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
Etsy Is (Technically) Funding Coupons in Targeted Promotions
Etsy is distributing platform‑funded coupons, like the recent SHOP15 code offering up to $20 off, to a select group of buyers. These promotions are invitation‑only, have a 2026 expiration, and can be used with any shop that accepts Etsy gift cards. The initiative follows Etsy’s April 2022 fee increase from 5% to 6.5%, which the company justified by pledging greater marketing spend. By subsidizing discounts, Etsy aims to stimulate repeat purchases and reinforce its marketplace appeal.
17 Best Shopify Watch Stores That Nail Design And Branding
The episode breaks down 17 standout Shopify watch stores, highlighting the design, branding, and marketing tactics that set them apart. It emphasizes the importance of high‑impact visuals, virtual try‑ons, storytelling, collaborations, trust signals, social‑proof video content, and flexible payment options....
UAE Startup ThrowMeNot Secures $550k Pre-Seed
UAE‑based ThrowMeNot closed a $550,000 pre‑seed round led by Sheikh Ahmed bin Mana Al Maktoum. The startup, founded in 2025 by Archie Rudyuk, operates a marketplace for near‑expiry and surplus food, offering discounts up to 90% and currently lists over 2,700...
Why Consumers Are Choosing Liquid Assets Over Points – Loyalty in 2026
The episode explains how 2026 consumers are abandoning traditional points‑based loyalty programs in favor of liquid rewards like cashback, crypto, or universal digital currency. It highlights the friction of closed‑loop, expiring points—such as breakage, complex tiers, and opaque value—and shows...
Conversation with… David Gebhardt, Head of Enterprise – Merchant Services at Wordline
David Gebhardt, Head of Enterprise – Merchant Services at Worldline, outlines the evolution from hardware‑centric POS to service‑focused merchant solutions and introduces the One Commerce platform. He emphasizes that improving acceptance rates by just a few percent can unlock massive...
Ssense Founders Can Buy Back Company, Court Rules
Montréal‑based luxury e‑commerce platform Ssense will be reclaimed by its founders after a Quebec Superior Court dismissed lenders' request for a forced asset sale. The court approved a founder‑led buyback valued at $78 million, including a $58.5 million cash payment and assumption...
United, JetBlue Roll Out Cross-Platform Booking
United Airlines and JetBlue have launched cross‑platform booking, allowing customers to purchase eligible itineraries on either carrier’s website or mobile app. Travelers can pay with cash, points, or miles, instantly expanding the flight inventory displayed on both platforms. The feature...
Estée Lauder Sues Walmart Alleging 'Despicable' Sale of Counterfeit Beauty Products
Estée Lauder has filed a federal lawsuit against Walmart, alleging that the retailer’s online marketplace allowed counterfeit versions of its La Mer, Le Labo, Clinique, Aveda and Tom Ford products to be sold. The beauty giant says it purchased and tested several items that...
Smart Packing Tips for Overseas Deliveries
The episode walks listeners through practical strategies for packing shipments destined for overseas delivery, emphasizing sturdy, functional packaging over decorative aesthetics. It highlights the benefits of double‑walled boxes, H‑taping, palletizing, shrink‑wrapping, and proper internal cushioning to prevent damage from forklifts,...
Protolabs Expands AI as It Overhauls Digital Customer Experience
Protolabs announced the Q1 2026 launch of ProDesk, a unified online platform that consolidates its factory and network storefronts. The company will broaden AI‑driven pricing, sourcing and routing tools, leveraging its extensive CAD data set and automation suite. A new...
De-Escalation Techniques For Angry Customers
The episode walks listeners through practical de‑escalation techniques for handling angry customers across retail, healthcare, call‑centers, and online support. It emphasizes a simple flow: pause, listen without interrupting, reflect the customer's concerns, then offer one or two realistic options with...
Wesco International Pushes Digital Overhaul Amid Q4 Sales Growth
Wesco International closed 2025 with record $23.5 billion in sales, an 8% increase year‑over‑year, and a 10% jump in Q4 revenue. The distributor invested more than $35 million in a unified data lake and AI‑driven tools to replace legacy systems across its...
