Today on Total Retail

Quiksilver, Billabong and Volcom US Stores to Close After Liberated Brands Files for Bankruptcy
February 10, 2025 at 12:31 pm

Liberated Brands filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection over the weekend and is looking to shutter its U.S. retail stores where it sold brands like Quiksilver, Billabong, and Volcom. The company said in a Monday press release that it filed for bankruptcy to "implement an orderly monetization and disposition of its businesses." It submitted aโ€ฆ

Post-Holiday Retail Reinvented: How AI Streamlines Returns, Logistics, and Customer Service
February 10, 2025 at 11:47 am

With the holiday season behind us, retailers have refocused their efforts on addressing the flood of service requests that typically follow. You can count on a surge of returns and exchanges to process, as well as items that arrived damaged or defective. Purchasers and gift recipients will have questions about policies, receipt requirements, and returnโ€ฆ

Show Me the Money: A New Wave of Pricing Transparency Laws
February 10, 2025 at 11:09 am

Every for-profit business faces the challenge of setting competitive prices while also generating a profit. An increasingly common solution to this conundrum has been to advertise one price and later disclose additional charges โ€” e.g., hotelsโ€™ resort fees, e-ticketing platformsโ€™ โ€œhandlingโ€ fees or even surcharges assessed against customers paying with a credit card. The consumerโ€ฆ

Give C-Level Execs Total Visibility Into Merchandising and Save Millions
February 10, 2025 at 10:12 am

For many retailers, profit margins are thin and getting thinner โ€” a concern all organizations must weigh in 2025 with price pressures, potential tariffs, and an uncertain economic outlook posing new challenges. The U.S. grocery business, for example, is operating at its lowest profit margin (1.6 percent) since before the pandemic, according to FMI |โ€ฆ

Personalization and Specialization: How Retailers Can Stand Out in a Competitive Market
February 10, 2025 at 9:41 am

In todayโ€™s retail landscape, standing out requires more than a wide selection of products or competitive pricing. Shoppers want curated, meaningful experiences โ€” both online and in-store โ€” that speak to their specific needs and interests. By adopting strategies rooted in personalization, specialization, and data-driven decision-making, retailers can gain a competitive edge, foster deeper customerโ€ฆ

China Retaliates With Tariffs on US Imports
February 5, 2025 at 8:18 pm

China announced it was levying tariffs on select imported U.S. goods Tuesday in response to President Donald Trump's imposed 10 percent tariffs on China, which went into effect Tuesday. The Associated Press reported that China would implement a 15 percent tariff on coal and liquefied natural gas (LNG) products as well as a 10 percentโ€ฆ

The Top Retail Trends to Watch in 2025
February 5, 2025 at 8:04 pm

The retail industry has always been defined by change, but the past year has seen transformations that are reshaping its very foundation. In 2024, we witnessed the rise of new shopping channels, the explosion of marketplaces, and significant advances in delivery logistics. As we move into 2025, these shifts are accelerating, offering both challenges andโ€ฆ

Disrupting the Fragrance Category: Maesaโ€™s Use of AI in Marketing and Content Creation
February 5, 2025 at 12:46 pm

Since its launch in 1997, beauty incubator Maesa has been at the forefront of innovation. Last year, Maesa leveraged the latest developments in generative artificial intelligence to revolutionize its marketing and content creation strategies for its leading fragrance brand, Fineโ€™ry. Rooted in the craft of fine perfumery, Fineโ€™ry has been disrupting the mass fragrance industryโ€ฆ

CX Hinges on the POS: 3 Ways to Meet Shopper Needs and Desires
February 5, 2025 at 10:37 am

The technology that retailers use to power their businesses has profound impacts on the customer experience (CX). Yet many retailers are stuck using a previous decadeโ€™s technology; 36 percent of fashion and specialty retailers say their existing technology isn't up to the challenge of todayโ€™s tech-savvy customers and employees, either because they're locked into vendorโ€ฆ

How 3P Commerce Powers Global Growth and Resilience
February 5, 2025 at 9:56 am

The rise of third-party (3P) commerce has become instrumental to retail, reshaping how brands and retailers operate โ€” and grow โ€” in the digital marketplace. In an era of rapid technological evolution and shifting consumer behavior, this model offers businesses the flexibility and scale needed to adapt rapidly to market shifts and meet evolving consumerโ€ฆ