Retail & Ecommerce

US retail ecommerce sales will reach $1.720 trillion by 2027, hitting a milestone of more than 20% of overall retail sales, according to our forecast.

Amazon once again gets a head start on the holidays: It will hold another Prime Day event in October, like last year, to give both its retail and advertising businesses a Q4 boost.

Burger King gains market share as its turnaround gathers steam: But it will have to stay attuned to changes in customer behavior, including a shift toward takeout and digital ordering.

YouTube has expanded its affiliate shopping capabilities and eligibility for the YouTube Partner Program in order to maintain the strength of its creator relationships. But livestream commerce may factor more into YouTube’s future.

TikTok aims to transform Gen Z engagement into product sales, challenging local shopping apps despite potential future regulatory issues and existing competition.

Chatbots are retailers’ favorite application of generative AI: DoorDash, Ssense, and Shopify are the latest companies to roll out AI-assisted chatbots to deliver more value to customers.

Apple’s iPhone sales slump continues, subscriptions set record: Robust services revenue is helping to keep Apple afloat and pay for the AI R&D it’ll need to take on rivals.

But as the company relies on Cash App’s success, any future faltering could spell trouble

The fundraising highlights the industry’s interest in alternative credit models

Integrating credit cards with the UPI will be a game changer for card volume in India

Retail media has been buoyed by consumer packaged goods companies and grocery brands looking to get their products in front of shoppers closer to the point of purchase. But now, other categories are looking to join the party: nonendemic advertisers.

On a July 28 earnings call, Procter & Gamble CFO Andre Schulten emphasized retail media’s position as one of many marketing strategies.

More US consumers are engaging in money-saving activities (like using coupons or shopping for deals) in 2023 than they did in 2019. The number of US consumers doing more comparison shopping online in particular has risen by 17 percentage points from 2019 to 2023.

Shipt goes after Gen Z with latest membership offering: The Target-owned delivery service will begin offering college students discounted subscriptions as it faces growing competition from Uber and DoorDash.

Is TikTok Shop a must-have for US merchants? While TikTok commerce is gaining in popularity, the platform’s Shop feature has hit some roadblocks—our recent report investigates.

Digitally native brands look for a new D2C playbook: Brands are embracing wholesale, physical retail, acquisitions, and even selling on Amazon to regain momentum and achieve profitability.

“Barbie” is the top-searched term on Amazon. Shopify has seen a 56% increase in doll sales. And despite a fall in Q2 Barbie doll sales, Mattel believes there will be significant growth for the property in the coming months and years. All of this has Greta Gerwig’s movie to thank.

On today's episode, we discuss how a new era of social media is rising, whether folks want to pay for things with their hand, when the best time to email your co-worker is, how Walmart+ is getting on, what AI in the home might look like, the most popular cars in the US, and more. Tune in to the discussion with our analysts Ross Benes and Blake Droesch and forecasting director Oscar Orozco.

TikTok’s rapid ascent in social commerce is drawing comparisons to Amazon’s flywheel strategy. The platform is taking multiple steps to achieve its goal of quadrupling its global ecommerce business to a potential $20 billion in annual merchandise sales through TikTok Shop. Here’s what’s working, what isn’t, and what has yet to be seen.

As US mcommerce sales approach nearly half of total US online sales, marketers need to adopt mobile-first strategies that improve both the shopping and checkout experience. For those looking to boost adoption for their mobile shopping apps, banner ads are the best deal, though more interactive ad formats could become popular as retailers gamify their apps.