Fast Simon Instantly Tells Merchandisers What Products Are Successful, Overexposed—Or Hidden Gems
Fast Simon’s new AI platform gives e‑commerce merchandisers instant, data‑driven insight into product performance. It identifies winners, overexposed items, and hidden‑gem products within minutes, while also projecting the long‑term impact of current merchandising choices. The tool promises faster optimization of listings, higher conversion rates, and measurable revenue gains. CEO Zohar Gilad emphasizes that early visibility translates directly into more profit for retailers.
Why ‘Keep It’ Returns Should Be Illegal
Retailers are increasingly using “keep it” returnless refunds to cut reverse‑logistics costs, but the practice fuels fraud, inventory distortion, and waste. The National Retail Federation estimates $849.9 billion in returns, with 9 % fraudulent, while Narvar reports 75 % of shoppers have received...
Costco Tests Checkout that Could Take Under 10 Seconds
Costco is piloting automated pay stations that can complete transactions in under 10 seconds by having employees pre‑scan items before shoppers reach the register. Early tests show average transaction times around eight seconds and positive member feedback. The initiative is...
Retail Media Is a $69B Opportunity. So Why Is It Still So Hard to Get Right?
Retail media is projected to reach $69.3 billion in 2026, cementing its place as one of the fastest‑growing ad channels. The surge is driven by retailers leveraging first‑party shopper data to sell ads on‑site and off‑site. However, most retailers juggle 15‑20...
Proximity Is Retail’s Next Growth Lever
Retailers are reviving proximity marketing as a growth lever, recognizing that purchase decisions unfold across physical and digital touchpoints. A recent OAAA and Winterberry study shows roughly 70% of adults notice out‑of‑home (OOH) ads on their way to stores, and...
Amazon’s Pricing Tactics Lead Brands to Yank Items
Amazon has been refusing wholesale suppliers' requests to raise the prices it pays for their products, prompting brands such as Colgate and Adidas to trim or remove low‑margin items from the marketplace. Affected brands face added costs from tariffs and...
Retail Media Has Reached Its Accountability Moment
Retail media, once celebrated for its closed‑loop attribution near the point of sale, is now confronting an accountability crisis. Advertisers are demanding proof that spend drives incremental lift beyond a single retailer’s ledger. In response, major networks are expanding into...
F.W. Webb Launches Mobile App for Trade Professionals
F.W. Webb, a wholesale distributor with more than 100 locations across the Northeast, launched a native mobile app on March 31, 2026 to let trade professionals order plumbing, HVAC and other parts directly from their phones. The app delivers real‑time...
TradeCentric, Commercetools Partner on B2B Ecommerce
TradeCentric and commercetools have formed a strategic partnership to integrate B2B e‑procurement with AI‑first commerce platforms. The collaboration enables suppliers to connect digital storefronts directly to buyers’ procurement systems, leveraging TradeCentric’s PunchOut capabilities to slash purchase‑order processing time by 80%...
This One-Hour Audit That Could Save Your Product From AI Exclusion
The article warns that in 2026 consumers rely on AI assistants that deliver a single synthesized answer, making product data the new digital shelf. Brands with vague or inconsistent product pages are being filtered out, while those that publish a...
Walmart to Close Illinois Fulfillment Center
Walmart announced the permanent closure of its Matteson, Illinois fulfillment center, affecting 111 employees. Operations will be transferred to other NextGen facilities in the retailer’s network, and affected workers receive a $7,500 incentive to relocate or transition to open roles....
Amazon Cuts USPS Volume by 20% in New Deal, Averting Major Revenue Loss for Postal Service
Amazon and the United States Postal Service have reached a new agreement that trims Amazon’s parcel volume to roughly 80% of current levels, equating to about 1.7 billion packages and $6 billion in annual revenue for USPS. The reduction, a 20% cut,...
Amazon Signs New Delivery Deal with Postal Service at 20% Less Volume
Amazon has reached a tentative agreement with the U.S. Postal Service to deliver roughly one billion parcels a year, a 20% cut from its previous volume. The deal preserves about $6 billion in annual revenue for USPS, which faces a looming...
