E-Commerce

Niraj Shah, CEO of Wayfair (formerly CSN Stores), the Boston-based online seller of home furnishings, with 1,250 employees, a global presence, 2012 revenue of $600 million and a 40 percent growth rate, offered his four drivers of long-term retail success during a session at the 2013 Internet Retailer Conference & Exhibition in Chicago last week. They include the following:

Courtney Dasher adopted Tuna, a "chiweenie" (Chihuahua- Dachshund mix) with a pronounced overbite, back in 2011, and almost immediately began Instagramming daily photos of her dog. Two-and-half years later, the Tuna Melts My Heart Instagram account has more than 375,000 followers, has inspired numerous works of fan art, and recently launched a fully stocked web shop.

Mobile and social channels continue to change the way consumers shop, as 46 percent of the 3,000 respondents said they are less likely to comparison shop when using a retailer's mobile app, and 47 percent said they want a retailer to send a coupon to their smartphone when they are in-store or nearby. Not surprisingly, 84 percent of online shoppers use at least one social media site. Among Facebook users - the most popular channel - 60 percent "like" a brand to receive an incentive or promotion.

Remote workers are a fast-growing group. Almost one-fourth of Americans work some hours from home each week, and the number of companies that give their employees the option to work remotely has nearly doubled — from 34 percent to 63 percent — since 2005 (Yahoo is a notable exception, of course). Working from a home office or a coffee shop in the neighborhood provides ample perks: cozier ambience, less commuting and more time to run errands. One glaring disadvantage?

Amazon.com dominates in a way other companies don't. It's a technology company with a physical presence. Over the past year, Amazon has added about 25,000 employees. It's planning to build a new 3.3 million square-foot headquarters near downtown Seattle, complete with biospheres. It's expanding its square footage by additional millions as it builds new warehouses across the U.S. and around the world. Amazon has reached a point in its evolution where the company is now surfing a feedback loop of dominance.

Just as cash-strapped consumers in the developing world bypassed so-called landline phones in favor of mobile devices, China's lower-income consumers are skipping physical stores in favor of e-commerce sites. A recent report by McKinsey & Co. shows that e-commerce sales in China reached an estimated $190 billion last year, almost equaling the U.S. market as largest in the world. China's online retail industry is expected to grow to at least $420 billion by 2020 — which would total more than the U.S., Japanese, U.K., German and French markets combined.

Men’s Wearhouse has launched a revamped version of its e-commerce site which features upgrades and personalized features that improve the overall online shopping experience, from browsing to buying. Among the site’s new features are

Zabar's, the world-renowned New York-based gourmet specialty food retailer, has replaced its homegrown subscription e-commerce program with a new autoship program called Z-Peat. Z-Peat offers customers the ability to subscribe to their favorite and/or frequently purchased Zabar’s items, everything from coffee and teas to babka, bagels and rugelach. Products are automatically shipped to customers who register online at zabars.com for the replenishment program.

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Few retailers have brand permission to sell everything to everyone, according to Wal-Mart's Neil Ashe, who expects to win the e-commerce showdown with the help of brick-and-mortar. Ashe, CEO of Wal-Mart global e-commerce, spoke to investors yesterday at the Barclays 2013 Retail and Consumer Discretionary Conference in New York.