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
Brands Briefing: The Brands that Are Ripe for Acquisition in 2026
M&A activity is reviving in 2026 after a subdued 2025. Last year saw marquee deals such as e.l.f. Beauty’s $1 billion purchase of Rhode and PepsiCo’s $2 billion acquisition of Poppi. Tariff pressures that kept many potential buyers on the sidelines are easing, prompting industry watchers to anticipate a surge in transactions. Analysts are already flagging several consumer‑focused brands as prime acquisition candidates for strategic buyers and private‑equity firms.
Instant Ad Research: Hours Turned Into Seconds
Most ad research is manual and slow. This does in seconds what used to take hours. Competitor hooks, angles, and what to test next. Check it out. I'm proud to be a paid advocate for them.
Amazon Proposes Second Big-Box Store for Chicago Area
Amazon has submitted a proposal to build a 225,000‑square‑foot retail store in Oak Brook, Illinois, alongside a 150,000‑square‑foot Ashley Furniture flagship. The project would be the second Amazon big‑box location in the Chicago metro after the Orland Park store cleared...
Low-Value Imports Upend E.U. Ecommerce
EU consumer demand for low‑value imports is reshaping the region’s ecommerce landscape. In 2025, 5.9 billion parcels valued at €150 or less entered the bloc, representing 98% of import volume but less than 5% of total value. Roughly one‑third of EU...
Introducing Later 360: One View for All Your Influencer Marketing Data
Later 360 launches as an enterprise‑grade reporting suite that consolidates organic influencer metrics, paid amplification data, and commerce outcomes into a single, real‑time dashboard. Built on a dataset exceeding $2 billion in verified influencer‑driven purchases and 130 billion annual impressions, the platform uses...
Function Health’s New Erewhon Smoothie Was Designed to Highlight Nutritional Gaps and Promote Telehealth Lab Testing
Function Health, a telehealth platform with half‑million users, unveiled a limited‑edition Erewhon smoothie to spotlight widespread nutritional deficiencies revealed by its lab tests. The company reports that 65% of members have elevated insulin, 54% show high ApoB, and 70% are...
Affirm Partnerships Target Growth
Affirm is rapidly expanding its buy‑now‑pay‑later (BNPL) footprint by striking partnerships with Intuit, Expedia, a tenant‑services firm, and payment processor Fiserv. The strategy targets new verticals such as travel, tax preparation, rent payments, and debit‑card users, aiming to broaden consumer...
The Death of Page One: AI Storefronts Rewrite Retail Strategy
AI‑driven storefronts are replacing traditional search results with a narrow set of algorithmically ranked product recommendations. Retailers now face a paradigm shift where page‑one SEO is obsolete, and product visibility hinges on metadata and AI governance. The article argues that...
National Retail Solutions Attains BBB Accreditation, A+ Rating
National Retail Solutions (NRS) has earned Better Business Bureau accreditation with the top‑tier A+ rating. The accolade follows a company‑wide initiative to improve customer service and streamline merchant issue resolution. NRS, a subsidiary of IDT Corporation, provides integrated POS and...
WooCommerce May Gain Sidekick-Type AI Through Extensions via @Sejournal, @Martinibuster
WooCommerce is evolving into an AI‑agnostic coordination layer through the open Model Context Protocol (MCP), allowing AI agents such as OpenAI’s ACP and Shopify‑Google’s UCP to plug directly into its ecosystem. Automattic’s James LePage says the platform will support native...
CASE STUDY: L’ERA Tops £140k in TikTok Live Sales as Livestream Shopping Gains Momentum
London jewellery brand L’ERA recorded over £140,000 in TikTok Live sales in 2025, nearly doubling its livestream revenue since launching in August 2023. The founders host four to six weekly livestreams, securing individual orders above £1,400 and using the channel...
What CFOs Need From Banks and FinTechs in Cross-Border Payments
Cross‑border payments are undergoing a structural shift as CFOs demand more predictable, liquid, and compliant solutions. FinTech firms have accelerated speed and API‑driven usability, opening new corridors and transparent pricing. At the same time, banks are investing in modern settlement,...
