Brands Briefing: ‘Nimble’ is the word dominating holiday planning as tariffs, AI reshape Q4 preparation
This isn’t a business environment where retail executives can rest on their laurels.
That was the takeaway from the eTail East conference in Boston last week. While it was a place for companies to plug their latest tech investment or tout their rebrands onstage in front of their peers, it also provided a snapshot of where the industry is ahead of the all-important holiday season.
The words that kept coming up over and over again in the conversations I had with attending industry executives were “agile” and “nimble.” Companies, of course, should always strive to be agile and nimble, but especially this holiday season, when there are a lot of unknowns. Brands are still closely watching to see how consumer spending changes in response to tariffs, and AI-powered chatbots like ChatGPT could play a greater role in the shopping experience than ever before. In turn, brands are currently focused on building awareness ahead of the holidays through CTV, physical retail and more, and doing frequent testing to make sure they nail their creative and measurement for digital ads. In essence, the name of the game this year will be to make sure consumers see a brand showing up in as many places as possible amid a crowded, noisy environment.
“The key word that keeps coming back to us when I think about the holiday season for 2025 is to be flexible — that we have a plan, that we’re going to try to execute it. But at the same time, we are going to be able to give ourselves permission to stay nimble and then be able to pivot,” said Aaron Luo, co-founder and CEO of the bag brand Caraa.
“The folks that are the most prepared right now are the ones that have done a lot of testing in Q2, heading into Q3,” said Sarah Engel, president of the agency January Digital.
She went on to say that there’s been more pressure for brands to do more creative testing in channels like Meta ahead of the holidays for the past couple of years, because of increased competition and inflated digital advertising costs. And it’s especially prevalent this year because of the margin pressure brands are under — which started due to post-Covid inflation, but has also been exacerbated by tariffs.
“During Covid, brands had to move so fast and in that process and spent a lot of money that really impacted margins: ‘I need same-day shipping and in-store pickup,’” Engel said. Now, she said, “people are trying to get out of this margin hurdle” and rebuild their “agility muscle.”
As Elizabeth Drori, CMO of the hands-free footwear brand Kizik, put it, the timeline for her brand looked like so: “September, October [is about] not taking our foot off the gas and making sure we are investing in upper-funnel channels like linear and CTV to have Kizik be top of mind in people’s consideration sets. And then, once we get into November, December, it is really those hard-hitting [channels], like Meta and some of those other tried-and-true channels and tactics, [that we’re focused on].”
She also said that Kizik is unique among footwear brands in that it is a pretty giftable footwear item. Drori, who has also previously worked at Sperry and Converse, said that people don’t typically like to gift footwear out of the fear of getting someone’s size wrong. But for a hands-free slip-on shoe like Kizik, as soon as people see the item in action, Drori said, “It makes you think of someone who would need them or could really benefit from them — so the challenge is, ‘How do we fuel that?’”
Fueling that is what Kizik has been focused on this summer, through a try-on tour. Drori said Kizik also does well with first-person testimonials and influencer-generated content.
Pricing and inventory, of course, are also top of mind. Brands are always looking for ways to drive up newness and excitement ahead of the holidays, and, oftentimes, they do that with new products. But tariffs have made inventory planning more difficult this year.
Chris Berg, vp at January Digital, said he expects brands to lean more into their tried-and-true hero products this holiday season. “People don’t want to pay 20% more because of tariffs on something they haven’t tried,” he said.
As Jaclyn Fu, co-founder and co-CEO of the bra brand Pepper put it, the key challenge she is thinking through right now is that “consumers are feeling differently about shopping right now” — but it’s unclear exactly how that will manifest itself yet. Now, she’s thinking through: “How are we using discounts in a way that gives our community something to be excited about to shop, but also protects the business?”
The other thing that could upend shopping behavior is AI, as more shoppers consult Perplexity, ChatGPT, and Rufus, for example, in their searches. A Klaviyo report released earlier this month showed that more than half of respondents said they plan to use AI during Black Friday and Cyber Monday to do things like check prices and get product recommendations.
