Today's Ecommerce Pulse
Target launches Circle Deal Days to challenge Amazon Prime Day
Target is launching its Target Circle Deal Days from June 23‑26, positioning the free‑to‑join program as a direct rival to Amazon Prime Day. New members who enroll between June 14‑22 receive a 15% discount on their first purchase, plus a free Starbucks coffee or Bullseye cookie on launch day, and a 50% discount on the first year of Target Circle 360.
Also developing:
By the numbers: FirstClub raises $55M Series B
2026 Modern Retail Index: How Retailers Are Tackling Financial Challenges, AI, Marketplaces and Supply Chain
Retailers faced a turbulent 2025, grappling with tariffs, supply-chain disruptions and a cooling consumer market. While some brands posted gains, drugstore chains such as Walgreens, Rite Aid and CVS shuttered hundreds of locations, and big‑box retailers struggled with shifting demand and digital competition. Across the sector, AI use broadened to pricing, merchandising and forecasting, and companies refined marketplace and loyalty strategies. Shipping speeds accelerated, yet returns remained a bottleneck.
What Keeps LSKD on Top of the Online CX Index
LSKD has held the number‑one spot on Humii’s Inside Retail Online CX Index for two consecutive years, posting sub‑5% abandonment and near‑100% retention. The brand’s edge stems from frictionless returns, ultra‑fast operational speed, intuitive product discovery, transparent checkout, clear loyalty...
Etsy Displays Price Plus Shipping in UK Search Results
Etsy has begun displaying a combined item‑plus‑shipping price for UK shoppers in search results, a change announced on February 25. The update aligns the marketplace with the UK Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers (DMCC) Act, which mandates upfront price transparency. Sellers...
ThredUp Inc (TDUP) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
ThredUp reported Q4 2025 revenue of $79.7 million, up 18.5% year‑over‑year, and a full‑year revenue of $310.8 million, a 20% increase. The company completed its shift to a consignment‑based model, now covering over 90% of transactions, and posted adjusted EBITDA in every...
Introducing BRP Experiences: A New Gateway to Unforgettable Outdoor Adventures
BRP Inc. has unveiled BRR Experiences, a refreshed online marketplace that aggregates curated powersports adventures across snowmobile, watercraft, and off‑road categories. The platform builds on the Uncharted Society legacy, now offering access to more than 225 destinations in 14 countries...
One Prompt AI Runs My Entire Dropshipping Business
In this video, I show you how I use an AI agent to run my entire Dropshipping business from a single prompt. It handles product research, builds the store, creates video and image ads, and even launches and manages Facebook...
Passion Beats Perfect Reviews: Test Anything, Scale Fast
I lost $5k on a product with 'perfect' 5-star reviews. Market said no. I tested a product with mixed reviews but a passionate following. Scaled to $50k/month. The market doesn't care about perfection. It cares about passion. Test everything.
Brand Persona Guide: How To Develop a Brand Persona
Authenticity is increasingly linked to purchase intent, prompting brands to seek consistent, genuine voices. Because a brand isn’t a single individual, creating a brand persona—an internal fictional character—helps translate abstract identity into concrete actions. The guide outlines a seven‑step process...
In Real Life: Align Your Operation’s Digital and Brick-and-Mortar Presence
Retailers now have a digital twin that AI evaluates when generating search overviews. An optimized Google Business Profile serves as the new Yellow Pages, feeding AI the first impression of a store. Consistency of name, address, and phone across online...
Purpose Sells: Warby Parker's Give‑back Beats Product‑only Brands
Warby Parker donated over 20 million pairs of glasses through their 'Buy a Pair, Give a Pair' program. A mission baked into every sale. Meanwhile you're just selling a product with no story or purpose behind it. That's the gap.
Email Cadence: How Often Should You Email Customers?
Marketers are wrestling with the optimal email cadence – the frequency and sequencing of messages that keep customers engaged without causing fatigue. MailerLite’s analysis of over one million 2024 campaigns shows that twice‑weekly sends deliver the highest click‑through rate (5.8%)...
