Report: Amazon outpaces US market growth in sales of household items

Amazon's growth rate in housewares sales is three and a half times that of the total U.S. domestic market, according to a report from One Click Retail.

By Daphne Howland • April 7, 2017

Cross-border e-commerce enabler Flow earns $16M in Series A

The startup's cloud-based software platform leverages artificial intelligence and virtualization to support multi-currency pricing, rapid shipping, international payment options, taxes and duties, and simplified returns.

By Dan O'Shea • April 6, 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

Study: Shoppers more willing to consult mobile phones than associates while in stores

About 77% of shoppers use smartphones to search for product information while shopping in stores, while just 35% are willing to consult an in-store salesperson.

By Dan O'Shea • April 6, 2017

Wal-Mart cutting 300 jobs in information systems unit

The layoffs come after two separate rounds of cuts announced in January and barely a week after a trio of Wal-Mart tech executives were elevated to new jobs.

By Dan O'Shea • April 5, 2017

Amazon to use Plug Power fuel cells to boost fulfillment network efficiencies

The e-commerce goliath plans to power industrial equipment at 11 fulfillment centers with Plug Power’s GenKey technology, corresponding to faster charging times, reduced costs and energy efficiencies.

By Dan O'Shea • April 5, 2017

Petco acquires PetCoach, adding digital pet health resource to offerings

PetCoach co-founder and CEO Brock Weatherup will join Petco to drive growth through innovation and enterprise-wide, consumer-focused tech initiatives.

By Dan O'Shea • April 4, 2017

Fanatics buys Majestic months after winning deal to replace it as MLB partner

Fanatics and Under Armour last year teamed up to win a 10-year contract from Major League Baseball to make player uniforms and manufacture and sell licensed fan apparel.

By Dan O'Shea • April 4, 2017

UPS outlines expansion plans for Saturday pickup and delivery

The shipper is looking to bring weekend services to almost 4,700 U.S. cities and towns ahead of the upcoming holiday shipping season, and wants to expand to about 5,800 markets in 2018.

By Dan O'Shea • April 3, 2017

Amazon launches social media influencer referral program

People with “large followings and a high frequency of posts with shoppable content” can generate referral fees on purchases driven through social platforms.

By Daphne Howland • April 3, 2017

Wal-Mart's Jet scrapping Jet Anywhere rewards program

The program, which ends May 1, enables consumers to leave Jet's own site to shop across more than 600 affiliate sites, collecting "JetCash" earmarked toward future orders.

By Daphne Howland • April 3, 2017

Retailers with pressing questions soon can ask Jicco what to do

The search engine uses crowdsourced data and photos to help retailers obtain real-time answers about store-level promotions, pricing and shopper sentiment.

By Dan O'Shea • April 2, 2017

Marketplace sellers up next in state sales tax battle

Increased collection of state sales tax levies erodes one of e-commerce’s advantages and could complicate sales and returns for smaller players.

By Daphne Howland • March 31, 2017

Reports: Amazon, Wal-Mart escalate CPG pricing war

Amazon is bringing together major consumer goods companies to brainstorm packaging and supply chain reforms and to convince them to sell directly to consumers via Amazon Marketplace.

By Daphne Howland • March 31, 2017

Study: Only 22% of consumers have engaged with a chatbot

Vibes' 2017 Mobile Consumer Report also found that consumers carefully curate the number of brands that can send them mobile alerts, subscribing to four on average.

By Dan O'Shea • March 30, 2017

Amazon shutters unprofitable Quidsi

Founded by Marc Lore, who now spearheads Wal-Mart's e-commerce efforts, Quidsi (acquired by Amazon in 2010 for $500 million) encompassed six no-frills sites including Diapers.com and Soap.com.

By Daphne Howland • March 30, 2017

Dunkin’ Donuts enables Order Ahead feature through Google’s Waze app

Customers may now order and pay before they arrive at a Dunkin' Donuts location and then skip the line to pick up their purchase when they arrive.

By Dan O'Shea • March 29, 2017

Wal-Mart promotes three tech executives amid ongoing Jet integration

The promotions follow other changes in the highest ranks of the retailer's technology operations, with several executives departing in recent months.

By Dan O'Shea • March 28, 2017

The Container Store gets e-commerce performance boost from Yottaa

The storage and organization solutions retailer continues to build up its online presence and exploit mobile shopping opportunities.

By Dan O'Shea • March 28, 2017

Amazon acquiring Souq to accelerate Middle East expansion

Souq offers more than 1.5 million products to consumers in the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Saudi Arabia — a region with increasing importance to global retailers and brands.

By Daphne Howland • March 28, 2017

Report: Amazon Go public opening postponed over tech hiccups

The e-commerce giant has found that its tracking and seamless checkout systems are disrupted when the prototype Amazon Go store is crowded with more than 20 people or if shoppers move too quickly.

By Daphne Howland • March 28, 2017

Nordstrom trims 106 customer service jobs

The department store retailer blamed the cuts on a declining number of shoppers reaching out for customer support.

By Daphne Howland • March 28, 2017

Bazaarvoice, TurnTo Networks team to boost consumer-generated content for retailers

The partnership allows TurnTo’s brand clients the opportunity to syndicate ratings and reviews across the Bazaarvoice Retailer Network, which includes more than 5,000 retail and brand websites.

By Dan O'Shea • March 28, 2017

Amazon will collect sales tax across US starting next month

The e-commerce giant already adds sales tax on goods shipping to 41 states and Washington, D.C., and will add Hawaii, Idaho, Maine and New Mexico to the list next month.

By Daphne Howland • March 27, 2017

Amazon adds more unlocked smartphones to Prime discount program

The Alcatel A30 and Moto G5 Plus have joined Prime Exclusive Phones, which offers discounts on brand-name unlocked mobile devices featuring ads and product recommendations on their lockscreens.

By Dan O'Shea • March 26, 2017

Distil: Bot attacking websites in effort to steal gift card balances

GiftGhostBots use a rolling list of number combinations to test about 1.7 million gift card account numbers per hour in attempts to gain access to those cards and request balance information.

By Dan O'Shea • March 26, 2017