Mastercard and Bosta Target Egypt’s eCommerce Market With Logistics Incentives
Mastercard and Egyptian logistics platform Bosta have launched a joint initiative that offers Mastercard Business cardholders discounted access to Bosta’s e‑commerce logistics services. The program is aimed at small‑ and medium‑sized businesses seeking streamlined fulfillment, inventory management and real‑time analytics....
Visa Insights Reveal Christmas Spending in Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) Grows 45%
Visa’s latest consumer‑spending analysis shows Christmas‑time purchases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo surged 45% year‑over‑year, pushing total holiday spend to roughly $120 million. The jump was driven by a sharp rise in mobile‑wallet usage and higher average transaction values,...
Klarna Backs Google’s Universal Commerce Protocol to Power the Future of ‘Agentic’ Shopping
Klarna announced its support for Google’s Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP), a framework designed to standardise AI‑driven, “agentic” shopping experiences. The move extends Klarna’s multi‑year partnership with Google, building on prior collaborations such as the Agent Payments Protocol and Google Pay....
Paysecure Receives Best Payments Industry Newcomer Award at Card and Payments Awards 2026
Paysecure won the Best Payments Industry Newcomer Award at the Card and Payments Awards 2026 in London. Judges praised its payment orchestration platform, extensive partnership network, and rapid growth. The accolade highlights the company’s ability to unify access to a...
Warby Parker Taps Macy’s Vet as CFO
Warby Parker announced the appointment of Adrian Mitchell, a veteran of Macy’s, as its new chief financial officer, effective immediately. Mitchell, who previously served as COO and CFO of Macy’s and held leadership roles at Arhaus and Crate & Barrel,...
625: The $1M/Month Brand Strategy That Most Amazon Sellers Are Missing with Janelle Page
In this episode, branding expert Janelle Page reveals the $1 M‑per‑month framework that helped her generate $475 M in e‑commerce sales and scale clients like Glamnetic from $80 K to $3 M monthly. She emphasizes that getting chosen beats merely being found, teaching listeners...
Brooks Running Revenue up 16% in 2025
Brooks Running reported a 16% increase in global revenue for 2025, marking its ninth consecutive year of growth and securing the top spot in performance running footwear at U.S. specialty retailers in Q4. The company posted strong regional gains, with...
The Procurement ROI Model CFOs Actually Believe (Idle Time, Expedites, Tax Leakage)
The episode breaks down why traditional procurement ROI models fall flat and introduces a CFO‑trusted framework that ties purchasing decisions to cash flow, risk, and operational speed. It highlights three hidden cost drivers—employee idle time from delayed hardware, costly expedites...
Retail in the Age of AI Is Eligibility, Not Competition
Retail is moving from a competition‑based model to an eligibility framework driven by AI shopping assistants. These assistants collapse discovery, consideration and trust into a single instant decision, asking which retailer best matches a shopper's intent. Reputation debt, lack of...
Why Retail AI Depends on Consistent, High-Quality Data
Retailers are pouring capital into AI to accelerate decisions, planning cycles, and cross‑functional alignment, but the technology’s effectiveness hinges on the quality of underlying data. Research from Ardent Partners shows 48% of chief procurement officers need better data visibility and...
No Customer Service in the Evenings at 72% Online Stores
A joint study of the 100 largest Belgian and Dutch online stores found that only 28 percent provide evening customer‑service and just 44 percent use WhatsApp, despite strong consumer demand. Delivery performance remains strong, with 91 percent meeting promised times and over half...
Warranty Management Software vs Manual Tracking
The episode compares warranty management software with traditional manual tracking, highlighting how automated systems centralize data, streamline claim workflows, and provide real‑time analytics versus the error‑prone, slow spreadsheets and email chains of manual methods. Key takeaways include faster claim approvals,...
Stop Guessing Your Ecommerce Budget
In this episode, Richard and Luke introduce a systematic approach that helps eight‑figure ecommerce brands move from guesswork to data‑driven budgeting, creative planning, and channel testing. They walk listeners through three core models—the Spending Power Model for setting realistic budget...