Unilever Turns to AI for ‘New Era of Shopping for Brands’
Unilever has signed a five‑year partnership with Google Cloud to embed advanced AI, data and platform capabilities across its global operations. Leveraging Google’s Vertex AI and Gemini models, the consumer‑goods giant will build an AI‑first digital backbone that powers faster...
Story-Driven Product Copy Triples Add-to-Cart Rates
I've tested 200+ product descriptions. Here's the pattern: Descriptions I wrote as 'features lists' got 2% ATCs. Descriptions I wrote as 'transformation stories' got 9% ATCs. Your specs don't matter. Outcomes do. Test everything. Trust nothing.
John Lewis to Roll Out Topshop to 32 Stores Nationwide
John Lewis is re‑introducing Topshop to 32 of its stores and Topman to seven locations as part of an £800 million multi‑year fashion investment. The rollout follows a redesign of the Oxford Street flagship and adds a slate of new international...
Commission Launches Investigation Into Shein Under the Digital Services Act
The European Commission has opened formal proceedings against fast‑fashion giant Shein under the Digital Services Act (DSA). The probe targets Shein’s addictive design features, opaque recommender‑system algorithms, and the sale of illegal items, including child sexual abuse material. Regulators will...
Retail Brand Monitoring Software: Track What Customers Say
Retail brand monitoring software transforms the way retailers listen to digital word‑of‑mouth, using AI to aggregate mentions across social, review sites, forums and emerging AI‑generated answers. The tools deliver real‑time alerts, sentiment scores and competitor share‑of‑voice, turning scattered feedback into...
The New Printify Premium Is Here: Your Unfair Advantage Just Got Upgraded
In this episode Maisha Rachmat walks listeners through the revamped Printify Premium subscription, highlighting its new focus on helping sellers choose profitable products faster and boost margins. The plan now costs $39 monthly (still $299 annually) and adds free access...
Is International Shipping the Next Growth Lever for UK eCommerce?
UK eCommerce faces saturated domestic growth, prompting retailers to look abroad. Around 59% of global shoppers have bought from an international retailer and cross‑border sales already represent 20‑30% of worldwide eCommerce. The market is projected to expand from $1.47 trillion in...
Amazon’s New Image Policy: Platform Can Now Replace Your Product Photos
The episode breaks down Amazon’s 2026 product image policy, which now allows the platform to replace seller photos—including brand‑registered listings—if they don’t meet stricter standards. It outlines the exact technical requirements (white background, 1600+ px, 85‑100% product fill, etc.), the red‑flags...
Hourglass Launches DTC Channel In Australia & New Zealand
Hourglass has launched its first direct‑to‑consumer website, hourglasscosmetics.com.au, targeting Australia and New Zealand. The rollout includes free standard shipping for the first month, a 10% welcome discount, and complimentary gifts for orders over $120 and $150. The DTC channel runs alongside...
Retail Expansion Drives Record Earnings for Baby Bunting
Baby Bunting posted record half‑year sales of $271.4 million, a 4.9% increase year‑on‑year, driven by a mix of new large‑format stores, small‑format openings, and six "store of the future" refurbishments. Online sales climbed to 24.8% of total revenue, up 18%, reflecting...
MECCHA Sets Up Pre-Orders for Japan Exclusives with Worldwide Shipping
MECCHA Japan has launched a pre‑order service that lets international fans purchase exclusive Japanese anime figures, trading‑card boosters, and themed merchandise with worldwide shipping. The catalog includes high‑profile items such as a 45 cm Monkey D. Luffy statue, a Final Fantasy VIII musical box,...
How Retailers Should Respond to Events Like Ramadan and the Lunar New Year
Retailers face a rare calendar convergence as Ramadan and Lunar New Year begin almost simultaneously in February 2024. Luxury and beauty brands are launching limited‑edition products and pop‑up events, but many consumers criticize superficial zodiac imagery and token gestures. Experts...
