Thu.Sep 12, 2024

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Data: 38 stores have closed every day in 2024

Retail Gazette

Almost 40 stores closed their doors for the final time each day this year in the latest blow to the high street, according to new data. The latest research from PwC shows that 6,945 outlets have shut so far in 2024, equating to 38 store closures per day – an increase on last year’s 36 per day. This figure outnumbers the rate of new store openings, which rose modestly to 4,661 this year – averaging 25 openings each day.

Location 119
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4 Trends That Should Drive Retailers’ Holiday Strategies

Retail TouchPoints

Still-potent economic uncertainty is encouraging consumers to be savvier as they browse and buy. But while there may be more price comparing and deal hunting this holiday season, consumers will still expect stellar experiences as they browse and buy across channels. Retail TouchPoints interviewed 12 experts who shared their predictions for the 2024 holiday season.

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Decathlon launches free exercise classes, picnic kit rentals

Inside Retail

Decathlon has launched free exercise classes and picnic kit rentals exclusively from its new flagship store at 570 George Street in Sydney CBD. The company’s in-house fitness experts will lead the high-intensity interval training (HIIT) and pilates classes in the park and guided run club sessions. Decathlon also offers 10 free picnic kit rentals from 10 am to 6 pm daily.

Outdoor 278
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Lego Celebrates ‘Play is Your Superpower’ with Global Activations

Retail TouchPoints

Lego stores around the world are creating interactive experiences showcasing the power of play — from a playable library in China to a restaurant-themed pop-up in Japan — as part of the brand’s “Play is Your Superpower” campaign. The goal is to encourage families to play together, with Lego citing a consumer survey it commissioned showing that 83% of parents see play as a platform for celebrating differences in a fun and positive way.

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5 Tips for a Winning Category Management Strategy in 2025

Category Management is a cornerstone of a successful retail strategy. While it promotes collaboration between manufacturers and retailers to optimize category performance, challenges persist in its effective implementation due to hurdles in communication and collaboration across teams and partners, and more. In this guide, we outline five essential strategies for success in 2025 that will touch on all the essential pieces of a successful strategy and implementation.

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Metcash kicks off new fiscal year with soaring food sales

Inside Retail

Metcash has booked a sales increase of 6.1 per cent in the early part of the new fiscal year – with food leading the growth. The group’s food sales, excluding tobacco, surged 17.9 per cent, reflecting volume growth and inflation moderation, the company said in an investor update covering the period to September 8. Supermarket and convenience store sales grew 3.5 per cent, while its Superior Foods division jumped 8.7 per cent.

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Drinks Aims to ‘Demolish the Barriers to Alcohol Ecommerce’ with New Software Offering

Retail TouchPoints

Alcohol ecommerce solution Drinks has launched the “Drinks-as-a-service” (DaaS) platform, a subscription software solution that will allow any brand, merchant or ecommerce operator to navigate the various tax and compliance impediments to selling alcohol online. The DaaS platform can be used by retailers that want to add wine or spirits to their assortment to alcohol producers looking to build out their direct-to-consumer business.

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Paramount Debuts New AI-Enabled Shoppable TV Experience at MTV VMAs

Retail TouchPoints

Paramount debuted a new technology last night at the MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) that allowed viewers to shop the entire broadcast, from the red carpet to the stage. The Shopsense AI Lens is an image recognition tool that lets viewers snap a photo of what their favorite artists are wearing and then shop the looks they love in an AI-curated digital store.

ATS 277
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How Sephora’s new stores bridge the gap between online and in-person retail

Inside Retail

After unveiling its renovated Melbourne Central store earlier this month, French beauty giant Sephora is now gearing up to open the doors to its new store in Sydney’s Westfield Miranda shopping centre. With the reopening of Sephora’s Melbourne Central store came the launch of its first beauty classroom, a space dedicated to hosting masterclasses with its exclusive brands – as well as the launch of Skincredible, its innovative app developed in collaboration with dermatologists to offer personalis

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Associated Food Stores Adopts Personalization and Customer Insights Platform

Retail TouchPoints

Associated Food Stores (AFS), a wholesaler and cooperative serving nearly 450 supermarkets in the Intermountain West region, has adopted customer engagement, personalization and analytics solutions from Birdzi. AFS will roll out the Birdzi shopper analytics platform, personalized ad, coupon flyers and audience engagement tools first before deploying the VISPER personalization engine, with the entire process forecasted to be complete in time for the holiday season.

