Product Sourcing

Store brands have been around for decades, but until recently they were often perceived as lower quality than national brands. Today, retailers like Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, and Kroger are able to offer private-label products that match big brands in quality while maintaining lower prices. As a result, according to a new Nielsen report, store…

In the 1990s and early 2000s, the world embarked on a journey toward connectivity and collaboration. The invention and burgeoning popularity of the internet brought together people from around the globe in both personal and professional spheres. Today, technology is still evolving and social platforms have continued to meet the increasing need for in-the-moment communication…

April showers bring May flowers. And for online floral retailers, May flowers mean Mother’s Day, one of the biggest sales events of the year. Like a fine Swiss watchmaker, floral retailers determine shipping prices, and precisely when orders need to occur to ensure on-time arrival to surprise and delight that special mom in their life.…

In this week's episode of Retail Right Now, Total Retail's Caitlin Sullivan and Joe Keenan discuss the significance of announcements made this week by REI and Walmart regarding changes they're making to their supply chains, and specifically what's required of their product suppliers.

Crowdsourcing can be a powerful marketing asset, but many companies need direction on how to implement it correctly. Effective crowdsourcing seeks insights directly from brand followers instead of the general public, which allows companies to focus on the customers most likely to drive revenue. Not only does focusing on advocates provide brands the information they…

Retail is in a constant state of death and rebirth. The Curated Future examines retail's next big trend — curation over selection. As digitally native brands continue to flood an already saturated market, this research report looks at the impact on consumers. Frustrated, consumers are increasingly turning to a trusted voice — retailers — to curate a selection of products aimed directly at a defined consumer type.

Amazon.com has more customer search and purchase data than any e-commerce business. It can build a private-label brand in six months using these data. Amazon’s private-label products have access to the best merchandising and targeting on the marketplace. And the brand doesn’t even need to be profitable. How do national brands compete with this? According…

Today, 80 percent of consumers say private-label products meet expectations. And we can all guess why, right? Value prices for quality products are all the rage. But while it’s great that people are onboard the private brand gravy train, the truth is that this transition has been especially beneficial for shoppers on the hunt for…

When developing new products, businesses typically ask their customers a single question. They provide a long list of features and ask, “For this product, which of these features do you most prefer?” This seems like a straightforward question. Many product development teams would take these results and immediately begin developing whatever features were selected most…

Amazon.com has launched a pair of private-label furniture brands. The Seattle Times reports the online retailer unveiled the furniture brands — Rivet and Stone & Beam — this week. The brands will be sold exclusively on Amazon.com. This announcement represents the company's latest expansion into private-label brands. Amazon describes Rivet as “stylish and versatile mid-century modern furniture and…