Trends & External Forces

Articles on retail trends and external forces impacting retail (from weather to COVID to governmental regulations)

  1. Trends & External Forces

Insights Show How Social Commerce Strategies Are Capturing Shoppers’ Attention

  Social commerce is growing quickly, and it could funnel cash to eCommerce brands that use the right strategy. According to a Statista report, sales via social media platforms are forecast to streak to $2.9 trillion by 2026.
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Here are the Top 5 Companies in Digital Advertising

Digital advertising is a global market of eye-watering proportions. No wonder – the internet is often likened to a rabbit hole, giving advertisers ample opportunities to target potential customers with timely, personalized ads. The global market for digital ads was estimated to be at nearly $563.4 billion in 2021 and BCC Research expects it to […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Dollar General Plans Major Stores Investment

The Wall Street Journal reports that Dollar General “plans to pour an additional $100 million into its stores, primarily in staffing levels, as it looks to attract more bargain-hunting shoppers from rivals. “Chief Executive Jeff Owen said Thursday the investment in additional labor hours looks to build on its continued sales growth and capture market […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

C-Store Chain Tweets Opposition To Anti-Trans Legislation

Them, a news site that defines itself as serving and reporting on the  LGBTQ+ community, has story saying that “in the face of increasingly draconian anti-trans legislation, some unlikely (or extremely likely, depending on how you see it) allies have emerged.” One of them is the convenience store chain Kum & Go, which “tweeted its […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Drone Company Focuses On Safe Landing In US

CNBC reports that Zipline, which has “flown more than 38 million miles with its autonomous electric delivery drones since the company was founded in 2014,” last week “showed off its next-generation aircraft, which it hopes will make rapid aerial deliveries an everyday convenience for customers throughout the U.S., even in densely populated urban areas.” According […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

UK Retailer Considers End To 100% Employee Ownership

The Guardian reports that the John Lewis retail group in the UK, which is 100 percent employee-owned, “is in the early stages of exploring a plan” that would change the ownership structure of the company as it tries to raise the equivalent of more than $2 billion (US). The money, Bloomberg reports, “would go toward […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Worth Reading:  “A Sandwich Shop, a Tent City and an American Crisis”

The New York Times has a really good piece of journalism that looks at how homelessness, and the crime that often accompanies it, is overwhelming much of urban America, focusing on a small, family-owned sandwich shop in downtown Phoenix. The Times recounts how Joe Faillace, the owner of Old Station Subs, “looked out the window […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Video Forum: Dr. David Carmouche, Walmart

Dr. David Carmouche, senior vice president of omnichannel care at Walmart, tells this week’s Video Forum about the company’s plan to double the footprint of its eponymous health centers. He also shares his insights about the evolution of the format since its inception in 2019, how the clinics relate to the Supercenters they adjoin, Walmart’s […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Payment Technology Drives Customer Adoption for Restaurants Big and Small

  It is at the intersection of hand held marketing, mobile devise ordering, and payments that time starved consumers of all ages have become familiar with, accepting, and adopting digital restaurant and foodservice payments. If you are not looking a customer ahead, you are losing ground. According to Steven Johnson Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Dollar General Commits $100M to Increasing Employee Hours as Labor Competition Continues

Dollar General will invest nearly $100 million to increase labor hours for its more than 170,000 store employees in 2023 to enable “consistent store standards while further enhancing the associate and customer experience,” said CEO Jeffrey Owen on the company’s fiscal year 2022 earnings call. The move comes as retailers continue to struggle to attract […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

How LePrix is Using Tech to Advance Luxury Wholesale

Retail TouchPoints has been studying and reporting on the evolution of resale for years. Over this time, we’ve seen consumer behaviors shift and demand accelerate, which means retailers have had to rethink the way they research and source “pre-loved” goods. How do they find the right wholesale partners? What are the risks they face while […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Kylie brings her brand to ProWein

Walking the Düsseldorf trade show, Kylie Minogue met with fellow winemakers and hosted tastings for many of the world’s leading wine buyers. To coincide with her birthday on 28th May 2020, Kylie launched Kylie Minogue Wines exclusively with London-based distributor Benchmark Drinks and has since sold eight million bottles. The distributor explained: “With over eight […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Inside H&M’s Strategy to Become a More Sustainable Organization

As Total Retail reported last week, H&M launched a resale program in collaboration with thredUP. “H&M Pre-Loved” offers shoppers an easy way to find secondhand pieces for their wardrobes. The new shop also continues the retailer’s sustainability mission of establishing circular business models for itself and customers. To learn more about its new resale program, Total Retail connected with Abigail […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Check out these three tips for building customer loyalty

In this time of countless choices and cutthroat competition in the market, customer loyalty might feel fleeting and temporary for some businesses. However, brand loyalty is when customers keep on buying products from a brand again and again despite the presence of competitors offering similar products or services. Customers associate positive sentiments towards some brands […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Retail industry’s theft analyses called into question

Retailers and law enforcement agree that organized retail theft is a significant problem. How big a problem remains in question as there are currently no independent means to verify industry reports. Home Depot says theft increased in the double digits over the past year. Walgreens said it might have “cried too much” when talking about […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Lawsuit Claims Amazon Failed to Alert NYC Store Customers About Biometric Tracking

