On a sunny Friday morning, a line of more than 2,000 people patiently gathered on a busy street in New York City’s Hudson Yards.

The crowd wasn’t there for a celebrity appearance or sneaker drop. Instead, shoppers flooded into the 54,000-square-foot store hunting for $5 T-shirts, $12 denim, licensed Disney merchandise, and budget-friendly basics across four sprawling floors.

The location is Primark’s 40th US store and its boldest bet yet on the US consumer. Despite the ongoing pressure on discretionary spending, the retailer is continuing an aggressive US expansion, with 12 additional stores planned, including locations at the Mall of America in Minneapolis and Mall at Prince George in Maryland this summer.

Amid the crowds, Retail Brew caught up with Primark US President Kevin Tulip to discuss the retailer’s new flagship, why licensed merchandise has become a major driver in the US, and why the company still sees brick and mortar as its future.

Keep reading here.—JS

After Party City went bankrupt and shuttered its stores in 2024, Michaels started picking up the slack with more party supplies. Two years later, that process continues with more merchandise and in-store experiences at its party-focused shop-in-shop.

The arts and crafts store is adding 600 new products in 2026, marking a 60% increase in its party assortment. That includes an expanded selection of balloons and decorations, as well as new categories such as pinatas.

• More of these products will also have licensed themes from popular properties such as Bluey, Hello Kitty, and Stitch.

The other side of the build-out is in-store experiences, which Michaels CEO David Boone told Retail Brew last year was an increasingly important part of its business. Michaels is adding what it’s calling “Customization Bars.” These DIY areas will allow customers to personalize their own party favors, dessert displays, and banners.

Keep reading here.—AV

Retail sales rose 0.5% to $757.1 billion in April, the Commerce Department reported this week, and that bump was aided by a 0.6% rise in consumer prices in April, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

This comes after retail sales and consumer prices both saw notable increases in March amid rising fuel costs. Energy prices, up 3.8% from April, continued to pull up the index, as core CPI, which excludes food and energy prices, increased 0.4% in April.

After grocery prices dropped 0.2% last month, they ticked up 0.7% in April, the largest monthly jump since 2022, and 2.9% YoY. Five of the six major categories saw price jumps. Those include meats, poultry, fish, and eggs—pushed up by higher beef prices—up 1.3%, and fruits and vegetables up 1.8%, thanks to skyrocketing tomato prices. Grocery store sales were up 0.7% month over month and 1.5% YoY.

Keep reading here.—EC