10 Best Opinew Alternatives & Competitors (2026)
Opinew, a review import tool, is losing favor as brands seek authentic, first‑party UGC. The article ranks the top ten Opinew alternatives for 2026, highlighting Yotpo as the premier choice for growth‑oriented e‑commerce firms. Other options span budget‑friendly solutions like...
Primary Audience Guide: How To Identify Your Primary Audience
Identifying a primary audience is essential for focused marketing and brand advocacy. The article outlines primary, secondary, and gatekeeper audiences, explains market segmentation, and provides a step‑by‑step framework for data‑driven audience profiling. Real‑world examples, such as sustainable sneaker brands and...
ElectricEye: How Shopify’s Most Focused Design Agency Builds for Conversion
ElectricEye is a Shopify‑only design, development and conversion‑rate optimisation agency serving DTC lifestyle brands with $1 M‑$50 M in revenue. The firm leverages a data‑first diagnostic process and the ICE (Impact, Confidence, Ease) scoring framework to prioritize high‑leverage changes before any code...
Jumpstart Commerce: How Southeast Asia’s Top Shopify Plus Agency Builds for Scale
Jumpstart Commerce, the only Shopify Platinum Partner in Southeast Asia, has built over 800 Shopify Plus stores for luxury and fast‑growing DTC brands across Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines. The agency differentiates itself by designing regional‑scale architecture, mobile‑first performance,...
Under $500K? Founder Handles All Marketing
And also, if your e-commerce business makes less than $500,000/year you truly don’t need a marketing team or an agency or a social media manager. And I truly don’t care what anybody in any of those roles have to say....
E‑commerce Founders Trade Pubs for Heatmaps on Weekends
Everyone on a Saturday: At the pub. Ecom founders on a Saturday: Analysing heatmaps to see why their add-to-cart rate is dropping. Different mindset. Different tax bracket.
From $300 to 8 Figures: How Hedley & Bennett Became a Heritage Brand
Ellen Bennett launched Hedley & Bennett in 2010 with just $300 and no formal business background. By focusing on chef‑driven product development and relentless quality control, the company turned a failed apron batch into a premium line. Today the brand...
DHL Group and JD.com Sign MoU
DHL Group and JD.com have signed a memorandum of understanding to help German brands expand into China and Europe. The partnership merges DHL’s global logistics network with JD.com’s Joybuy platform, creating an integrated e‑commerce solution. It enables German manufacturers to...
Stay22 Lands US$122M Investment From Summit Partners to Accelerate International AI Expansion
Stay22, a Montreal‑based creator‑economy platform, secured a $122 million growth capital infusion from private‑equity firm Summit Partners. The company reported processing more than $1 billion in transactions last year, underscoring its rapid adoption among event‑driven merchants. The new funding will be directed...
Block Cuts 40% of Workforce as Dorsey Says AI Tools Have Changed How to Build and Run a Company
Block announced a 40% workforce reduction, cutting more than 4,000 jobs as it pivots toward artificial‑intelligence‑driven operations. CEO Jack Dorsey said AI tools have fundamentally altered how companies are built and run, prompting the restructuring. Despite the layoffs, the company...
E-Commerce 2026 Trends: Building Loyalty and Trust with AI-Powered Visual Experiences
Retailers are accelerating AI‑powered visual experiences to boost loyalty. Hyper‑personalisation delivers up to 16% higher commercial impact, while AR/VR try‑on lifts conversion by 94%. Brands will adopt staged, transparent AI content, focusing on complex, interactive experiences. Trust hinges on consent...
AI Creates Month’s Video Ads in Just 30 Minutes
🤯 Generated a month of video ad creatives in 30 mins 🔥 AI wrote scripts from winning formulas 🛠️ Realistic AI avatars 🤵 Perfect voiceovers 📦 Ready to upload and test This is crushing $3k video editors Want the workflow? RT + comment 'AI VIDEO'
The Head Fake: Buying the Chinese Stocks Post-Ruling Dip
The U.S. Supreme Court’s February 20 decision struck down IEEPA‑based tariffs, removing the worst‑case tariff risk for Chinese e‑commerce firms. The market’s initial rally faded as investors fretted over a possible 15% global tariff, creating a temporary dip in Alibaba...
