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The RealReal's latest earnings results showed the company still in the red, but growing revenue. Wall Street considered it an overall success. Most companies in the resale space are trying to grow quickly, and have yet to turn a profit. Despite that, investors continue to be interested in the space.
Retail leaders attended the Modern Retail Summit to discuss the biggest issues plaguing the industry. Topics included: customer acquisition, retaining talent, sale attribution and, of course, Amazon.
Walgreens is reportedly looking to go private, highlighting just how difficult it is for drug stores to remain relevant as a mix of big-box and online competitors encroach upon their retail business. Drug store chains like Walgreens and CVS generate a large portion of sales not only from medications, but also from sales of snacks, cleaning products, and other consumables -- often referred to as front store sales. But as customers are finding it more convenient and cheaper to buy these products from Amazon or other big-box chains like Target and Walmart, drug store chains have to give shoppers other reasons to buy more than just prescriptions from them.
GrubHub's most recent earnings sent its stock price spiraling. The poor results and meager Q4 outlook point to a crowded restaurant delivery space. The 15-year-old company used to be the leader in the space and new entrants with slightly different business models are giving GrubHub a run for its money. The question remains whether any of these businesses are sustainable.
As Amazon's grocery ambitions grow, it's turning to familiar tactics to get a leg up, particularly in the delivery space, by trying to make its services as cheap and convenient as possible compared to competitors. Amazon's grocery delivery offerings are currently split between two different types of services, and compared to its biggest competitor, Walmart, it offers delivery for fresh produce in fewer U.S. cities
At this fall's Modern Retail Summit in Palm Springs, retailers came together and talked shop. They had some gripes about attribution and customer acquisition. Some had problems, others solutions. Put together you can see the changing retail landscape.
The retail wars continue on many fronts. While many companies are trying to capture more lower-income customers, the leading grocery and online retailers are also setting their sites on higher earners by offering more tailored and white glove services. For now, these experiments are small and isolated. But it's only the beginning.
Dollar stores have been around forever, but discount is seeing stronger growth than most other retail segments. This is because of changing consumer patterns, along with big businesses realizing they can grow cheaply by targeting customers looking for good value.
With the holiday shopping season-fast approaching, big-box retailers like Target and Walmart are trying to drum up publicity with the announcement of new shopping features and exclusive products to win over a greater share of toy shoppers.
Over the last week, there's been a bunch of movement in the online grocery space. Uber bought a grocery delivery service, and FreshDirect is reportedly considering selling itself. The overall space is in the midst of a big transition -- here's where all the players stand right now.
Retail credit card APR has been going up steadily over the last few years. Meanwhile, a bunch of new financing services have been taking the retail industry by storm. Is the store credit card model beginning to wane as it gets more and more predatory?
As retailers are leaning on their stores to do more than ever before without significantly raising labor costs, store associates can get caught in the middle. Over the past few months, big-box retailers, from Target to Home Depot to Kohl's, are encouraging more customers to take advantage of in-store fulfillment options like buy online, pickup in-store or ship-from-store. That in turn requires more investment in their backroom operations. Others, like Kohl's, are now offering more front-facing in-store services.
Uniqlo just announced a new promotion, giving away 100,000 free samples. The retailer's US business has been flagging, and this seems like a way to try to regenerate interest. This latest program seems to borrow from some DTC strategy.
Kroger has been trying to turn its business around, and one of its most anticipated programs is around media and marketing. It's been a while since the grocer first launched its new advertising offerings -- has it made a dent with brands?
California's new data privacy regulations are set to be enacted in the coming months. Some retailers are being caught flatfooted in the race to be compliant.
Over the past few years, Amazon has quietly built out a successful business-to-business platform for haircare businesses as well as individual hair stylists and other professionals. Those, potentially, will become the major beneficiary of its latest store: Amazon Salon. The launch of a physical salon seems much less about capturing the revenue from cutting and coloring hair, and much more about building Amazon’s credibility as a supplier of professional beauty products and beauty technology.
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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