Retail Focus
JUNE 17, 2025
AI has taken the world by storm. On the one hand, there are concerns regarding its use of copyrighted material, without compensation given to professional creatives. On the other hand, it can be used to handle extensive, complicated tasks quickly and efficiently. It is especially effective when used in conjunction with reliable data. AI Integration Across Industries AI has found use in most industries.
Small Biz Trends
JUNE 17, 2025
Key Takeaways Understand the Customer Journey: The customer experience encompasses all interactions throughout the buying journey, influencing perceptions and brand loyalty at each phase: awareness, consideration, and decision. Enhance Awareness and Consideration: Use targeted content and transparent product information to raise awareness and foster trust, helping potential customers move smoothly from recognizing their needs to evaluating their options.
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Inside Retail
JUNE 17, 2025
What do Cartier, The North Face, Adidas and Victoria’s Secret have in common? They have all been victims of cyberattacks in 2025. Victoria’s Secret was hit especially hard as the digital assault took place during its multi-day Memorial Day sale, and the brand had to shut down the site to restore operations. The lingerie retailer’s chief financial officer Scott Sekella said that the retailer took an estimated US$10 million hit in its second-quarter operating income from the cyberattack.
Retail TouchPoints
JUNE 17, 2025
According to IHL Group, overstock costs retail businesses $562 billion. These warehouses filled with surplus products aren’t just storage liabilities — they represent a potential gold mine of untapped revenue, waiting to be channeled back into the circular economy. Overstock is especially important for tech retailers, which have a major environmental incentive to keep functional tech out of landfills.
Speaker: Matt Sunshine, CEO at The Center for Sales Strategy
AI isn’t replacing salespeople—it’s empowering them. The most forward-thinking sales organizations are using AI to enhance human performance rather than eliminate it. From coaching and messaging to prospecting and pipeline accountability, artificial intelligence is giving managers and SDRs the new tools they need to work smarter, sell better, and close more.
Inside Retail
JUNE 17, 2025
Sébastien Kopp and Francois Ghislain Morillion set out to create sneakers differently, with the desire to trace and change every step of the production – from the raw materials to the distribution. They went to Brazil, a country they both already loved, and started to meet raw material producers. Trying to find suppliers at every level of the production chain, choosing the most ecologically and socially oriented.
Retail TouchPoints
JUNE 17, 2025
Today on Manhattan’s West side, thousands of people are funneling into the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center for a trade-focused gathering. Not an unusual occurrence at Javits, but the expo taking place today and tomorrow is unusual in a number of ways. Bild Expo is put on by iconic Manhattan-based electronics retailer B&H , but despite the fact that the show is being run by a merchant, the goal of the event is not to sell products — or in fact to make money at all.
Experience Retail Today brings together the best content for retail owners from the widest variety of industry thought leaders.
Inside Retail
JUNE 17, 2025
Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, made its imprint on the retail industry by planting stores here, there and everywhere. It’s legend that company founder Sam Walton, an enthusiastic pilot, used to identify potential store locations by reconnoitering from thousands of feet up in his own plane. Walmart accumulated so much property over the years that the book value of its land and property is pushing $120 billion.
Retail TouchPoints
JUNE 17, 2025
Specialty retailer Kirkland’s plans to change its name to The Brand House Collective and has outlined plans for a “decisive transformation” as the company deepens its partnership with Beyond, Inc. , parent company of the Bed Bath & Beyond , Overstock and BuyBuy Baby brands. “From the moment our partnership with Beyond began it was clear that our model needed to evolve,” said Amy Sullivan, CEO of Kirkland’s in a statement.
Small Biz Trends
JUNE 17, 2025
Key Takeaways Understand Consumer Behavior Shift: Post-holiday shopping sees consumers seeking personal deals, making it essential to tailor marketing strategies to focus on clearance and promotions. Leverage Data Insights: Analyzing sales data helps identify product performance and optimize inventory management, which can inform pricing and promotional tactics.
Inside Retail
JUNE 17, 2025
Tech company Rokid has launched augmented-reality glasses that allow users to make in-store digital payments without using their hands. The AR-enabled Rokid Glasses are integrated with Alipay’s voice-verification system, allowing users to complete payments simply by speaking a command. Users link their Alipay account via the Rokid app, activate voice control, and say, “Rokid, pay 10 RMB. ” The glasses then scan the merchant’s QR code and confirm the transaction on-screen.