Ebanx Predicts Pix Captures Half of Brazil Online Sales by 2028
Brazil’s instant‑payment system Pix is set to dominate e‑commerce, accounting for 45% of online sales by the end of 2026 and reaching a 50% share by 2028, according to payments firm Ebanx. The platform already eclipsed credit cards in 2025...
Why Delivery Operations Are the Competitive Edge in eCommerce
The episode explains how delivery operations have become the key competitive advantage in eCommerce, shifting from a cost‑center to a strategic capability. It emphasizes treating delivery as an integrated system that syncs order promises, inventory, warehousing, routing and real‑time dispatch,...
Profit on Paper ≠ Cash; Forecast to Stay Afloat
You can have your best year ever, revenues up 500%. ...yet STILL run out of money. 💀 Cash and profit are not the same thing. Your P&L says you made $250K in paper profits. But that cash isn't sitting in your bank account. It...
Free Tool to Amplify Your AI Brand Visibility
If you're trying to: - grow your brand's presence in AI tools - get more press mentions - increase the likelihood you'll be in Google's instant answers - boost brand awareness among your audience Well... @alertmouse is free🔔🐭
PetSmart Celebrates the Unconditional Love of Pet Parents on Valentine’s Day
PetSmart is hosting free in‑store Valentine’s Day parties on February 14, inviting pet parents and their dogs, cats, and small animals to celebrate from noon to 2 p.m. The events feature a special Valentine’s collection, giveaways, custom cards, and photo opportunities staffed...
Target Names COO, Chief Merchant
Target announced a major C‑suite overhaul, appointing Lisa Roath as chief operating officer and consolidating merchandising leadership under Cara Sylvester. The restructuring eliminates the chief commercial officer role, sees Rick Gomez move to an advisory position, and marks the retirement...
Toast Links Dining to Instacart’s Marketplace; Ingenico Launches Its 360 Platform Plus AXIUM Terminals
Toast announced a partnership with Instacart, linking its restaurant platform to the Instacart Marketplace and making Instacart Business available for same‑day grocery procurement. The integration adds SmartScan barcode optimization and catalog attribution tools, enabling restaurants to quickly add items and...
What Is a Data Flow Diagram? Guide + Tips For Creating DFDs
The episode explains what a Data Flow Diagram (DFD) is, how it differs from a flowchart, and walks listeners through its four core components—external entities, processes, data stores, and data flows. It outlines key rules for creating clear DFDs, distinguishes...
CRM Implementation Guide: 9 Steps to a High-ROI Rollout in 2026 – Shopify
In this episode Shopify’s CRM strategist Kristen Makin explains why 70 % of CRM projects fail and outlines a nine‑step roadmap for a high‑ROI rollout in 2026. The discussion emphasizes treating CRM as a strategic, cross‑functional operating model rather than a...
Pinterest’s Kate Hamill on Visual Search, AI, and the New Path to Purchase
Pinterest is shifting from a pure inspiration platform to a measurable commerce driver, according to VP of North America enterprise sales Kate Hamill. The company is leveraging visual search and AI to compress the funnel between discovery and conversion, enabling...
Affirm & Wayfair Expand Partnership to Launch BNPL Options in the U.K. & Canada
Affirm announced the expansion of its buy‑now‑pay‑later service with Wayfair into the United Kingdom and Canada. The partnership extends the flexible, zero‑interest payment plans that debuted in the United States last year to international shoppers buying home goods. Customers will...
Square Offers Its AI Assistant to UK Merchants
Square has launched its conversational AI assistant, Square AI, for merchants in the United Kingdom, embedding the tool directly into its payments and commerce platform. The assistant blends in‑house transaction data with external signals such as weather, events and news...
71% of Consumers Say Viral Trends Drive Purchases, Putting New Pressure on Retail Fulfillment, Finds Locus Robotics
Locus Robotics released a U.S. consumer study showing 71% of shoppers say viral TikTok or Instagram trends drive their purchases. The research finds demand can materialize within 48 hours, forcing brands, retailers and 3PLs to compress planning and rely on...