PJ Oleksak, CEO of Nuts.com — a company that she readily admits was built for “the old era of Google search” — said the company is intensely focused on modernizing the brand. “The business had been wildly successful with a very long-tail product catalog,” but the company has ended up cutting about 25% of its SKUs since Oleksak became CEO of Nuts.com two years ago. The company also launched a new line designed for retail, called Pop & Sol, that will introduce more customers to the brand ahead of the holidays.
It speaks to how Oleksak is focused on ensuring that Nuts.com is increasingly showing up in the places consumers are actually frequenting — a retail fundamental, to be sure, but one that’s also increasingly important in a chaotic 2025.
“It’s all getting disrupted, and it’s happening very fast,” she said. “You have to be where the customers are, whether that’s in Open AI … or in physical retail, and move with the times.” –Anna Hensel, with reporting from Jill Manoff
Why The Inkey List landed in Ulta with a free trade-in program
The Inkey List, a U.K.-based skin-care brand, debuted in 1,450 Ulta stores nationwide this summer. But rather than just show up on shelves, co-founder Colette Laxton said the brand wanted to do something different to help grab customers’ attention – namely, to give away its products for free in the hopes of attracting a new customer base.
Inkey’s “No BS Skincare Club” landed in July with an airstream bus that stopped at Ulta stores in multiple markets like Kansas City, Nashville, Orlando and Austin. Customers could bring an empty bottle or a product that simply wasn’t working for them, and Inkey would swap it with a full-size product based on their skin needs. It also hosted in-store masterclasses on skin-care education. At one stop, tickets sold out twice over.
In total, the company gave away more than 16,000 samples and exchanged 2,114 full-sized products valued at over $25,000. Laxton said the giveaway strategy drives new business because customers are looking for prestige-level performance but at more affordable price points — Inkey’s products cost $26.50 or less. “We know that trial is key in beauty, and putting our products directly into the hands of consumers across America has been instrumental in driving recruitment and long-term loyalty,” Laxton said. –Melissa Daniels
Job openings to watch: Vuori expanding retail operations abroad and at home
Vuori is ramping up retail jobs as it prepares to open new stores, most prominently on the East Coast and internationally in regions like Europe and Asia. The company currently has over 190 roles open, according to LinkedIn and various employment sites.
This month, Vuori also hit 100 stores, six months ahead of schedule. In addition, the brand is accelerating plans to expand internationally, with a store in Seoul, South Korea and one in Beijing, China expected to open this fall. Among the Vuori roles that opened up this month, real estate and store management have dominated. The company is hiring a real estate manager to oversee Vuori’s retail portfolio, along with dozens of managers and associates to work at stores across the country. Vuori is also hiring supply chain specialists abroad, including two Taiwan-based roles: a raw material planner and an international logistics specialist.
Vuori’s fast expansion is especially noteworthy at a time when many competitors, including big players like Lululemon and Nike, are struggling to maintain their market share against startups. According to new Tracksuit data, Vuori has maintained a strong upward trend in the past six months, with its brand awareness increasing by 6% across the web since February. –Gabriela Barkho
What I’m reading
- On beat sales estimates during its earnings last week, with revenue growing 32% year-over-year.
- After emerging from bankruptcy in January, The Container Store’s chief commercial officer sent a memo to vendors making it clear that the company is looking for price cuts from them, leaving suppliers feeling nervous.
- RH has quietly acquired three trade-focused companies, Business of Home reports.
What we’ve covered
- How mattress startup Big Fig, which sells a mattress made for bigger bodies, is rebranding itself for the Ozempic era.
- Weighted blanket Bearaby has stopped much of its production in light of 50% tariffs on India that are set to go into effect Aug. 27.
- Behind Chaco’s 2025 marketing playbook, from collaborations to contests.