Walmart CEO Doug McMillon on Tuesday said the retail giant is prepared to navigate any policy changes that may come from the new Trump administration.

“What we’ve learned through the pandemic and all the other things that we’ve been through is to be able to react fast,” McMillion said in a fireside chat at the 2024 Morgan Stanley Global Consumer and Retail Conference. “We have the ability to do that. We’ve got a depth of experience, and we can navigate whatever policy changes come.”

As for which specific policies Walmart might be keeping an eye on, McMillon stressed that the company is as uncertain about what’s coming as anyone else. “I don’t know what’s going to happen policy-wise,” he said. “We’re all reading the same news.”

Others in the industry have been less tight-lipped about the downside of certain Trump policy proposals.

Keep reading here.—AV

With the holiday season underway, sales of holiday decorations and hosting essentials spiked in November for Shopify shoppers, the latest sales data shared first exclusively with Retail Brew showed. Shopify’s numbers are based on sales made by Shopify merchants in the US in November compared to October 2024.

In November, orders for Christmas tree skirts popped 146% compared to October, while sales of garlands rose 103%. That was followed closely by decorative nutcrackers, for which sales spiked 100%. Sales of Christmas tree stands (up 93%), holiday stockings (up 88%), and artificial trees (up 85%) also jumped.

Born hosts: With the holiday hosting season upon us, consumers in the US also shopped for must-have kitchen tools and accessories to make gatherings memorable with yummy baked goods.

Orders for pie and quiche pans spiked at 253%. Sales of cookie decorating kits and cookware sets jumped 184% and 118%, respectively. Orders for kitchen staples like sauté pans (up 95%), roasting pans (up 83%), and baking and cookie sheets (up 80%) also went up.

Keep reading here.—VC

Conservatives and politicians have increasingly pushed an anti-DE&I narrative over the last two years in an attempt to convince employers to roll back their diversity programs. Now, Walmart, the largest private employer in the US, has become the latest company to confirm major changes to its DE&I initiatives. And while conservatives are claiming victory, a spokesperson for Walmart told HR Brew that the company is still committed to a workplace where everyone belongs.

Keep reading here on HR Brew.—KP