UPDATE 2-Sam's Club focusing on remodels, new layout| Reuters

* Increasing space for produce, meat, bakery

* Decreasing space for sporting goods, movies, DVDs

* Sees labor hours in clubs down 6-8 pct in next 5 yrs

* Wal-Mart shares Best Remodeling Company In Houston down almost 1 pct

(Adds CEO comment, details on club openings, byline)



By Nicole Maestri

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct 22 Wal-Mart Stores Inc's

(WMT.N) Sam's Club division is shifting its focus from opening

new clubs to remodeling existing ones as it strives to increase

sales, the company said on Thursday.

The No. 2 U.S. warehouse club operator also said it is

testing a new store layout, revamping merchandise to add more

food and drugs, and streamlining operations so it can reduce

labor hours in its club s 6 percent to 8 percent over the next

five years.

"We are absolutely raising the bar on club productivity,

while also focusing on improving that in-club experience,"

Sam's Club Chief Executive Brian Cornell said at Wal-Mart's

analyst meeting.

Earlier this year, Wal-Mart tapped Cornell, the former

Michaels Stores Inc chief executive, to be the CEO of Sam's

Club. Cornell replaced Doug McMillon, who became president and

CEO of Wal-Mart International on Feb. 1.

Analysts have been waiting to hear how Cornell plans to

increase Sam's Club sales and boost membership. Sam's Club

members pay a fee to shop in its clubs and receive discounts on

goods from computers to jumbo packages of paper towels.

Sam's Club Best Remodeling Houston sales fell 3.2 percent to $11.91 billion in

Wal-Mart's second quarter that ended July 31, while sales at

clubs open at least a year, or same-store sales, rose 0.6

percent.

NEW STORE LAYOUT

The retailer said on Thursday it will increase space in its

clubs for produce, meat and bakery items, over-the-counter

drugs, and health and beauty-care items. It is cutting space

for large appliances, sporting goods, furniture, movies and

DVDs.

The new store layout being tested also includes a large

center aisle and improved sightlines across the store.

Sam's Club is also adjusting its growth strategy.

"We're shifting our focus from new-store growth to

remodeling our existing base," Cornell said.

The retailer plans to remodel 50 to 55 clubs this fiscal

year, and 70 to 90 next fiscal year. That is up from 21

remodels last year.

Meanwhile, it will open or relocate 15 clubs this year, and

five to 10 clubs next fiscal year. That is a decline from last

y ear, when it opened or relocated 20 clubs.

While Sam's Club caters to individuals and small business

owners, the retailer said it is increasing its focus on a third

type of member -- the business owner who also shops there for

family needs.

Sam's has also launched a new program called "eValues,"

which is aimed at getting consumers to sign up for its more

expensive membership. Those that do will then get access to

special coupons to use in-store.

Wal-Mart shares slipped 44 cents , or less than 1 percent,

to $50.19 on the New York Stock Exchange.

(Reporting by Nicole Maestri, editing by Dave Zimmerman and

Maureen Bavdek)



http://www.reuters.com/article/walmart-samsclub-idUSN2254158320091022

Sod Solutions, Inc. Launches Lawnifi, A Fertilizer for Homeowners

CHARLESTON, S.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Lawnifi(TM),

a division of Sod

Solutions, Inc., has launched a fertilizer brand developed

specifically for the homeowner. A family of products, Lawnifi is

designed to give lawns the nutrients needed for year-round health.

Lawnifi features Catalyst Absorption TechnologyTM, a patented

manufacturing process that reduces the particle size of fertilizer to

increase plant available nutrients and uptake. This process has been

successfully used commercially on sod farms and general agriculture

through Sod Solutions' Amp

Agronomy line of products, and is now being introduced for home lawn

and landscape use.



