
Marketplaces

Groupon announced yesterday that it will acquire one-time rival LivingSocial. The Chicago-based e-commerce marketplace didn't disclose the price it paid for a shrunken LivingSocial, but said, "the acquisition consideration is not material." Groupon expects the deal to close in November. LivingSocial said last month it was laying off half its employees, bringing its headcount to about…
The rise of online retail has led to the decline of brick-and-mortar shopping, as consumers choose the convenience of clicking and buying from their home over going to the mall. While e-commerce growth shows no signs of slowing, physical retail must shift into high gear to adapt to the reality of technology taking over the…
The luxury retail group LVMH said there’s “no way” it will do business with Amazon. Amazon has said that it wants to sell more high-end product on its marketplace, but LVMH doesn’t think it’s an appropriate place for its luxury goods. Currently, Amazon sells “accessible luxury” brands such as Kate Spade and Michael Kors. Total…
This webinar examines consumers’ buying behaviors across global markets to help retailers better serve their payment wants and needs.
For any business, the ultimate goal is to intertwine profit, growth and customer satisfaction. However, growth and customer satisfaction often come at the expense of profit. For many years, this tradeoff was the norm at Amazon.com — the company achieved amazing growth, but spent what would be profits on business experiments (e.g., fulfillment centers). Recently though, Amazon has strung…
The sporting goods retail market in the U.S. is huge, totaling almost $65 billion in sales last year. Of that, almost $10 billion comes online. As e-commerce continues to grow, one company aims to create a simpler way to shop for sporting goods online. AmpleFind, the largest shopping platform for sporting goods on the planet,…
Facebook debuted Marketplace within its mobile app, a tool that lets users browse a relevancy-sorted feed of things to buy from people who live nearby. Users can also list items they have for sale. Marketplace is integrated with Facebook Messenger, so prices and meet-up spots can easily be determined. Marketplace launched on Monday in the…
Episode 55 of Total Retail Talks features a conversation with Nick Rellas, co-founder and CEO of Drizly, the alcohol home delivery application. Rellas discusses, among other things, how today's on-demand e-commerce marketplace is helping Drizly compete with Amazon.com.
Amazon.com just took the lead in the holiday 2016 race. A report by BloomReach Inc., an internet marketing firm, found that 55 percent of shoppers check Amazon first when searching for a product online. Search engines take second place at 28 percent — a 6 percent decrease from 2015. Only 16 percent of online shoppers…
An investigation by ProPublica has found that Amazon.com's algorithms encourage customers to pay more than they need to for products. The report found that Amazon places its own products in the prominent “Buy Box” almost three-quarters of the time, even if it isn't the cheapest. If a customer bought everything recommended by Amazon’s "Buy Box,"…