Retail insights at the intersection of now and next. Unfiltered. Unbiased
Recent headlines say Gen Z believes cash is no longer “cool” to use and that they’re all about digital payments. But many Gen Z still use cash regularly, especially teens. Debit cards and mobile wallets are even more popular, far outpacing those who use credit cards.
The new Marc Jacobs Beauty line sold DTC through the Marc Jacobs website, and Sephora feels like the odd man out in the beauty industry. Its playful maximalism and bright colors go against the grain of the market nowadays, and at a time when both Coty and prestige cosmetics are under significant pressure, the venture isn’t just the reinvention of a makeup line, but a big gamble for everyone involved.
The current retailer enthusiasm surrounding dynamic pricing (think Amazon, airfares, and supermarkets) assumes the consumer behaves as a rational negotiator who will calmly accept a price based on a real-time willingness to pay. In reality, consumers do not experience retail that way; they behave more like hunters than negotiators.
The grocery channel is in a fierce battle for market share with Walmart and Kroger duking it out at the top and upscale chains trying to find a way to compete.
Join Shelley and Heather Holmes, Founder of Publicity for Good, as they unpack how brands need to think like their customers and understand how they use agentic search engines including ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini. Key signals: Consumers are bypassing a brand website, asking AI for recommendations and going directly to purchase.
The EPA just handed the food industry its next crisis. Forever chemicals are forgotten promises; the CDC has detected PFAS in the blood of 99 percent of Americans. Including newborns. Here’s what retailers and brands must do before the states do it for them
In an era of dwindling attention spans, modern brands and retailers face the challenge of creating meaningful statements from digital fluff. Classical knowledge is a differentiator in an oversaturated, uninspired market. Savvy, modern consumers distinguish themselves not just by donning specific styles, but by their knowledge of the culture their style reflects. Knowledge is the new currency.
A business built around a single geography, a single distribution channel and a single supply chain scenario is not lean. It’s exposed. That is the lesson Iran teaches retail.
Two giants continue to serve the average homeowner’s projects, but with the housing market stuck in neutral, Lowe’s and Home Depot are increasingly turning their attention to pro builders.
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