Amazon, USPS Reach Scaled-Back Delivery Deal
The United States Postal Service and Amazon have finalized a scaled‑back delivery agreement that trims Amazon’s parcel volume to the carrier by roughly 20 percent. The compromise follows weeks of tense negotiations after a Wall Street Journal report suggested a...
Attabotics Announces Integrator Partnership Program to Expand Availability of Robotic Cube Storage Technology
Attabotics announced an integrator partnership program to broaden distribution of its 3D robotic cube storage solution, naming SAVOYE North America as the inaugural partner. The collaboration leverages SAVOYE’s AiRVOS™ WES platform to integrate Attabotics technology into end‑to‑end fulfillment workflows. By...
Mastercard and PayPal Veteran Jill Cress Is Babylist’s First CMO
Babylist, the online baby‑registry platform, reported $750 million in revenue and 45% year‑over‑year growth, prompting the hire of veteran marketer Jill Cress as its first chief marketing officer. Cress, who previously led consumer strategy at Mastercard and marketing at National Geographic, PayPal,...
Wholesale Resurgence Reshapes Retail Growth Strategy
Retail brands are reversing the past decade's direct‑to‑consumer (DTC) focus, with wholesale emerging as the primary growth engine. Lightspeed’s 2026 State of B2B eCommerce report shows 78% of brands now rank wholesale as their top investment channel, while only 18%...
Fighting Back: How Restaurants Are Reclaiming the Customer Relationship
Restaurants are actively fighting delivery‑platform dominance by building first‑party ordering channels, adopting B2B order‑management tools, and pursuing regulatory relief. Large chains such as McDonald’s and Domino’s have launched branded apps to capture customers directly, while independents turn to services like...
Amazon Introduces Transport Surcharge for Partners
Amazon announced a new transport surcharge to offset rising fuel and logistics costs linked to the Middle East conflict. Effective April 17, a 1.5% fee will be added to Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA) shipments in ten European countries, followed by a...
Snappy Technologies Rolls Out System to Unify Delivery Marketplaces
Snappy Technologies unveiled a new integration platform that consolidates disparate food‑delivery marketplaces into a single unified system. The solution leverages a standardized API to aggregate orders, inventory, and driver data across services like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. Early pilots...
Fiserv, Grocer Expand Pay-by-Bank Effort
Payments processor Fiserv is widening its pay‑by‑bank pilot with the U.S. arm of Dutch grocer Ahold Delhaize, extending the service beyond the three initial brands to a broader customer base. The program, first launched last year on The Giant Company, Giant Food and Stop & Shop...
Ahold Delhaize USA Rolls Out Pay By Bank Option For Online Orders
Ahold Delhaize USA has extended its partnership with Fiserv to launch Pay by Bank on the e‑commerce sites and mobile apps of The Giant Co., Giant Food and Stop & Shop. The new option lets shoppers link their bank accounts for...
CEO Interview: Voxelo
Voxelo targets the e‑commerce infrastructure market with AI‑driven 3D product visualizations, aiming to replace static images and video. Ben McKay estimates a $68 billion total addressable market across roughly 30 million online retailers. The company’s UG3D workflow lets merchants upload a video...
AbbVie Puts Humira on TrumpRx at Steep Discount as Tariff Threat Solidifies
AbbVie has agreed to sell its blockbuster arthritis drug Humira on the Trump administration’s direct‑to‑consumer platform TrumpRx for about $950, an 86 % cut from the typical $6,900 out‑of‑pocket price. The deal, announced after AbbVie pledged $100 billion in R&D and manufacturing...
Amazon Reaches New Deal with U.S. Postal Service
Amazon has signed a new agreement with the United States Postal Service that preserves roughly 80% of the parcels the carrier delivers for its biggest client. The deal provides USPS with essential revenue as it battles yearly deficits, while allowing...
