New Economic Realities   //   May 31, 2025

Modern Retail Podcast: Nike’s Amazon return, E.l.f’s big Rhode bet, and debunking recession indicators

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This week’s podcast starts with senior reporters Gabriela Barkho and Melissa Daniels getting into the news of the week. First, they look at the changes unfolding at Nike, which is returning to Amazon after six years off the marketplace. It’s part of the brand’s larger strategy to get back into more wholesale channels, while it is also rolling out price hikes on some of its higher-end items.

Then they look at E.l.f, which is also raising some prices and announced plans to acquire Hailey Bieber’s skin-care and cosmetics brand, Rhode, a deal reportedly worth $1 billion.

Later in this episode, Barkho and Daniels are joined by executive editor Anna Hensel for a roundtable discussion about the memes and myths around retail recession indicators. They unpack the Lipstick Index and the Men’s Underwear Index and whether these informal indexes have any basis in reality as recession indicators. Then they get into some sectors and trends to watch as economic challenges continue to change consumer behavior.