EBay Appoints VP of AI Transformation to Catch up in Agentic Race
eBay announced the appointment of Michelle Warvel as Vice President of AI Transformation, signaling a strategic push to accelerate its agentic AI capabilities. The marketplace is simultaneously launching a hiring campaign for specialized AI design and research roles while tightening...
5 Shopify Personalization Tactics That Actually Move the Needle (With Real Test Data)
In this episode Julian Samarjiev of Convertibles shares five data‑backed Shopify personalization tactics that consistently add $6K‑$50K per month in incremental revenue for eight‑figure stores. He explains how matching offers to traffic source, placing social proof at checkout, using need‑based...
Ai Avatars For Shopify: How Smart Merchants Are Using Them To Sell More In 2026
The episode explains how Shopify merchants can leverage AI avatars to produce scalable, high‑quality product videos that boost conversion rates by up to 80% while cutting production costs to roughly 10% of traditional methods. It outlines five high‑impact use cases—product...
Cash Flow and Liquidity Are Not the Same Thing (and E-Commerce CFOs Keep Mixing Them Up)
In this episode Steve Hutt explains why e‑commerce CFOs often conflate cash flow— a backward‑looking snapshot of money in and out—with liquidity, the real‑time ability to meet unexpected obligations. He outlines a three‑layer framework—real‑time liquidity dashboards, rolling 13‑week cash‑flow forecasts,...
Automate, Augment, Simulate: How Retailers Are Building Resilient Supply Chains for 2026
Retail supply chains face chronic labor shortages, rising costs and heightened customer expectations, prompting a shift toward technology‑driven models. By 2026, automation will move from advantage to requirement, with feasibility assessments guiding investments in robotics and AI. Simultaneously, AI‑enabled workforce...
Your Retail Media Network Isn’t a Network — and What to Do About It
Retail media is booming, but most so‑called retail media networks are merely on‑site ad products. True networks demand off‑site reach, unified cross‑channel measurement, and first‑party data activation, a capability only a few retailers like Walmart and Amazon currently possess. The...
Let’s Be Straight on Deliveries
Online shoppers increasingly value reliable delivery dates, yet many experience shifting timelines and missed windows. A recent Avery Dennison survey shows 37% of consumers rank delivery delays as their top frustration, and 32% would abandon a favored brand after a single...
SiteOne Ramps up Digital Push as Online Sales Jump in 2025
SiteOne Landscape Supply reported a 120% jump in digital sales for 2025, boosting net income 23% to $151.8 million while overall revenue grew 4% to $4.7 billion. The company’s revamped e‑commerce platform attracted roughly 10,000 regular online users and integrated delivery‑optimization software,...
OpenAI Expands Agentic Commerce Push
OpenAI is turning ChatGPT into a full‑service commerce platform by expanding its Instant Checkout feature and launching the open‑source Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP). The company has integrated payments through Stripe and PayPal and added grocery ordering via Instacart, initially supporting...
Vinted’s Rise Signals a Turning Point in Europe’s Circular Fashion Economy
Vinted has become the UK’s third‑largest fashion retailer, reporting €813.4 million in revenue for 2024—a 36 % jump from the prior year—and is on track to breach €1 billion. The platform now serves over 17.4 million UK users and leads in France by volume,...
New Customs Rules for Imported Parcels
The EU Council approved new customs rules that will end the duty‑free exemption for parcels up to €150, imposing a flat €3 charge per item category starting July 1. Last year, 5.8 billion low‑cost e‑commerce parcels entered the bloc, a 26 % rise...
Fractional Editorial Lead Enhances AI Content with Expert Insight
Someone just asked me what type of work I'm doing most these days and I explained it as this: I'm a fractional editorial lead of sorts right now: the point person who works closely with either a content engineer, in-house content...
