Brick-and-Mortar

Wayfair announced on Wednesday that it posted its strongest quarter of sales growth since the pandemic as the furniture retailer continues to win over customers and take market share. The company said it saw double-digit revenue growth in the U.S., reaching about $3 billion, an 11.4 percent increase from the year prior. Wayfair CFO Kate…

Spirit Christmas is expanding this year, giving consumers even more places to shop for seasonal decor. The retail chain is the holiday-focused offshoot of Spirit Halloween, bringing seasonal decorations and festive finds for a range of different budgets. Now in its third season, Spirit Halloween is set to have 44 locations across 15 states this…

In episode 519 of Total Retail Talks, Editor-in-Chief Joe Keenan interviews Jillian Cueff, chief merchandising officer at Claire's, a global specialty retailer known for tween and teen fashion accessories, costume jewelry, and iconic ear-piercing services. Listen in as Cueff shares how she's implemented her own vision for the brand's merchandising organization (1:25) and how Claire's…

Artificial intelligence in grocery retail store operations has a return on investment and reputation problem, not a capability problem. Retailers increasingly recognize what AI can do. The challenge is translating those capabilities into something that store associates can use. For example, at scale AI can analyze data and identify phantom inventory. But on the store…

Imagine stopping at the store after a long day. The lights are bright, music fills the aisles, promotional displays compete for attention and department signs are small, text-heavy and mounted well above eye level. For many, that means nothing more than spending an extra minute finding what they need. But for many people with autism,…

Retail is the most complex it's ever been and a multitude of factors have pushed business leaders to prioritize artificial intelligence implementation at HQ and in-store. What I hear now from retail leaders is an urgent mandate to get their workforce AI-enabled. The data backs this, with 97 percent of retail organizations planning to increase…

For many retail operations teams, Black Friday week is still the operational summit of the year: peak staffing, peak inventory positioning, peak everything. InMarket’s 2026 Holiday Shopping InSights report, drawn from InMarket’s commerce and visitation data alongside a survey fielded with Kantar, suggests that assumption is wrong for most of the industry, and the operational…

Toys R Us is launching its biggest U.S. expansion in years, with 120 new standalone stores set to open in time for the holiday shopping season, reports Fox Business. The retailer announced last week that it will open the new standalone stores across the U.S. this holiday season through a partnership with Go! Retail Group,…

For years, retailers have focused on optimizing the physical store around one primary objective: the transaction. Where products are placed, how customers move through the store, and how quickly they can make a purchase have all been carefully considered. However, the role of the physical store is changing. As more transactions move online, the store…

U.S. retail sales over the upcoming November-December holiday shopping season are poised to set a new record this year and top $1 trillion for the first time, Bain & Company forecasts. The new all-time high for holiday sales is expected to be driven by 4.5 percent year-over-year (YoY) growth in nominal terms, well ahead of…