"Catalyst Absorption Technology reduces the amount of fertilizer needed

for successful plant uptake," said Drew Wagner, chief technology officer

of Sod Solutions, Inc. "For instance, if plant roots were the size of a

garden hose, then traditional granular fertilizer would be equivalent to

a beach ball and must be broken down by the plant or rainfall prior to

being used. Traditional fertilizer often locks up in the soil and is

never absorbed by the plant. Lawnifi fertilizer is like http://www.rainbird.com/landscape/index.htm a grain of sand

and is easily absorbed by the plant with no waste."



"The technology and manufacturing process behind Lawnifi is what sets it

apart," continues Wagner. "We are introducing nanotechnology to the

retail lawn and garden space and have seen amazing results. Lawnifi

requires less fertilizer, which is not only more efficient for plants,

but also better for the environment."

The Lawnifi family includes three distinct products:

Grow

was developed for newly installed sod, seed and plants and winterizing

lawns in the late fall.

Maintain

is perfect for spring, summer and early fall feeding to keep lawns

looking their best year-round.

Recover,

a nutrient rich formulation, was developed for regrowth and recovery

of https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRbW3ayDWVQ stressed turf and foliage.

Each 32-ounce bottle of Lawnifi covers 5,000 square feet and will feed

the lawn or plants f or about a month. Currently, Lawnifi is being sold

through Amazon.com

and will be available through select Sod Solutions licensed sod farms

and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRbW3ayDWVQ authorized distributors later this spring.

About Lawnifi

Sod Solutions, Inc., an international turfgrass research and development

company incorporated in 1994, is headquartered in Charleston, South

Carolina. Through relationships with universities and breeders, Sod

Solutionshas developed a portfolio of turfgrass

varieties in the St. Augustine, bermudagrass, zoysia, centipede and

cool season families. In partnership with GCO, the creator of Amp

Agronomy, Lawnifi was launched to provide a solution for the homeowner.

For more information, visit www.lawnifi.com.

http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170510005521/en/Sod-Solutions-Launches-Lawnifi-Fertilizer-Homeowners

The Hercules Garden Water Fountain At Kew Gardens

One of the most beloved landmarks in England's Kew Gardens is the Hercules garden water fountain at The Palm House Pond (as it's properly known, although tourists are allowed to call it just "Palm Pond" or "Hercules Pond"). Although originally built to add beauty and humidity to the next door's tropical greenhouse (The Palm House), it seemed to the designers that something seemed to be missing from the outdoor garden water fountain. It was a statue.

Say Hello To Hercules



Most of Kew Gardens was built and designed in the 1800's, when the art of the Greeks and Romans was especially revered. It was the only thing thought to be grand enough to place in an English garden water fountain. The pond was built in 1845, the same time construction was going on at The Palm House.



The sculpture of Hercules wasn't added until 1853. He is naked in the Greek tradition and wresting with a large, angry serpent (the Greek God Achelus) on top of a large square base (called a plinth). The whole thing is over six feet high. Properly, the statue in the garden water fountain is called "Hercules Fighting Achelus", but it usually just known as "Herc".

Francis Joseph Bosio

The sculptor who won the job at placing a heroic image in one of the most visited garden water fountains in the country was Francis Joseph Bosio (1768 - 1845), also known as Baron Francois Joseph Bosio. He was French, which somehow seem puzzling for England's premier garden water fountain. But then again, the subject matter of the sculpture was Greek. England has always had a bit of an identity crisis.

Bosiso was heavily influenced by Greek and Roman art and most of his surviving works are all in the style and subject matter of Greek and Roman myths. Mostly these were of large nude people and horses. Other sculptures resting in https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKWCB_3nMJg museums around the world include "Hyacinth Awaiting His Turn To https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKWCB_3nMJg Throw The Discus" in The Art Institute of Chicago and "Cupid with a Bow" in St. Petersberg.

However, Bosio is best known for the statues of angels and horses on top of the Arc de Trioumphe du Carrosel. H ow he exactly won the commission for the Hercules statue in The Palm House Pond's garden water fountain is not known, but in 1824 Bosio won renown for another Hercules and snake statue called "Hercules and the Lernaen Hydra". Besides his work, not much is known about Bosio.



By: Aksha Serum

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