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Like other retail startups, furniture rental company Feather has adjusted its growth strategy for the year as it tries to figure out how to best fit into customers' post-pandemic lifestyles. Now, the company is expanding to new markets and launching in new categories. As a rental startup, Feather faces a unique challenge in that its growth trajectory also depends upon its ability to get more people on board with the idea of temporary ownership.
While DTC brands are more eager to test out TikTok, marketers and agencies say that most startups are still trying to figure out what types of videos work. As a result, they say experimentation is the key to TikTok success. And specifically, keeping an eye on what's trending on the For You page, and figuring out how to incorporate trending hashtags or effects into a brand's video.
As vaccinations ramp up, stores are getting more crowded. As a result, former retail epicenters like Soho are seeing signs of life again, with more stores drawing more lines to get in.
Following years of subscription acquisition and retail expansion, Quip is entering the crowded dental aligner space. DTC brands like SmileDirectClub and Candid Care have been offering at-home teeth-straightening for years. But Quip is betting on its existing dental care platform and customer demand to set its service apart.
Venture funding for DTC startups has increased, but it's being driven by an increased in interest in a handful of categories.
Walmart continues to fulfill its health-focused ambitions. While the retailer has separate plans to open medical clinics alongside its pharmacy business, it's also stocking shelves with more relevant health and wellness products. The latest category Walmart is overhauling with the help of DTC brands, including Ro and The Honey Pot, is sexual wellness.
For direct-to-consumer brands, one of the most important roles has long been the role of growth marketer. For a venture-backed direct-to-consumer brand, who might be expected to driver 20%-30% of revenue growth month-over-month it's vitally important to have someone like a head of growth who knows what levers to pull to increase sales. But as the digital marketing landscape has changed, what brands are looking for in growth marketers has also changed.
As retail coffee establishments reopen and customers make more coffee shop trips, digital platforms like Trade are looking for ways to keep at-home brewing going. The subscription-based marketplace saw exponential growth during lockdowns. Its next challenge is retaining these new customers beyond the pandemic.
Apple has said that the fifth (and what’s expected to be the last) version of its iOS14 update will hit users’ phones this weeks. As part of that, iPhone users should start receiving the App Tracking Transparency (ATT prompt). And as the update hits users phones, it could start wrecking havoc on direct-to-consumer startups’ marketing plans.
Resale platforms are all the rage these days, but some brands are choosing to keep secondhand sales in-house. This week, direct-to-consumer furniture brand Floyd is launching its own resale marketplace, called Full Cycle, as a way to prolong their products' life cycle in the market. The move is part of the company's sustainability mission, but also offers customers a discounted alternative to Floyd's products.
Direct-to-consumer brands have been conditioned to think that as modern companies, they need to have some sort of sustainability component. The problem is that there are a lot of different ways that brands are trying to claim that they are “sustainable,” and it’s not immediately clear which of these practices actually have the biggest environmental benefits. As a result, sustainability often feel more like a marketing ploy than a practice that actually results in real change.
Flower delivery became a big winner during the pandemic. The category, which taps into the socially-distanced gifting trend, saw major growth, especially during celebrations and holidays. Now, DTC players like UrbanStems are looking for ways to retain their new cohort of customers with self-gifting and add-ons.
When Clubhouse first launched last April, founders flocked to the app as they were looking for more ways to meet fellow entrepreneurs while the world was still socially distancing. Months later, some of their initial excitement for their app has faded as they are trying to limit their usage to tuning into talks they feel like will actually, tangibly, help them in their business.
After growing its private labels alongside selling eco-friendly home essentials by brands like Seventh Generation and Method, Grove Collaborative is venturing into retail. Later this month, the DTC marketplace will launch its cleaning products at nationwide Target locations and on Target's website.
Direct-to-consumer startup Summersalt got its start in swimwear, but over the past few years the brand has been transforming itself into a full-fledged apparel company. In addition to swimsuits, Summersalt now sells loungewear, sleepwear, activewear and cashmere sweaters.
Every interaction a customer has with a brand is an opportunity to nurture the customer-brand relationship. This report highlights tactics that top brands are using to improve the customer experience.
While other states have had conflicting rulings over Amazon's liability risk -- a court in Texas last month said Amazon wasn’t on the hook for a battery sold by a third party, for instance -- the growing number of legal authorities who are holding Amazon accountable is a concerning sign for the company. The U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission lawsuit is only the latest.
Read MoreAt Modern Retail’s Livestream Commerce Trends, we’ll explore how the growth of livestream and video shopping trends are transforming how retailers, brands and marketing teams are engaging with consumers in-stream and live across social and owned-and-operated websites.
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