What Is POS Experience? 8 Strategies To Enhance Customer Satisfaction
Shopify highlights that point‑of‑sale (POS) experience is the decisive moment of a retail visit, where checkout friction can outweigh all prior service. Retailers must treat POS as a design and workflow challenge, not just a payment app, to meet online‑level...
How Micro Fulfillment Hubs Make Same-Day Delivery for Small Retailers Possible
Micro‑fulfillment centers (MFCs) are compact, technology‑driven hubs placed within 5‑10 miles of consumers, enabling same‑day or even two‑hour deliveries for small retailers. By decentralizing inventory, they cut last‑mile distances and reduce shipping costs, directly addressing the 21% cart‑abandonment rate tied...
How Shiprocket Is Building The Backbone Of Bharat’s Ecommerce Growth
Shiprocket, originally launched as KartRocket in 2012, has transformed into a full‑stack ecommerce enablement platform that now powers more than 4 lakh merchants, many from Tier II and III cities. The platform bundles shipping, checkout, returns, analytics and working‑capital services, leveraging AI...
Modern Retail Podcast: Marketing Is Experiencing an AI Reckoning
In the latest Modern Retail Podcast, co‑hosts Gabriela Barkho and Melissa Daniels, joined by executive editor Anna Hensel, examine how artificial intelligence is reshaping retail marketing. They note that rising customer‑acquisition costs and a more discerning shopper base are driving...
Top 10 Froonze VIP Loyalty & Wishlist Alternatives 2026
The article reviews the ten leading alternatives to Froonze VIP Loyalty & Wishlist for 2026, highlighting each platform’s features, pricing, and strategic value. It stresses that growing e‑commerce brands outgrow Froonze’s basic setup and need deeper customization, analytics, and integrations....
Revolve Group Net Sales Grow as AI’s Role Expands for Shoppers
Revolve Group reported a 10.4% year‑over‑year increase in net sales to $324.37 million for Q4 2025, driven by AI‑enhanced personalization, search and styling tools. Beauty product sales surged 43%, while net income rose 58% and adjusted EBITDA grew 44%. Executives highlighted...
What Is Backlog Inventory? Causes and How to Manage It (2026)
The article defines backlog inventory as sold but unshipped stock and explains how it differs from back orders and overall order backlogs. It outlines four primary causes—demand spikes, supply delays, operational issues, and routing errors—and quantifies the financial risk of...
BlueLinx Bets on AI as It Navigates a Soft Housing Market
BlueLinx Holdings is reshaping its digital roadmap around artificial intelligence while steering through a soft housing market that left full‑year 2025 sales essentially flat. The company skipped a multi‑million‑dollar traditional ecommerce build, citing rapid AI‑driven changes in ordering behavior. Q4...
Resideo Pushes Connected Products and Digital Buying Tools
Resideo Technologies reported Q4 revenue of $1.895 billion, a 2% increase, and net income of $136 million, while full‑year sales hit a record $7.472 billion, up 11% from 2024. A one‑time $527 million loss, linked to ending a Honeywell indemnification agreement, turned the annual...
Mirakl Turns Profitable as Recurring Revenue and Marketplace Activity Grows
Mirakl announced full‑year profitability for 2025, driven by a 23% jump in annual recurring revenue (ARR) to $218 million. Marketplace and dropship activity surged, processing roughly $15 billion in gross merchandise value (GMV), a 31% increase year‑over‑year. New products such as Mirakl...
2,000 Robots Walk Into a Shop: Simulated A/B Testing (2026) – Shopify
Shopify’s SimGym simulates up to 2,000 cloud‑browser robots to run instant A/B tests on storefront changes, eliminating weeks‑long traffic waits. The system pairs Browserbase’s Chromium sessions with an open‑source 120‑billion‑parameter Mixture‑of‑Experts model, optimized through MXFP4 quantization, FP8 KV‑cache, and custom...
Katana Cloud Inventory Review 2026: The Honest Guide for Shopify Brands That Make What They Sell
Katana positions itself as the only Shopify‑native cloud inventory and manufacturing platform, unifying real‑time inventory, production planning, and shop‑floor execution. It targets Shopify brands that make their own products, charging a $299 per‑month Core plan plus optional add‑ons and a $2,000...