Speaker: Steve Worthy, MBA
The rapid rise of AI-powered displays, touchless technology, and sensory marketing is reshaping the future of in-store engagement. Yet for many retail executives, the real challenge is not identifying new tools - it is knowing which signals to trust, which inputs to prioritize, and how to architect decisions that elevate in-store leadership rather than dilute it.
Wiser
JUNE 17, 2025
When brands think about retail execution , mass retailers like Walmart and Target often dominate the conversation—and for good reason. But some of the biggest share gains and growth opportunities sit within the more operationally constrained and often under-supported worlds of drug, dollar, and club channels. Each of these formats comes with its own set of challenges, shaped by shopper habits, in-store operations, and varying levels of retail control.
Retail TouchPoints
JUNE 17, 2025
E.l.f. Cosmetics has teamed up with Pinterest to introduce a new immersive digital experience for personalized beauty called “ Color E.l.f.nalysis.” The free tool helps users discover makeup shades that harmonize with their features, then matches them with a curated Pinterest board featuring shoppable E.l.f. products tailored to their individual color story.
Inside Retail
JUNE 17, 2025
Central Retail and Central Pattana, sibling companies under Thailand’s Central Group that operate retail brands and malls, respectively, both reported solid results for the first quarter of the year, but the retail arm has warned investors that the tariff brouhaha still presents significant uncertainties. Central Retail is arguably the most powerful retail conglomerate in Southeast Asia, so its results are an excellent bellwether for the retail environment in the region.
Talking Retail
JUNE 17, 2025
Research from cash-handling specialist Loomis UK suggests that the majority of people remain deeply committed to the principle that cash should continue to be accepted in UK shops.
Speaker: Beth Sunshine, SVP, Up Your Culture
When culture isn’t consistently lived out across the organization, engagement suffers—and it often starts with a disconnect at the top. In this session, Beth Sunshine, SVP of Up Your Culture at The Center for Sales Strategy, will reveal how HR and executive leaders can close the gap between vision and execution by equipping frontline and mid-level managers to become culture carriers.
VMS
JUNE 17, 2025
(PRESS RELEASE) WASHINGTON — Data released today by the U.S. Census Bureau showed continued growth in core retail sales — which exclude autos, gas and restaurants — in May despite a downturn in overall sales amid on-again, off-again tariffs on imported merchandise, National Retail Federation Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz said. “We’re continuing to see growth for core retail sales this year at about the same pace as last year,” NRF Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz said.
Talking Retail
JUNE 17, 2025
Poundland is planning to close up to 150 stores and two distribution centres as part of its restructuring plan. The company, which was sold last week, said on Tuesday it expected to end up with 650-700 stores, down from 800, after restructuring.
Small Biz Trends
JUNE 17, 2025
Key Takeaways Focus on Skill Development: Prioritize comprehensive sales training to enhance essential skills such as negotiation, closing techniques, and objection handling for improved performance. Implement Data-Driven Strategies: Tailor your sales strategies to meet customer needs using data analytics to refine sales approaches and boost conversion rates.
Inside Retail
JUNE 17, 2025
As any copywriter will tell you, trying to come up with a punchy headline that includes ‘End of Financial Year’ is no mean feat. A little corporate. A lot clunky. It says tax time rather than treat yourself, and packs about as much joy as the words ‘fiscal policy.’ Literally unspeakable, ‘EOFY’ is slightly better for headers, but no good for radio and those unfamiliar with it.
Speaker: Jason Cottrell and Gireesh Sahukar
Retailers know the clock is ticking–legacy SAP Commerce support ends in 2026. Legacy platforms are becoming a liability burdened by complexity, rigidity, and mounting operational costs. But modernization isn’t just about swapping out systems, it’s about preparing for a future shaped by real-time interactions, AI powered buying assistants, and flexible commerce architecture.
Small Biz Trends
JUNE 17, 2025
Key Takeaways Understand Key Components: Effective pricing encompasses material costs, labor time, overhead expenses, and product quality to ensure comprehensive coverage of costs and profitability. Explore Pricing Strategies: Consider various pricing models, such as cost-plus, market-based, and value-based pricing, to align your items’ prices with market trends and customer perceptions.
Retail TouchPoints
JUNE 17, 2025
At Home has filed for Chapter 11 protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, part of an agreement with its lenders for a prearranged financial restructuring that will eliminate nearly $2 billion of the home furnishings retailer’s funded debt. “Over the past several months, we’ve taken deliberate steps to strengthen the foundation of our business — sharpening our focus, elevating our customer value proposition and driving operational discipline,” said Brad Weston, CEO of
Inside Retail
JUNE 17, 2025
Last week, Future Commerce hosted the Visions Summit, which brought together leading commerce and culture experts to explore what the future of retail has in store. Hosted at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City, the panels ranged from discussions about the importance of architectural design to the consumer shift towards digital retail spaces.
