NEW YORK — As many retail executives have predicted, the massively accelerated consumer shift to e-commerce triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic shows no signs of reversing itself. On the contrary, the convenience of home delivery and curbside pickup is fueling shoppers’ desire for ever-faster fulfillment, and major retailers across trade classes are responding with enhanced
In the second of two episodes about the drug store market in China, Video Forum examines the impact of e-commerce. Ed Rowland, principal of Rowland Global LLC, and Alice Wang, a Shanghai-based consultant and instructor at Alibaba’s Taobao University, share insights about younger consumers’ embrace of online-to-offline services, the growing presence of Alibaba and JD.com
BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Marc Lore, who helped spearhead Walmart’s transformation into an omnichannel retailer, is leaving the company on January 31. He will continue to serve Walmart as a strategic advisor until September, the company said. In a company email, Walmart president and chief executive officer Doug McMillon credited Lore with helping accelerate Walmart’s e-commerce
PURCHASE, N.Y. — Retail sales grew 3% this holiday season, according to preliminary data from Mastercard SpendingPulse, which attributes the size of the increase to an expanded holiday season and strong online sales. Year-over-year sales growth was up 2.4% for the traditional holiday shopping period of November 1 through December 24, according to the study,
NEW YORK — Demand for contactless commerce is surging during the coronavirus pandemic, and so is the intensity of competition among retailers promoting their delivery services and pickup options to meet the demand. But which grocery brands are rising to the challenge? Survey results out this month from Ipsos measure and rank major U.S. food
CAMP HILL, Pa. – Rite Aid Corp. has entered into a strategic partnership with Adobe to deliver seamless, personalized and connected health and wellness experiences for Rite Aid customers via Adobe Experience Cloud, the industry’s leading end-to-end solution for experience creation, marketing, advertising, analytics and commerce. Adobe Experience Cloud will enhance Rite Aid’s ability to
The transformation of the retail business continues apace, but the outright revolution promised by the adherents of e-commerce and digital media still appears to be a ways away. That’s one of the insights gleaned from new research conducted by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and Forrester. Based on responses from 69 retailers — a mix
Editors’s note: In this article, the first of a new series on all things digital retail, the authors examine how retailers can prepare to lead in the space they occupy. Much has been said about the convergence of e-commerce and brick-and-mortar. Omnichannel finds its way into nearly every article about retail today. And why not?
The shuttering of brick-and-mortar stores and the continued explosive growth of e-commerce have led to an ongoing series of news articles suggesting that hard times are ahead for the retail industry. One of the latest appeared in Bloomberg earlier this month under the headline “America’s ‘Retail Apocalpse’ is Really Just Beginning.” The article argues that
The e-commerce blitzkrieg that has transformed the retail landscape in so many merchandise categories has yet to upend the grocery business, but signs are emerging that Web-based merchants involved in the sector are steadily gaining traction. A new report from sales and marketing firm Acosta indicates that, while most people still prefer to shop for
BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Walmart, which last year began testing a high-tech vending machines that make it easier for customers to pick up Walmart.com orders at their local store, is rolling the technology out. The retailer plans to have the giant self-service kiosks, which Walmart calls Pickup Towers, in more than 100 of its U.S. stores
The established order in mass market retailing has been shaken in recent years by the emergence and increasing prominence of Amazon and other e-commerce alternatives to brick-and-mortar stores. Online merchants continue to make inroads in one category after another — everything from books, (the foundation of Amazon’s business) and home entertainment to apparel and groceries.