Amazon is facing a class action lawsuit alleging that the retailer failed to alert Amazon Go customers in New York City that they were being monitored by biometric tracking technology, including facial recognition. The suit states Amazon is in violation of a 2021 law that requires businesses in the city to post signs informing customer […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Do Something

There’s a counter-intuitive Buddhist line that has stuck with me: “Don’t just do something, sit there.” It’s particularly useful in times of uncertainty or even panic, when the temptation is to follow the herd, or take action for the sake of taking action.  Sometimes the best action to take on a situation is no action […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

REI Names New Chief People Officer, Promotes Merchandising and Private Label Execs

REI has hired Apple Musni as its new Chief People Officer, effective March 20, and promoted two executives to leadership positions: Chris Speyer has been named SVP and Chief Merchandising Officer, and Isabelle Portilla has been promoted to VP, Co-op Brands, effective immediately. Musni, most recently VP for Field People Experience and Recruiting at Chipotle, […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Dunkin’ takes Dunkaccino off its drink menu

Go into a Dunkin’ store, order a Dunkaccino and you will be out of luck after the drink was pulled from the chain’s menu. “As we focus on innovation and finding new ways to delight guests, we continually evolve our menu in an effort to deliver a fast, frictionless experience,” said a company spokesperson. “The […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Kwik Trip Growth with a Focus on Hot Spot Food

  Consumers want grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared food with full flavor, fresh, and fast according to Steven Johnson Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.  Johnson stated, “In every sector of retail foodservice it is grocerant Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat that consumers are migrating too according to Nielsenand the team at Foodservice […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Serta Simmons Seeks to Improve Inventory and Supply Chain Planning with New Tech

Mattress retail conglomerate Serta Simmons Bedding (SSB) — the owner of brands including Serta, Simmons, Beautyrest and Tuft & Needle — is working to transform its supply chain planning capabilities through a new partnership with Blue Yonder. By integrating Blue Yonder’s SaaS-based Integrated Demand and Supply Planning solutions into its existing Advanced Planning System (APS), SSB hopes to improve […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Check out these five retail store design tips

In today’s digital era, most consumers prefer shopping online, resulting in less retail store foot traffic. However, implementing an effective store design that offers customers better and richer retail experiences can help combat this effect. An excellent retail design combines physical layout, interior décor, and advertising usage within your shop. It can be the difference […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Meet the TRI Q&A: Andrew Neelon

Get to know RETHINK Retail’s Top Retail Influencers through the “Meet the TRI” Q&A series! Dive in to learn about a member of the thought leader community and follow their work and insights across our content and their social channels. Hi, I’m Andrew Neelon, Founder & CEO, 1REC. Connect with me on LinkedIn! “Tell us […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

FTC wants to know how social sites screen for ad scams

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission asked Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Snap, TikTok, Twitch, Twitter and YouTube to provide details on how they screen for misleading ads run on their social media sites. “Social media has been a gold mine for scammers who tout sham products and other scams that have cost consumers enormously in recent years,” […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

NH governor calls U.S. TikTok ban impractical

New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu said that a U.S. ban on TikTok does not seem like a “practical” approach to national security concerns about the video-sharing app. “You have 100 million TikTok users in the country or something,” Mr. Sununu said. “Our job is to make sure folks know that if they’re choosing to use […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Kroger To Add Autonomous Delivery Vehicles To Dallas Market

From the Dallas Morning News: Kroger is about to add another layer of automation to its customers’ online grocery orders filled by robots at its new $55 million fulfillment center in southern Dallas. “California-based Gatik is pitching its autonomous vehicle deliveries as a way for retailers to cut costs and save time in their constant […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Glasgow wants ban on single-use vapes

A ban on the sale of single-use vapes is being called for by Glasgow City Council amid growing health and environmental concerns. The city’s trading standards officers have seized more than 13,000 illicit vapes in the last three months. Glasgow’s Environment and Liveable Neighbourhoods Committee is writing to the Scottish government to back calls for […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

aisle 3 exits the CSS business and uses proceeds to support growth in sneaker category

AI powered shopping platform aisle 3 has completed the sale of its Google Comparison Shopping Site (CSS) service to Product Hero. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, other than it being all cash. The sale consolidates market share for CSS service provider Product Hero, which works with the likes of Rituals and Ikea. […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Kroger lands deal for self-driving truck deliveries

Get ready because the empty truck cabs in motion are coming. Gatik, which is involved in autonomous middle-mile logistics, has announced a multi-year commercial collaboration to transport customer orders within Kroger’s Dallas distribution network. The operations will launch in a few weeks. Under the collaboration, Gatik’s medium-duty autonomous box trucks will transport fresh, customer-favorite products from […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Albertsons Redesigns and Expands Open Nature Own Label Line

Albertsons yesterday unveiled what it said was “the redesign of its Open Nature brand as the company strives to become the brand of choice for those health-conscious shoppers seeking a more balanced lifestyle. Open Nature, which is part of Albertsons Cos. Own Brands portfolio, provides shoppers with tasty foods made with thoughtfully chosen ingredients that […]
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  1. Trends & External Forces

Dollar General investing $100M in its stores, with a focus on boosting labor

Dive Brief: Dollar General posted net sales of $10.2 billion during the fourth quarter of 2022, a figure that was up 17.9% compared with the same period in 2021, the discount retail chain reported Thursday. Comparable-store sales rose 5.7% year-over-year in Q4, while operating profit was up 17.1%. CEO Jeff Owen said Dollar General intends to invest about […]
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