Amazon takes early steps to develop Go stores in UK

With approval from the U.K. on Go trademarks, the e-commerce retailer could be paving the way for European expansion of its "checkout-free" concept.

By Daphne Howland • May 22, 2017

Target reportedly offered $1B for Casper Mattress

The price tag on the mattress seller was too steep, sources told Recode, and as merger discussions broke down, executives settled on a partnership.

By Daphne Howland • May 22, 2017

Explore the Trendline➔

What's shaping the e-commerce landscape?

From pivots in digital strategies to challenges retailers must overcome with reverse logistics, here are some of the forces shaping online retail.

By Retail Dive staff

Lowe’s unveils AR app for in-home projects

The new Vision app for the Lenovo Phab 2 Pro lets shoppers envision redesigned living spaces with virtual drop-ins of the retailer's products.

By Dan O'Shea • May 21, 2017

Report: Automation threatens up to 7.5M retail jobs

Retail cashier jobs, 73% of which are held by women, are at highest risk of loss to automation technologies, according to a study conducted by Cornerstone Capital Group.

By Dan O'Shea • May 21, 2017

New Aptos Labs funnel millions into ‘unified commerce’ platform

The company's innovation development team is working on a "cloud-native, mobile-first" platform that promises new features and integration with its Singular platform.

By Dan O'Shea • May 18, 2017

Android Pay, PayPal deepen partnership

Users of the payment app can now link to their PayPal accounts to pay with one touch at more than 16 million PayPal merchants.

By Dan O'Shea • May 18, 2017

Alibaba revenue rises, but investments in growth take toll

Sales continue to soar — and a shift toward an increasingly consumption-based economy in China provides long-term opportunities for the company, executives said.

By Daphne Howland • May 18, 2017

Amazon's reported interest in pharmacy business hurts CVS, Walgreens

The e-commerce giant may be getting serious about entering the highly regulated but highly lucrative retail space, much to the dismay of sector incumbents.

By Daphne Howland • May 18, 2017

Target gets into bed with Casper Mattress

While the retailer wasn't able to buy the upstart outright, the partnership continues its penchant for tie-ups with premium, popular designers and brands.

By Daphne Howland • May 18, 2017

Salesforce injects AI into Commerce Cloud Einstein

The company has enhanced its platform with order management, predictive sort and other e-commerce support features.

By Dan O'Shea • May 18, 2017

Google touts Assistant’s new e-commerce features

At the company's developer conference, an executive demonstrated the conversational commerce capabilities by ordering delivery from Panera and paying via fingerprint technology.

By Dan O'Shea • May 17, 2017

Report: US e-commerce sales rose 4.1% in Q1

While e-commerce growth continues to outpace overall retail sales, it still accounts for less than 10% of total sales, according to a report released by the U.S. Department of Commerce.

By Daphne Howland • May 17, 2017

Etsy faces more pressure as new investors buy in

The moves come two weeks after Josh Silverman took the CEO spot and hedge fund Black-and-White Capital, which owns 2% of Etsy’s shares, released letters highlighting critical issues.

By Daphne Howland • May 17, 2017

Pinterest expands visual search tech to ads

Extending the feature gives ads more relevancy by enabling them to show up adjacent to similar products sought in visual search.

By Dan O'Shea • May 16, 2017

Reflektion, Mad Mobile team to give retailers omnichannel view

The partnership will allow retailers who are joint clients of the firms to access data about customers' online activity while they're in stores.

By Dan O'Shea • May 16, 2017

Fashion Tech Lab aims to fund, innovate, connect with sustainability in mind

Digital entrepreneur Miroslava Duma is spearheading the startup accelerator, which is focused on investing in and developing sustainable technologies for the fashion industry.

By Dan O'Shea • May 15, 2017

Lowe's 'exosuit' gives employees a robotic boost

The home improvement retailer is piloting the use of robotic-enhanced suits that help employees lift and move products more efficiently to reduce fatigue.

By Dan O'Shea • May 15, 2017

Wayfair enables photo-based visual product search

Using the AI-enhanced feature, users can find products among its selection that are of a similar style to items they take pictures of with their mobile devices.

By Dan O'Shea • May 15, 2017

Made.com tests live-chat feature with showroom employees

The U.K.-based e-commerce retailer is leveraging its brick-and-mortar retail assets to help close online sales. 

By Dan O'Shea • May 14, 2017

Report: Flipkart closes in on $1B Snapdeal acquisition

If finalized, the deal would mark the biggest acquisition in the Indian e-commerce space and strengthen Flipkart’s position against Amazon's international push.

By Dan O'Shea • May 14, 2017

In challenge to Wayfair, Amazon, Target up the ante in furniture

Online furniture sales have emerged as a major growth area in e-commerce, rising 18% in 2015, second only to grocery, according to research from Barclays.

By Daphne Howland • May 12, 2017

Upstart Flexe takes aim at Amazon with next-day delivery

The new service allows e-commerce brands to control the end-to-end fulfillment process, from identifying ideal fulfillment center locations, to delivering product via integrations with major carriers.

By Dan O'Shea • May 11, 2017

LVMH to unveil multi-brand luxury e-commerce site

The site, dubbed 24Sevres.com for the retailer’s flagship address, will sell more than 150 high-end labels, including from outside the LVMH stable.

By Daphne Howland • May 11, 2017

DHL taps Alexa to deliver package status updates

The Amazon virtual assistant's new skill gives consumers a hands-free process to track their deliveries.  

By Dan O'Shea • May 10, 2017

Amazon, Nike, Nordstrom lead the way in social media, word-of-mouth chatter

Victoria’s Secret, Adidas and Under Armour also made the top 10 list of retail and apparel brands that sparked shopper conversations, according to Engagement Lab’s latest TotalSocial rankings.

By Dan O'Shea • May 10, 2017