E-Commerce

Vantiv and Socratic Technologies conducted an online survey with 1,001 consumers to learn about their upcoming holiday shopping plans. Shopping online for holiday gifts is catching up to in-store shopping. Consumers estimate that 43 percent of their holiday shopping will be done online this year compared to 47 percent in-store. Thirty-eight percent indicated they will shop more online this year compared to last year for holiday gifts, with convenience being the major reason why (66 percent).

This Saturday, Nov. 11, the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba will hold its annual Singles Day event, which last year grossed $17.8 billion (USD) in sales, up from $14.3 billion in 2015, according to a report from Fung Global Retail & Technology (FGRT). The 24-hour phenomenon has quickly become the world's largest shopping day, consistently surpassing…

Amazon.com has launched a pair of private-label furniture brands. The Seattle Times reports the online retailer unveiled the furniture brands — Rivet and Stone & Beam — this week. The brands will be sold exclusively on Amazon.com. This announcement represents the company's latest expansion into private-label brands. Amazon describes Rivet as “stylish and versatile mid-century modern furniture and…

I was excited to interview Tom Ebling last week, a true retail technology leader whose stint as CEO of Demandware from 2010-2016 included growing the software company into a $300 million public company that was acquired by Salesforce for $2.8 billion in 2016. Prior to Demandware, Ebling was the CEO of Lattice Engines, ProfitLogic and…

I was excited to interview Tom Ebling last week, a true retail technology leader whose stint as CEO of Demandware from 2010-2016 included growing the software company into a $300 million public company that was acquired by Salesforce for $2.8 billion in 2016. Prior to Demandware, Ebling was the CEO of Lattice Engines, ProfitLogic and […]

You can now rent clothes from Ann Taylor. Glamour reports the women's apparel retailer has quietly been piloting a new service called Infinite Style, in which customers can pick items to be directly shipped to them, worn at their leisure and then returned. For $95 a month, customers can expect three deliveries per payment. "At Ann…

In August, after its deal to purchase Whole Foods had been finalized, Amazon.com announced widespread price cuts at the upscale grocery chain focused on organic and healthy food and beverages. Retail brands everywhere watched closely to see what impact those price cuts would have on both Whole Foods’ business as well as the industry. What…

Wal-Mart is throwing 20,000 parties in its stores across the country in an attempt to attract more holiday shoppers. According to a company press release, the parties will take place on Nov. 4, Dec. 2 and Dec. 16, and will include 165,000 in-store toy demos, visits from Santa and other activities. The Nov. 4 party will…

Best Buy said in blog post on Monday that it's offering free shipping on all online orders during the holiday season. For the third straight year, the electronics retailer said it would waive the $35 minimum order for free shipping it maintains the rest of the year from Oct. 30 to Dec. 25. Best Buy…

Melissa Campanelli, co-founder of Women in Retail Leadership Circle, sister brand of Total Retail, interviews Victoria Tsai, founder and CEO of Tatcha Beauty, a luxury skincare brand.