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While individual retail credit cards lose their luster, new programs providing no-interest loans are becoming much more popular. New data shows just how quick these services are growing, and how this past year helped these companies get some real traction.
As Bonobos founder Andy Dunn prepares to leave Walmart, it's the latest sign of trouble for the company's group of digitally native brands. When Dunn joined Walmart in 2017, he was supposed to help the company find other digitally-native brands that would be ripe for acquisition, and help Walmart to attract more high-income shoppers. Instead, the company has found other ways to target a more affluent consumer.
Rite Aid posted a solid earnings report and its stock is skyrocketing. But it faces a long road ahead to turnaround its ailing business. Meanwhile, bigger competitors like Walgreens are facing similar headwinds, indicating that traditional pharmacies are in a bit of a rut.
Peloton has had a rough week. First, it aired a TV ad that was widely panned. Then, a short seller brought up some searing points about the competitive landscape. The question remains: Can the exercise company rely on its cult-like status to become the multi-billion dollar brand investors think it can be?
Hotel rooms and lobbies are becoming and increasingly attractive area for retailers to acquire new customers. Last week, Rent the Runway announced that it was partnering with Marriott-owned W Hotels. Visitors at four W Hotels will have the option to rent four pieces of clothing from Rent the Runway when they book their rooms, which will be placed in the closets of their rooms when they arrive. And department stores including Nordstrom, Macy's and Bloomingdale's are currently hosting pop-ups in time for the holidays at a handful of New York City hotels, in order to draw more business from tourists.
Retailers are increasingly trying to utilize the assets they have to facilitate more omnichannel growth. To do this, they are employing 'dark spaces.' While the concept is not new, dark stores and spaces are becoming a more important part of retail strategy. Here's why.
Lands' End is trying to redefine itself. Part of this is using its reams of data to inform future customer experience decisions. The retailer's chief customer officer Sarah Rasumsen talked with Modern Retail about how its overall digital strategy.
As Five Below expands, it is straying from the traditional playbook of a discount chain by carrying more expensive products and spending more on brand marketing. So far, it's working. The company reported during its third quarter earnings on Wednesday that net sales were up 20.7% to $377.4 million compared to a year ago.
Since Jill Soltau took over as CEO of JCPenney more than a year ago, there's been no slowdown in announcements touting new executive hires, or store concepts it is piloting, in order to reassure investors that she and her executive team can turn around the beleaguered department store chain. But it's not so much a question of if Soltau can cut losses at JCPenney, but whether she can do it quickly enough.
Black Friday sales hit new records, but in-store traffic saw a decline. This doesn't mean that physical stores are dying, but instead hints at the 24-hour Holiday sales bonanza becoming something new that's more convenient -- and less stressful.
Direct mail has become an important part of many digital brand's marketing budgets. Now catalogs are having a moment too -- and companies are increasingly melding the digital data they have about customers with the larger pieces of mail they send to their homes.
The holidays are here and retailers are expecting big sales and hoping their infrastructure remains intact. For bigger brands, the fear of online downtime looms. Meanwhile, smaller businesses fear they don't have the correct fulfillment and logistics in place for the increase in demand. As a result, most businesses are trying their best to prepare for the impending storm.
At an industry event, executives from J.Crew and Hatch discussed why the decided to work together. J.Crew is big and Hatch is small, so they both had different intentions in mind. Put together, they highlight a growing tension brands face when trying to expand.
Under Armour, like many other brands that have relied historically on wholesalers to sell its product, wants to generate more revenue from its own website and stores. But, its direct-to-consumer business has struggled for a couple of reasons. In order to right the ship, Under Armour is looking to open more full-price stores, continue to highlight the technical innovation in its apparel and performance wear, and build a new e-commerce platform.
As livestreaming shopping videos have become increasingly popular in China, they've also become critically important to brands' strategies for the biggest shopping holiday in the country, Alibaba's Singles Day. Overall, the number of merchants who incorporated livestreaming into their Singles Day campaign was up 200% compared to last year, according to Alibaba.
According to Crocs president Michelle Poole, the company's success was thanks to the brand keeping its ear to the ground and remaining scrappy. "I'm most focused on how the brand comes to life across the globe, in all channels," she said on the Modern Retail Podcast. Poole spoke about how the company dealt with all the changes brought on over the past year, as well as how it approaches large branding campaigns and influencers.
Read MoreAt the Modern Retail Virtual Forum, we’ll bring together senior retail marketers to discuss the challenges they’re facing and the solutions they’re seeking in the era of smarter retail.
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