Detailed Brand Kits Boost AI Output Quality
One thing I'm realizing as I get more in the weeds with @claudeai (+ now @AirOpsHQ) is how important things like detailed brand kits are if you want quality outputs. This week's newsletter is about how to make sure you're...
QuicKart Secures $1.5 Million to Expand Fresh Commerce Across the UAE
QuicKart, the UAE’s first dedicated fresh‑commerce platform for dairy and farm produce, closed a $1.5 million seed round led by Orbit Ventures. The funding will be used to optimise supply‑chain logistics, upgrade technology, expand last‑mile fulfilment and cold‑chain infrastructure, and add...
Product Research for Shopify: A Proven System for Finding Print-on-Demand Bestsellers
After more than a decade in ecommerce, the author stresses that product selection, not design or platform, drives success for Shopify print‑on‑demand stores. He outlines a data‑centric workflow that starts with trend signals on TikTok and Etsy, validates demand across...
Senior Designer Wanted for Top DTC Brands
Easy Street Brands is looking to hire a senior designer for one of our portfolio brands. Looking for someone with experience designing website elements, landing pages and ads. Packaging design experience is a bonus. You must have 5+ years experience working with...
Focus on Buyer Intent, Not Follower Count
I know stores with 100k followers doing $10k/month. I know stores with 2k followers doing $200k/month. Followers aren't the metric. Buyer intent is. Build an audience that buys not one that likes.
15 Best Websites To Sell Old Stuff
The article lists the 15 top websites for selling used items, from broad marketplaces like eBay and Facebook Marketplace to niche platforms such as The RealReal and Ruby Lane. Each site is evaluated on its strengths—global reach, local convenience, specialty...
Amazon's High Capex-to-FCF Isn't New, Still Managed Well
Working on my $AMZN growth thesis report for this week, and just helpful to point out, that this high capex to FCF is not uncharted territory for Amazon. I get there is more competition this time than e-comm but they...
Brands Autonomously Launch Free Gift Promos via Our App
Launched @promopartypro and a Hasbro brand found, installed, and started running free gift promos without us saying a word. That's the signal we love to see as app devs. They have the Battersea Transformers store running free gift with purchase...
AI Influencer Pitches: How To Land Brand Deals Smarter In 2026
The episode explains that in 2026 influencer pitches must be performance‑focused, with brands demanding clear ROI rather than just creative enthusiasm. It outlines how AI tools like CreatorGPT assist creators by generating personalized, metrics‑rich drafts, allowing influencers to highlight relevant...
Claude Code Automates Home Server, Now Wants Shopify Integration
i finally tried claude code and of course i'm claudepilled now. it made it adminstrator of our home server. it spend the weekend configuring a custom media server for me, and its perfect. how do i connect claude code to...
International PPC: Why Consistency Is So Hard To Maintain via @Sejournal, @Brookeosmundson
International pay‑per‑click (PPC) programs become chaotic when brands expand across borders, juggling different languages, regulations, and agency partners. The article argues that consistency is the primary obstacle, not scaling, and outlines a framework that blends a global brand playbook with...
E632: Amazon’s Stock Is Cratering – Here’s What Happened
In this episode Dave breaks down Amazon’s near‑10% stock plunge, contrasting it with an 8% e‑commerce growth rate and record‑high AWS revenue. He examines the factors behind the dip, including aggressive 2026 capital spending and investor skepticism about AI initiatives...
Access THG’s Cult Beauty and LOOKFANTASTIC Audience Through The Trade Desk
THG has struck a strategic partnership with advertising technology leader The Trade Desk, allowing media buyers to access THG’s Cult Beauty and LOOKFANTASTIC audience segments via The Trade Desk’s self‑serve Kokai platform. The integration brings high‑quality, real‑world commerce data to...
TikTok Joins EASA to Advance Advertising Standards
TikTok has joined the European Advertising Standards Alliance (EASA) as a full digital member, aligning with 28 self‑regulatory bodies across Europe. The move underscores the platform’s push for responsible advertising, complementing its expanded TikTok Safety Suite and clear commercial‑disclosure settings....