Wholesale 276
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Burger King Signs Deal With Mexican Soccer Teams in the US

Retail Wire

The fast-food giant has been named the team's official quick-service restaurant.

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What Your Financial Statements Are Telling You—And How to Listen!

Speaker: David Worrell, CFO, Author & Speaker

Your financial statements hold powerful insights—but are you truly paying attention? Many finance professionals focus on the income statement while overlooking key signals hidden in the balance sheet and cash flow statement. Understanding these numbers can unlock smarter decision-making, uncover risks, and drive long-term success. Join David Worrell, accomplished CFO, finance expert, and author, for an engaging, nontraditional take on reading financial statements.

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Navigating Role Reversal in Retail Media: Where Sellers are Buyers and Buyers are Sellers

Retail TouchPoints

As the retail media boom continues , the relationship between the retailer and the brands they carry is going through a significant transformation. While brands have always had to strategize, plan, negotiate and spend with retailers to get their products distributed across stores to reach new and existing customers, their commitments are evolving once again.

Planning 273
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Jack in the Box Has Unveiled Its New Halloween Menu. Here’s What’s on It

Retail Wire

Jack in the Box has a spooky season-themed menu.

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Exclusive: Why Grove Collaborative’s Evolving Business Model Required Replatforming

Retail TouchPoints

Over the past 11 years, Grove Collaborative has built a name for itself as conscious consumers’ go-to supplier for everyday essentials. And that hard-won name has been built on top of a homegrown tech stack that supported the brand’s robust ecommerce and subscription ecosystem. But recently the brand realized it had outgrown its in-house tech and began a process that many today are undertaking — shifting from custom-built digital commerce systems to best-in-breed third-party technology, a.k.a.

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DoorDash and Magnolia Bakery Launch Exclusive New Banana Pudding Flavor

Retail Wire

DoorDash and Magnolia Bakery's newest sweet treat is sure to please fans.

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State of AI in Sales & Marketing 2025

AI adoption is reshaping sales and marketing. But is it delivering real results? We surveyed 1,000+ GTM professionals to find out. The data is clear: AI users report 47% higher productivity and an average of 12 hours saved per week. But leaders say mainstream AI tools still fall short on accuracy and business impact. Download the full report today to see how AI is being used — and where go-to-market professionals think there are gaps and opportunities.

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Walmart Endorses Financing Solution for its Marketplace Sellers

Retail TouchPoints

Walmart has approved embedded finance provider Parafin to offer financing to Walmart Marketplace sellers to help them grow their businesses Parafin offers full-scale financial services programs to marketplaces, employing machine learning to analyze sales data to determine offer eligibility and terms. Since Parafin’s launch in 2021, it has served tens of thousands of businesses and extended more than $8 billion in offers via platforms including Worldpay and Mindbody.

Finance 263
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Bunnings, Kmart, Aldi are Australia’s most-trusted brands

Inside Retail

Bunnings was once again crowned the most trusted brand in the June quarter, followed by Aldi in second place and Kmart in third place, according to a survey from Roy Morgan. This marks the hardware chain’s third straight quarterly victory. The second and third rankings also remained unchanged compared to the March quarter. The biggest loser in the latest quarterly rankings was Woolworths, which fell a massive 194 places to be the fifth most distrusted brand.

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Carnival Cruise Ship Collides With a Piece of Ice in ‘Titanic’ Moment

Retail Wire

Thankfully no one was hurt after the incident and the cruise continued as normal.

Shipping 147
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Inditex books higher sales across all brands during first half

Inside Retail

Zara’s parent, Inditex, booked higher net income and sales across all of its brands during the fiscal first half year. The fashion group’s net income surged 10.1 per cent to €5.0 billion (A$8.24 billion) as net sales rose 7.2 per cent to €18.1 billion, thanks to the spring and summer collections being well received by customers. Zara’s net sales increased 5.4 per cent to €13.0 billion while Pull&Bear climbed 7.9 per cent to €1.1 billion.

Fashion 147
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SEO vs. PPC: Which Strategy Is Best for Your Business?

When it comes to driving traffic and growing your online presence, businesses often ask: SEO or PPC—what’s the better choice? This guide breaks down the key differences between search engine optimization (SEO) and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, highlighting their pros, cons, and best use cases. Whether you’re looking for long-term organic growth or immediate visibility through paid ads, we’ll help you determine which strategy—or combination of both—is right for your business.

