International Strategy

As the U.S. implements tariffs on consumer products from countries around the world and as those countries respond in kind, questions arise on how this activity will affect consumers’ appetite for international shopping, and what it means for U.S. merchants that rely on international online sales for growth. With 237 million active accounts in over 200 markets, PayPal has seen marked annual growth in cross-border payment volume, with international online purchases on its platform increasing by 49 percent from Q1 2016 to Q1 2018.

Starbucks is teaming with Alibaba as it seeks to rediscover growth for its business in China. The partnership is wide ranging, and will cover delivery, a virtual store and collaboration on Alibaba’s “new retail” Hema stores. The delivery piece is perhaps most obvious, with Starbucks working with Ele.me, the $9.5 billion food delivery platform owned by Alibaba,…

Fabletics, Kate Hudson's athleisure brand, is planning to open 75 new stores globally, quadrupling its footprint to 100 stores. "We are a digitally native company, so we've been able to really understand our customers — what they want, where they reside," Hudson told CNBC. "At a time when people are very nervous about retail, [our…

Google will invest $550 million in Chinese e-commerce powerhouse JD.com, part of the U.S. internet company’s efforts to expand its presence in fast-growing Asian markets and battle rivals including Amazon.com. The two companies described the investment as one piece of a broader partnership that will include the promotion of JD.com products on Google’s shopping service. This…

In this week's episode of Retail Right Now, Total Retail's Caitlin Sullivan and Joe Keenan discuss the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), including the implications for retailers’ businesses, steps they can take to ensure compliance, and more. Make sure to check out this video, as the regulation goes into effect a week from today (May…

Walmart Inc. announced yesterday that it has signed a definitive agreement to become the largest shareholder in Flipkart Group, an e-commerce company headquartered in Bengaluru, India that's a leader in electronics, large appliances, mobile, and fashion and apparel. Walmart will buy an initial stake of roughly 77 percent in the company for $16 billion, while…

This week, the board of Flipkart Online Services Pvt has approved an agreement to sell about 75 percent of the company to a Walmart Inc.-led group for approximately $15 billion, according to sources. Bloomberg reports under the proposed deal, SoftBank Group Corp. will sell all of the 20-plus percent stake it holds in Flipkart through…

Walmart is retreating from Europe, merging its U.K. supermarket business Asda with bigger rival Sainsbury's. In return, Walmart will receive £2.97 billion ($4.1 billion) in cash and a 42 percent stake in the combined business, the companies said in a statement on Monday. The deal values Asda at £7.3 billion ($10 billion), and creates a…

“What do consumers want?” It’s a question that plagues retailers. And how accurately they can answer it has a tremendous impact on how they compete in the marketplace. With e-commerce and digital channels paving the way for retailers to expand their businesses to other countries, retailers also need to consider consumer preferences and expectations in…

Amazon.com has launched a new feature within its shopping app for iOS and Android users to cater to international customers shopping for U.S. goods, according to a report from Reuters. The feature, which was announced late on Tuesday, will enable users to shop in five languages, including English, Spanish, Simplified Chinese, German, and Brazilian Portuguese, and will be…