Retail TouchPoints
JUNE 17, 2025
Amazon has doubled 2025’s Prime Day event to four days, offering 96 hours of deals and special offers from July 8-11. New this year will be Today’s Big Deals, themed daily drops of deals for brands including Samsung, Kiehl’s and Levi’s that will be available exclusively to Prime members. Amazon also has sweetened the Prime for Young Adults membership offer for customers aged 18 to 24.
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AI agents already analyze trends, draft content, and trigger actions across leading commerce platforms. Yet most organizations still rely on workflows built for human‑only teams, losing speed, margin, and customer loyalty. Humans + Agents: Rethinking Enterprise Commerce in the Age of AI Collaboration shows how to close that gap. In one concise read you’ll see where agent gains surface first, how early adopters prove ROI, and which lean controls keep innovation moving without risking data or bran
Retail Gazette
JUNE 17, 2025
Boots has expanded its on-demand delivery service in London, allowing customers to order health and beauty essentials until midnight. The extended hours are currently being trialled in ten of the retailer ’s busiest central London stores, serving over two million customers. Boots said the move is designed to cater to growing demand for convenience and immediate access to products, particularly outside of traditional retail hours.
Retail TouchPoints
JUNE 17, 2025
Loblaws is expanding its partnership with DoorDash by allowing members of the retailer’s PC Optimum loyalty program to earn points with their DoorDash purchases, whether they are made at Loblaws supermarkets or at restaurants or other merchants’ stores. Program members can earn five PC Optimum points for each dollar spent on eligible orders, but for the first three months, members will earn 10 points for each dollar spent, along with a 25,000 -point bonus for members who are entirely new to Door
Retail Gazette
JUNE 17, 2025
Boots chief marketing officer Pete Markey has left the retailer after more than four and a half years. Markey, who joined the health and beauty chain in 2021, played a key role in the growth of brand’s loyalty proposition and was responsible for some of its biggest Christmas and summer campaigns. He wrote in a LinkedIn post: “Boots is an incredible business and it’s been an honour to work on such an amazing brand and with such a talented group of people over the past 4.5 years.
Retail Smart Guys
JUNE 17, 2025
In today’s fast-paced retail environment, where inventory delays, unpredictable supply chains, and consumer demand for “what’s new” dominate, speed and accuracy in operations can make or break your business. Yet, one of the most overlooked tasks in retail is entering purchase orders (POs) promptly. Most store owners dread it. It’s not glamorous.
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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.
VMS
JUNE 17, 2025
A lot of retailers say they are raising prices in the face of the Trump administration’s import tariff increases (some in force, some still pending) and have also been making efforts to inform consumers that such taxes are behind the increases. Those are among the major findings of a just-released survey of 500 retail ecommerce merchants by fraud-protection provider Signifyd.
Inside Retail
JUNE 17, 2025
Amazon is extending its annual Prime Day event to four days for the first time, offering Prime members exclusive deals from July 8 to July 11 across 22 markets, including the US, UK, Canada, Germany, Australia, Singapore and Japan. Jamil Ghani, VP for Amazon Prime , said the extended sales window gives Prime members more time to score deals across categories such as fashion, pantry essentials, home improvement, personal care, toys, school supplies and premium goods. “Prime Day is about ce
Small Biz Trends
JUNE 17, 2025
Key Takeaways Avoid Aggressiveness: Maintain a respectful and inquisitive tone during discussions; aggressive tactics can alienate franchise executives. Do Your Research: Familiarize yourself with franchise documents and metrics to enhance your credibility and demonstrate genuine interest. Understand Franchise Culture: Aligning your values with the franchisor’s brand values is crucial for avoiding miscommunication and fostering successful relationships.
Inside Retail
JUNE 17, 2025
In a cultural moment where authenticity is driving brand engagement, Bonds has made a powerful statement with its latest campaign: “Call it what it is. Period.” Supported by three-time Olympian Jessica Fox, the campaign is both a marketing push and a bold social stand. With an objective to normalise conversations around menstruation, Bonds is coming into this year with an unapologetic vernacular and a reestablished focus on comfort, honesty and empowerment.
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Late deliveries. Split shipments. Spiraling freight costs. For home, furniture, and DIY brands, fulfillment has never been more complex—or more critical. This report outlines how a smarter, AI-ready order management system (OMS) helps you reduce shipping costs, streamline project-based fulfillment, and ensure accurate inventory across every channel.
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