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The PlayStation 5 Pro Is Officially Announced

Retail Wire

Sony Interactive Entertainment has just revealed its new PlayStation 5 Pro, making it the newest addition to the PlayStation lineup.

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“A feel-great story”: Why American Eagle is teaming up with female athletes

Inside Retail

Understanding how to authentically engage younger consumer groups, especially Gen Z, is key to success in retail today, but it’s easier said than done. That was the topic at the 2024 Retail Influencer CEO Forum in New York City this week, which brought together industry experts to understand how leading brands, such as American Eagle, are getting this right.

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BurgerFi International Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Protection

Retail Wire

BurgerFi International Inc., the parent company of BurgerFi and Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza & Wings, has officially filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

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Uniqlo to open 20 flagship stores in Europe, North America and Asia

Inside Retail

Uniqlo is aggressively expanding its reach by opening more than 20 flagship stores in Asia, Europe, and North America from this month, taking its worldwide store count to more than 2500. In Asia, the Fast Retailing-owned brand will open its largest store in South Korea at the Lotte World Mall and its first overseas roadside store featuring a new design concept in Bangkok, Thailand.

Planning 130
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The GTM Intelligence Era: ZoomInfo 2025 Customer Impact Report

ZoomInfo customers aren’t just selling — they’re winning. Revenue teams using our Go-To-Market Intelligence platform grew pipeline by 32%, increased deal sizes by 40%, and booked 55% more meetings. Download this report to see what 11,000+ customers say about our Go-To-Market Intelligence platform and how it impacts their bottom line. The data speaks for itself!

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Southwest Airlines Sued by City of Oakland for Allegedly Withholding Paid Time Off

Retail Wire

Southwest Airlines allegedly "retaliated" against employees who wanted PTO.

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Sales are slowing in Japan, but these categories are driving growth

Inside Retail

Sales results coming out of Japan in the past few weeks indicate that a high base-year comparison and a narrowing of the tourism effect are starting to have an adverse impact on growth. The evidence is showing up most clearly in the reports coming out of the big department store chains, where the strength is increasingly concentrated in a few flagship stores rather than being distributed across their entire store fleets.

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New Novo Nordisk Weight Loss Pill Cuts Body Weight Up to 13% in 3 Months

Retail Wire

This new weight loss medication could be an alternative to injectibles currently on the market.

Marketing 130
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If retailers care about CX, they need to be investing in the employee experience

Inside Retail

Imagine walking into a store where the staff are not only knowledgeable but genuinely enthusiastic about helping you. Or calling customer service, and having someone instantly locate the exact product, size and colour you need and suggest the best delivery option. This is the reality for companies that invest in their employees’ experience. In an era where customer expectations are high and customer experience (CX) is a top priority, retail employees have never been more important.

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Create SEO-Friendly Content to Boost Traffic & Engagement

Creating SEO-friendly content is key to improving your website’s visibility and attracting more visitors. This guide walks you through best practices for writing optimized content, including keyword placement, proper formatting, and engaging writing techniques. Whether you’re crafting blog posts, landing pages, or product descriptions, these proven SEO strategies will help your content rank higher and keep readers engaged.

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Moderna Releases Financial Outlook and Plans To Cut $1B in R&D Costs

Retail Wire

Moderna is releasing 10 new drugs but won't profit from them for several years.

Planning 130
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Roblox, Shopify partner to sell physical products in the metaverse

Retail Dive

This is the first such partnership for Roblox, which plans to integrate with “various” e-commerce platforms in the future.

Planning 127
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Waterstones to open bookshop inside John Lewis Oxford Street

Retail Gazette

Waterstones is making a return to Oxford Street as it teams up with John Lewis to open a bookshop in the retailer’s flagship on the busy shopping street. The bookseller will open a shop-in-shop on the second floor of the department store’s flagship, next to its café, on 8 October. The space will stock nearly 20,000 books, including non-fiction, fiction and children’s books.

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Big Lots gets court OK for $550M in bankruptcy financing

Retail Dive

The funding will allow the bargain-focused retailer to continue normal operations, including paying employees and vendors.

Finance 124
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AI for Commerce: Foundations, Aspirations, and Hype

AI is rapidly transforming digital commerce, but how do you separate real opportunities from hype? Moderated by Orium, AI for Commerce: Foundations, Aspirations, and Hype , experts from Bloomreach , commercetools , Contentstack , and Fluent Commerce explores where AI is already delivering results and where its potential is still unfolding. This masterclass dives into proven AI applications, emerging innovations , and the gaps between promise and reality in commerce.