CPG

Consumers are starting to feel better about the economy: The bump in consumer sentiment could help turn around the ad industry’s spending pullback.

Food prices surge in the UK and throughout the eurozone: That’s forcing grocers to look for ways to serve cash-strapped shoppers.

Nearly 50 million people are still working from home as of July, according to The NPD Group. But many companies are calling their employees back to the office.

Most retailers plan to raise prices to cope with higher supply chain costs: But many also plan to offer more discounts to soften the blow and keep shoppers loyal.

Misfits Market plans to buy Imperfect Foods: The combined company claims it could achieve profitability by early 2024.

Grocery ecommerce has permanently accelerated and will approach 10% penetration in 2022. Ecommerce may still be a minor channel for food and beverage sales at 5.5% penetration, but the broader grocery market includes major sub-categories like pet products (36.0%) and health and personal care (16.5%), where ecommerce is a critical channel.

While Amazon Prime Day was bigger than ever this year, one key category took a hit. Electronics sales decreased by 5% from last Prime Day, while growth shot past 25% in home, garden, and tools, as well as in beauty and health.

On today's episode, we discuss what brand new forecasts the forecasting team cooked up in Q2, including influencer marketing spend by platform and tier, luxury ecommerce, and US prescription drug sales. "In Other News," we talk about Apple Pay's meteoric rise and what DoorDash's Q2 performance says about the future of the food delivery space. Tune in to the discussion with our senior forecasting analyst Iwona Drapala and director of forecasting Peter Newman.

This week, our Reimagining Retail podcast crew gave their predictions on what will drive the next phase of ecommerce growth, ranked from least “spicy” to four-alarm fire.

As restaurant delivery slows, Uber and DoorDash focus on groceries: The pivot is working as we expect both companies to gain a larger share of the grocery intermediary market.

Why shop Bed Bath & Beyond? That’s the question the retailer needs to answer after rolling out a turnaround strategy that includes store closures and a pivot away from owned brands.

Once again, Walmart takes the No. 1 spot in our US grocery ecommerce sales forecast, but Instacart and Amazon are fighting for the second spot.

Instacart jumped from 10.2% of US digital grocery sales in 2019 to 21.5% in 2020, taking over share as people pivoted to online grocery deliveries. Walmart has had the highest digital grocery share since 2020, which put it in good shape this past earnings season when consumers cut back on superfluous spending and sought grocery savings.

Beauty sales show no sign of slowing: Both Coty and Ulta Beauty reiterated a positive outlook as the premiumization trend continues.

Kroger invests in faster, better grocery delivery: The grocer is opening two highly automated fulfillment centers in Illinois and Tennessee to cast a wider net for ecommerce sales.

2022 will present retailers with a host of challenges as soaring consumer prices, high unemployment, and a plummeting currency weigh heavily on shoppers’ minds—and wallets.

DoorDash has ended its four-year partnership with Walmart, saying the split will enable it to focus on its long-term customer relationships. DoorDash works with retailers, like Albertsons and Macy’s, and thousands of restaurants across the globe, creating a marketplace for consumer discovery and advertising for its partners.

Mercado Libre is Latin America’s biggest ecommerce player by far, but competition from local players is heating up.

Instacart’s IPO appears on track: The company’s Q2 revenues reportedly grew 39% and the number of orders placed on its app rose 25%.

Amazon pauses its UK grocery store expansion: Disappointing sales and stiff economic headwinds at its 19 Amazon Fresh locations drove the retail giant to halt its plans to open hundreds more sites.