Home Depot Launches Real-Time Delivery Tracking for Large Items
Home Depot has introduced real‑time delivery tracking for all large‑item orders, expanding a feature previously limited to small parcels. The rollout leverages handheld devices used by drivers to log checkpoints, giving customers live visibility into the status of bulky shipments...
Your Creators Aren’t Lazy — Your Incentives Are Broken
In this episode, Brywin (CMO) and Parker (CEO) dive into the biggest challenge brands face on TikTok Shop: how to properly incentivize creators. They outline a four‑layer incentive framework—GMV leaderboard rewards, volume completion bonuses, fast‑mover contests, and daily raffle draws—to...
AI Agents and the Future of Global Trade with Alibaba’s Kuo Zhang - Ep. 291
In this episode, Kuo Zhang, President of Alibaba.com, explains how the platform’s new AI agent, Axio, is transforming global B2B trade by handling complex sourcing tasks, from interpreting natural‑language requests to managing compliance, logistics, and supplier communication. He highlights real‑world...
Financial Fluency Doubles Owners' Cash Extraction From Revenue
If you don't have financial fluency, your chances of turning business revenue -> personal cash plummet. I have the data to prove it. I surveyed 200+ store owners as part of the 2026 eComFuel Trends Report (full report coming soon). One of the...
Know Your 12 Key Ecom Metrics or Fail
Ecom operators are surrounded by data meant to guide them, yet they’re still operating in the dark. Plenty of brands know their ROAS. Far fewer know their: - Break-even ROAS - Blended CAC against contribution margin - CPMs relative to 2026...
TikTok Shop Scraps Controversial Shipping Overhaul Under Seller Pressure
TikTok Shop announced on February 17, 2026 that it is pausing the enforcement of a policy that would have eliminated independent shipping for U.S. sellers, keeping the existing fulfillment model in place for now. The original mandate required merchants to...
Google Experiments Adding Web Mentions to Retailer Reviews
ICYMI: Google tests web mentions in the reviews section of retailer store pages https://t.co/SuUPYs3fu4 https://t.co/2sQKHp9rT9
Predict Demand, Optimize Inventory with E‑commerce Data
Using #Ecommerce Datasets to Predict Demand and Optimize Inventory - B2B Marketing Blog | Webbiquity - https://t.co/psCIERg8OO
Amazon and Shopify Now Control Nearly Half of U.S. E-Commerce
Amazon now commands roughly 35.7% of U.S. online retail, generating about $440 billion in 2025, while Shopify’s merchant network accounts for 14% of the market. Together they control 49.7% of the $1.2 trillion U.S. e‑commerce landscape, up from 43% in 2021. This...
Amazon Backs OpenAI with $50B, Co‑develops Custom Models
AMZN confirms today, in addition to $50b backing of OpenAI, it will co-develop custom models to power Amazon consumer tools, as reported by The Information I first reported details in @ReadTheAisle last week on Rufus shopping assistant being involved https://t.co/60Z6WBfyvh
PayPal, Rainforest Join Forces
PayPal announced a partnership with Atlanta‑based Rainforest to embed PayPal, Venmo and buy‑now‑pay‑later services directly into Rainforest’s software platform. The integration is designed to accelerate merchant payouts, cut late‑payment incidents and shift transaction volume away from cash and checks. Rainforest,...
The Hidden Surge in Sales Promotion Fraud: What Retailers Must Prepare For in 2026
Sales promotion fraud is accelerating as retailers launch richer incentives in 2026, and AI‑powered bots and synthetic identities are now automating claim submissions at scale. Fraudsters exploit loopholes in cashback, rebate and trade‑in programs, using deep‑fake receipts and coordinated “promotion...
MetaMask Is Now Also Available in Card Form via Mastercard Partnership
MetaMask, the leading Ethereum wallet, has introduced a co‑branded payment card in partnership with Mastercard. The MetaMask Card is now available in 49 U.S. states, marking its first rollout in New York. The card allows users to spend crypto holdings...
Inside eBay’s London Roadshow
eBay held its first London roadshow, five years after the inaugural Sheffield event, gathering UK sellers to discuss AI tools and community support. The highlight was the “AI Activate” program, a partnership with OpenAI that gives 10,000 sellers funded access...