Online retail had already been experiencing massive growth before the arrival of COVID-19 — and then the pandemic hit. According to recently published data from IBM’s U.S. Retail Index, the abrupt shift to quarantine and social distancing measures accelerated the rise of e-commerce by about five years. Unsurprisingly, the same trends behind the surge in…
In this episode of Retail Right Now, Total Retail's Ashley Chiaradio and Kristina Stidham discuss an article recently published on Total Retail titled, “Buy Now, Pay Later: What to Consider Before Making the Investment,” authored by Eric Christensen, chief payment officer and vice president of product at Digital River. The article discusses the diversification of…
The exciting and accelerated growth of e-commerce is playing a major role in sales strategies and digital advertising plans being made for 2021. Consumers are increasingly comfortable with online shopping and e-commerce platforms, and American shoppers have come to expect easy online purchasing experiences that are frictionless and engaging, influencing repeat business, brand loyalty and…
If you asked your favorite clothing brand if it knew the body measurements of its customers, the answer would likely be no. In fact, not many apparel brands or retailers do, and this lack of insight results in poor-fitting clothes, increased returns, and far too much wasted product. Amidst a global pandemic that has wreaked…
We’re thrilled to feature a Q&A with Eileen Mahoney, the executive vice president and chief information officer of PVH, the parent company of leading fashion brands such as Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger, Van Heusen, and others, in the Inner Circle this week. Mahoney discusses how she helped PVH pivot during the COVID-19 pandemic, the retail tech trends she’s watching closely, how she feels about being a woman in a male-dominated field, and how she’s working to get more women into retail technology leadership.
The adoption of buy now, pay later (BNPL) services has skyrocketed over the past few years, with a significant 186 percent increase in usage between September 2019 and September 2020. The surge in recent use can no doubt be attributed to the uncertainty tied to COVID-19 and the financial anxieties that come with it. To…
Several years ago, to win on marketplaces, manufacturers simply needed a popular product at a good price. Customers would find the product and manufacturers would realize success. However, a popular product at a good price is simply no longer enough to win on marketplaces such as Amazon.com. In today’s environment, winning strategies are more nuanced…
Over the past decade, e-commerce has seen tremendous growth, and the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated it further. The retail landscape has changed drastically, and retailers have had to find creative ways to compete with giants like Amazon.com. As we kick off the new year, it's top of mind for retailers to come up with strategies…
A recent survey revealed that more than half of all consumers (56 percent) plan to continue shopping primarily online post-pandemic, compared to just 5 percent who say they will shop only in-person afterward. In fact, data showed that half as many people shopped inside stores last Black Friday compared to 2019, while, in stark contrast,…
If you read some recent headlines, you would have heard predictions that Instagram is fading in popularity or even “dead.” Many experts detail user decline and lack of Gen Z engagement as the basis for this assessment. Instagram’s not dead. Yet. But its reason for being needs to change. Instagram needs to return to its…
