What the holidays mean for retail in 2021

The pandemic altered the season in various ways, with consequences for this year and beyond.

By Daphne Howland • Jan. 20, 2021

With fresh funding in hand, Outer sets sights beyond outdoor furniture, rugs

The DTC brand snapped up $10.5 million to help it grow its assortment, build on its sustainability efforts and expand on its unique showroom model.

By Caroline Jansen • Jan. 20, 2021

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

Nike’s apps played crucial role in driving engagement, 2020 digital sales growth

Its app suite underscores a philosophy of accessibility for shoppers, while helping Nike gather data on purchasing habits, personal information and exercise routines that can inform future marketing.

By Robert Williams • Jan. 15, 2021

Walmart e-commerce chief Marc Lore to retire

Digital sales at the retail giant have boomed, but the executive's trajectory through the company hasn't followed a straight line. 

By Ben Unglesbee • Jan. 15, 2021

Nordstrom tops list of most connected retailers: survey

A report from CI&T ranked 10 leading retailers based on factors like search, cart, fulfillment and returns.

By Maria Monteros • Jan. 13, 2021

Ads on Facebook may not be that important for brands after all, Forrester data shows

An analyst with the research firm studied what happened when companies pulled their advertising from the social platform during a boycott last year. 

By Ben Unglesbee • Jan. 13, 2021

GameStop adds former Chewy execs to board as digital holiday sales balloon by 309%

The founder of the pet products e-tailer has taken an activist stake in GameStop and called on it to transform — immediately.

By Ben Unglesbee • Jan. 12, 2021

Affirm IPO hits $1.2B

The buy now, pay later tech company announced an initial public offering stock price of $49, but opened at nearly $100 on its first day of trading.

By Daphne Howland , Kaarin Moore • Updated Jan. 19, 2021

9 retail trends to watch in 2021

The pandemic will continue to reshape the industry and accelerate trends from consumer preferences to industry norms and structures in the year ahead. 

By Daphne Howland , Ben Unglesbee , Cara Salpini , Kaarin Moore , Caroline Jansen , Maria Monteros • Jan. 12, 2021

Amazon, Walmart dominate shopping app downloads in 2020: report

Target, eBay and Wayfair also made the top 10 list as consumers increasingly rely on mobile as a shopping channel, per Apptopia. 

By Kaarin Moore • Jan. 11, 2021

7 key takeaways from massive online traffic this 2020 holiday season

Discover what 1.57 billion online visits reveal about the global 2020 holiday season. 

Jan. 11, 2021

UPS expects to break weekly returns record with nearly 9M returns

The uptick in e-commerce brought on by the pandemic has exacerbated consumer behaviors that generate returns.

By Emma Cosgrove • Jan. 7, 2021

Crisis Management: How a bad Q1 and a small assortment turned into a good year for Mack Weldon

The DTC brand's bottoms business is up "well over 100%" year over year as the company capitalizes on comfort clothing trends.

By Cara Salpini • Jan. 5, 2021

Pandemic-fueled omnichannel shopping surge here to stay: Nielsen

Buying across both store and online channels increased 50% in 2020 and doesn't show signs of slowing anytime soon, the data firm noted.

By Rosie Bradbury • Jan. 5, 2021

Holidays in review: What defined the season in 2020

From virtual services and contactless pickup to a Black Friday unlike any other, retailers were forced to adapt.

By Daphne Howland , Ben Unglesbee , Caroline Jansen , Kaarin Moore • Dec. 31, 2020

Will the e-commerce boom be a bust this season?

An unprecedented number of packages are taxing retailers' ability to deliver. A lot are going to be late, and that will have consequences beyond the holidays.

By Daphne Howland • Dec. 22, 2020

Pomelo fashion enhances shoppers' experience, increases revenue using Amazon Personalize

This global fashion e-commerce set out to create personalized customer experiences that would improve the discoverability of new items and increase revenue.

Dec. 21, 2020

Grove Collaborative raises $125M to launch new brands

The funding brings the DTC brand to a $1.32 billion valuation as it looks to expand into new categories.

By Maria Monteros • Dec. 21, 2020

Crisis Management: The 3-year strategy that paid off for Brooks this year

Chief Operating Officer Dan Sheridan discusses how the brand's multichannel initiative kept the company alive, and thriving, during the pandemic.

By Cara Salpini • Dec. 21, 2020

Most shoppers plan on making a return after the holidays

This year's online surge means a record number of items could make their way back onto shelves. Retailers should see it as an opportunity.

By Daphne Howland • Dec. 21, 2020

Advantage shifts to stores as a holiday dominated by e-commerce wraps up

At this point, even many online orders will be fulfilled via brick and mortar.

By Daphne Howland • Dec. 18, 2020

How COVID-19 prompted new thinking for omnichannel

Accelerated investments in 2020 redefined omnichannel, writes Amanda Bourlier, head of retail at Euromonitor International.

By Amanda Bourlier • Dec. 18, 2020

Barkbox merger with SPAC approved

The new company, which will be renamed "The Original Bark Company," will begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday.

By Caroline Jansen • Updated June 1, 2021

With an end to pandemic struggles in sight, beauty looks toward a prettier future

Unlike apparel, which will face a longer recovery, beauty could be back to 2019 levels by the first half of 2021, according to McKinsey.

By Cara Salpini • Dec. 17, 2020

Sam's Club equips its fulfillment operations with robotic pickers

The retailer has adopted the use of autonomous mobile robots in its new Southern California fulfillment center for e-commerce orders.

By Gary Wollenhaupt • Dec. 17, 2020