]

  
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by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

uFor The First Time, Santa Is Coming To Walmartr

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  You can buy just about anything on Amazon, but do you know what you can’t find on the mega-retailer’s site? Santa. That’s one of the reasons why Walmart is trying something new and bringing Santaland to Wally World. Stores also plan to have more decorations than in the past––no, not just on the shelves for you to buy, but on the walls, decorating the place.

  Fortune reports that the company’s chief operating officer explained the Santa plan to reporters last week, framing it as an improvement to stores during the crucial holiday season. Walmart also plans to put up more decorations and play more Christmas music in stores.

  Walmart isn’t alone in this: Target also plans to step up their holiday decorations game, though they aren’t going as far as hiring Santas to take pictures with kids. Yet. Maybe if the idea works at Walmart, there will be a Santa boom.

  Retailers aim to make their stores more “fun,” and that includes giving shoppers experiences that they can’t get online. You can e-mail Santa, but you can’t take a picture of your child screaming hysterically while sitting on his lap online.

  Hey, know what else you can do while you’re at Walmart? You could pick up your online orders so you don’t have to pay shipping. Maybe buy some stuff, too.

  Here’s what Walmart is doing to win the holiday season [Fortune]

  
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by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

uAll Chipotle Restaurants In Oregon And Washington State Close Due To E. Coli Outbreakr

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  There’s a promotion at Chipotle tonight where people who wear costumes that include something extra, or an “unnecessary additive,” get burritos for $3. Yet restaurants in two states have closed today “out of an abundance of caution” after numerous reports of illness from Shiga toxin E. coli in recent weeks after eating at six restaurants in Oregon and Washington.

  Since not all patients may have sought medical attention, the actual number of people who are sick is likely much lower than the official figures. As of this writing, that’s three illnesses in Oregon and 19 in Washington.

  E. coli illness is miserable and inconvenient for most people, featuring abdominal cramps and watery diarrhea. However, people who are sick should be monitored for signs of dehydration, and young children and elderly people are susceptible to kidney failure.

  A total of 43 restaurants have closed––first only those in areas where infections were reported, and now all restaurants in both states are closed until further notice. If you’ve eaten at a Chipotle restaurant in either state and become ill, seek medical attention so your doctor can take samples for public health authorities and monitor your symptoms.

  In a statement, Chipotle said that they closed restaurants where no illnesses had been reported voluntarily, and they’re working on finding the cause of the contamination:

  The safety and wellbeing of our customers is always our highest priority. After being notified by health department officials in the Seattle and Portland areas that they were investigating approximately 20 cases of E. coli, including people who ate at six of our restaurants in those areas, we immediately closed all of our restaurants in the area out of an abundance of caution, even though the vast majority of these restaurants have no reported problems. We are working with health department officials to determine the cause of this issue. We offer our deepest sympathies to those who have been affected by this situation.

  This has raised an interesting question: will customers in those states have to miss out on the Halloween promotion?

  

  E. coli Cases Linked to Chipotle Restaurants [Oregon Health Authority]
  Oregon and Washington Chipotles close after 22 sick from E. coli [KATU]

  
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by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

uCafé Mocha Is Apparently Now The Flavor Of Winter And Christmas, Thanks To M&Msr

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• If pumpkin spice, pumpkin spice latte, and caramel apple are the flavors of fall, red velvet is the flavor of Valentine’s Day, and key lime pie and s’mores are the flavor of summer, what is the flavor of winter? Is there one? M&Ms have traditionally sold bags of cherry or mint flavored candies near Christmas, but now they’ve moved on to hot beverages. The flavor for Christmas is… café mocha.

  

  It’s good that we’ve straightened out this mystery. What seasonal and holiday flavors will marketers come up with next? We thought that the holiday flavor phenomenon had peaked after Peeps milk, but apparently not. Personally, I’m holding out for carrot-flavored Easter treats.

  SPOTTED ON SHELVES: Milk Chocolate Cafe Mocha M&M’s [The Impulsive Buy]

  
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by Laura Northrup via Consumerist