Today on Total Retail

Report: Consumers' Expectations of Retailers Remain High
February 5, 2024 at 12:43 pm

One might think that after multiple years of inflation and a scarcity mindset that consumers would have adjusted their expectations of retailers to allow for more leniency and to ensure theyโ€™re just able to get the products they want. CI&Tโ€™s 2024 Connected Retail Report told a very different story. In our fourth year collecting consumerโ€ฆ

Relationships vs. Transactions and the Future of Email
February 5, 2024 at 11:00 am

Do you know how many emails are sent every day around the world? I ask people that all the time and I get some surprising answers. Iโ€™ve heard 10 million, 100 million and up to a billion. The answer is that in 2024, people around the world will send 350 billion emails every day. Youโ€ฆ

The Velocity Imperative: E-Commerce's Need for Speed
February 5, 2024 at 9:50 am

In the relentless world of e-commerce, speed stands as the linchpin to success. Modern times are defined by the โ€œneed-it-nowโ€ attitude, shorter attention spans, and a surge in TikTok and Instagram shopping experiences. As consumers demand faster interactions, the urgency for swift e-commerce transactions has never been clearer. A core challenge for e-commerce merchants isโ€ฆ

Walmart Announces Plan to Add 150+ Large-Format Stores
February 1, 2024 at 3:08 pm

Walmart plans to build or convert more than 150 large-format stores over the next five years, it announced on Wednesday. Some of the locations will be expanded from a smaller location into a Supercenter with a full range of groceries and merchandise, but the majority will be new stores, Josh Havens, a company spokesman, said.โ€ฆ

Albertsons Media Collective's 'Co-Op Garden' Innovation Approach
February 1, 2024 at 3:58 pm

While at NRF 2024: Retail's Big Show in New York City last month, Editor-in-Chief Joe Keenan spoke with Evan Hovorka, vice president of product and innovation at Albertsons Media Collective, the next-generation retail media arm for Albertsons Companies, Inc. Hovorka provides an overview of the retail media network and his role, the business' approach toโ€ฆ

3 Ways to Ignite Your Hourly Workers
February 1, 2024 at 11:51 am

โ€œScott, weโ€™re doing all we can to support our managers, but they just canโ€™t seem to motivate our employees. What do we do?โ€ I meet many business leaders in my work as a speaker and consultant and I hear their challenges. Four out of five conversations are about employees. Usually itโ€™s their hourly employees, thoseโ€ฆ

Generative AI for E-Commerce: 5 Top Trends for 2024
February 1, 2024 at 11:24 am

In 2023, the e-commerce industry was largely focused on strengthening brand equity, enhancing the customer experience, and keeping up with the evolution fueled by new platforms and artificial intelligence-based technologies. Notably, the adoption of composable commerce, which refers to building a modular, component-based, cloud-native tech stack, empowered companies to build the agility required to remainโ€ฆ

Using Text Messages to Boost Valentine's Day Sales
February 1, 2024 at 9:37 am

One of the most lucrative holiday shopping times of the year is almost upon us, and retailers must be ready to capitalize on it. Text messages can play an integral role in the success of the Valentineโ€™s Day shopping season if retailers plan ahead and utilize a strategy that can both boost sales and increaseโ€ฆ

Generative AI and the Future of Product Development
February 1, 2024 at 9:26 am

Imagine youโ€™re shopping for a new dress. You have a vision of your colorful, dream dress, but you havenโ€™t been able to find it anywhere online or in-store. But what if you could create it yourself with the help of artificial intelligence (AI)? Generative AI is fundamentally reshaping the product development process, offering many uniqueโ€ฆ

H&M CEO Helena Helmersson Abruptly Quits
January 31, 2024 at 12:50 pm

Helena Helmersson, who served as H&M's CEO for four years, gave her resignation in a surprise announcement Wednesday. The Associated Press reported that Helmersson said the past few years have been "very demanding at times for me personally. I am very proud of what we together have achieved during the last [few] years when weโ€ฆ