Bots Are Taking Over the Web. Why that May Not Be a Bad Thing for Retail Marketers
WP Engine’s 2025 Website Traffic Trends Report shows bots now generate roughly one‑third of all web requests, with AI‑driven agents consuming up to 70% of the most expensive dynamic resources. Retail marketers must therefore optimize for two audiences: human shoppers...
How Payment Gateways for Businesses Can Help You Offer Your Customers More Options
The episode explains how modern payment gateways, especially Authorize.net, enable small and mid‑size businesses to accept a wide array of payment methods—from cards and eChecks to digital wallets and contactless options—through a single, integrated solution that often includes a merchant...
Lidl Germany Lets Shoppers Pay by SEPA Bank Transfer — A Quiet Break From Visa & Mastercard Dominance
Lidl Germany has introduced SEPA bank‑transfer as a checkout option, allowing shoppers to pay directly from their bank accounts. The move sidesteps traditional Visa and Mastercard processing, which dominate European retail payments. By leveraging the Euro‑area’s low‑cost SEPA network, Lidl...
Jumia’s Q4 2025 Revenue Jumps 34% to $61.4 Million
Jumia reported Q4 2025 revenue of $61.4 million, a 34% year‑over‑year rise driven by a booming marketplace segment. Gross profit jumped 43% and operating loss narrowed to $10.6 million, reflecting stronger margins and tighter cost control. The company’s GMV climbed 36% to $279.5 million,...
Building a Geo-Targeted Proxy Infrastructure for Global Price Intelligence
Enterprises that rely on price intelligence must see prices exactly as local shoppers do, making geo‑targeted data collection essential. Generic proxies often deliver low‑reputation IPs, unstable sessions, or leaked locations, leading to blocked or distorted pricing data. A purpose‑built proxy...
Why E-Commerce Needs a Social Media Talent Agency in 2026
In this episode, Loieto Tugas explains why e‑commerce brands and Amazon sellers need a social‑media talent agency in 2026 to harness influencer marketing at scale. He outlines how agencies act as matchmakers, negotiators, campaign managers, and analysts, enabling brands to...
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Retention Marketing: Strategies, Metrics, And Examples [2026]
In this episode Vytautas Palubeckas breaks down retention marketing, explaining how nurturing existing customers drives higher lifetime value and lower acquisition costs. He contrasts retention with acquisition, outlines key metrics such as retention rate, churn, and CLV, and shares proven...
Sales of Fresh Flowers Surge on TikTok Shop Ahead of Valentine’s Day
TikTok Shop’s flowers and gardening category posted a 440% year‑on‑year surge, driven by a 75% increase in LIVE shopping sessions. Independent UK florist Oh So Floral saw orders jump 85% in the fortnight before Valentine’s Day and will host over 50 hours of...
Dunelm Posts Solid H1 Despite Softer Second Quarter
Dunelm reported a solid first‑half FY26, with total sales climbing 3.6% year‑on‑year to £926 million and digital participation rising to 41%, outpacing the broader homewares market. Market share edged up 20 basis points to 7.9%. The second quarter was softer, with...
Ask an Expert: Should Merchants Block AI Bots?
E‑commerce veteran Scot Wingo argues that merchants must decide whether to block or welcome AI bots that now crawl retail sites. Four major agents—ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Microsoft Copilot and Perplexity—collectively command roughly one billion monthly active users, and Google’s shift to AI...
Amazon Launches Pay by Bank – Secure, Card-Free Payment Solution
Amazon has introduced Pay by Bank on its UK site, letting shoppers pay directly from their bank accounts without using cards. The service connects to customers' banking apps for biometric or PIN authentication, eliminating the need to store card details....
Polygon Labs Perspective on Stablecoin Economics: Interview With CEO Marc Boiron
Polygon Labs is positioning its blockchain platform as a next‑generation payment rail that can seamlessly move money across fiat and crypto ecosystems. In an interview, CEO Marc Boiron explains how the company’s stablecoin framework aims to address legacy finance pain...