Inside Walmart’s Creator-Driven Social Commerce Playbook
Walmart is building a creator‑driven social commerce engine that blends shoppable ads, influencer networks, and AI‑powered trend tools. The retailer treats social platforms as search venues, targeting Gen Z and millennial users who spend hours daily online. Its Walmart Creator program,...
Flipkart Expands Across Tier-2 and Tier-3 Cities, Targets 1,500+ Dark Stores by 2026
Flipkart is accelerating its quick‑commerce footprint, targeting more than 1,500 dark‑store locations by 2026. The retailer currently runs 750‑850 stores across Tier‑2 and Tier‑3 cities and plans to add roughly 800 new sites before year‑end. Each dark store costs about...
Skip Partners with Loblaw for Grocery Delivery
Skip, the Canadian delivery platform, announced a partnership with Loblaw Companies Limited, integrating 13 of Loblaw's banners—including No Frills, Loblaws, and Real Canadian Superstore—into its grocery delivery network. The collaboration enables coast‑to‑coast, on‑demand grocery fulfillment for a broad range of products,...
Ace Hardware Expands Last Mile Through Partnership With Uber Eats
Uber Technologies and Ace Hardware have launched a partnership that adds more than 3,700 Ace stores across all 50 states to the Uber Eats platform. Starting today, consumers can order DIY and home‑improvement items through the Uber Eats app for...
Two Boxes Raises $3.2M to Scale AI Returns Platform
Two Boxes, an AI‑powered returns platform, secured $3.2 million in new financing led by Assembly Ventures, bringing its total capital to $13 million. The funding will accelerate product development and push the company deeper into enterprise retail, direct‑to‑consumer and B2B...
Instagram Now Lets Creators Tag Affiliate Links Directly in Reels
Instagram is rolling out a new feature that lets creators tag shoppable products directly in Reels, supporting up to 30 items per video. Creators can add products by pasting affiliate URLs or selecting items from a brand’s Meta commerce catalog,...
China Issues New E-Commerce Guidelines Following Pressure From the EU
China released new e‑commerce guidelines a week after an EU delegation raised concerns in Beijing about counterfeit and unsafe goods flowing to Europe. The rules, crafted with multiple agencies, aim to align Chinese cross‑border platforms with international safety standards and...
Ahold Delhaize USA Introduces Pay by Bank Partnership with Fiserv
Ahold Delhaize USA has broadened its partnership with payments‑technology leader Fiserv to roll out Pay by Bank across the e‑commerce sites and mobile apps of The GIANT Company, Giant Food and Stop & Shop. The new option lets shoppers link...
The Works CEO: How the Brand Is Betting Big on Bricks-and-Mortar
The Works, a UK discount retailer with more than 500 high‑street stores, announced it will abandon its ecommerce platform and double‑down on a store‑led strategy. In‑store sales already account for over 90% of revenue and like‑for‑like sales are up 3.3%...
Clutch Opens Ottawa Customer Hub at Bayshore
Toronto‑based Clutch launched its first Ottawa Customer Hub at Bayshore Shopping Centre, its second physical location nationwide. The hub, opening April 11, serves as a pickup, drop‑off and support centre for the company’s online vehicle buying and selling platform. Clutch, which...
Your Supply Chain Isn’t Just Boxes. It’s Personal Data Too
Southeast Asian e‑commerce firms are being urged to treat customer information as a core component of their supply chains, not just a by‑product of sales. The article highlights how personal data travels through websites, order‑management tools, logistics partners, payment processors...
Sri Lanka Bets on Fee-Free QR Payments to Move Past Cash Into the Digital Age
Sri Lanka has launched a National QR Payment Promotion Programme, removing merchant fees on LankaQR transactions up to 5,000 rupees (about $13.5). The fee waiver, announced on April 6, targets small retailers and aims to shift everyday commerce from cash to...
Sneaker Specialist Sean Wotherspoon Joins Klekt Ahead of Crowdfunding Campaign
American sneaker designer and collector Sean Wotherspoon has joined European marketplace Klekt as an investor and Chief Community Curator just days before the platform’s Republic crowdfunding launch on April 8. The funding round aims to finance Klekt’s expansion from a sneaker‑focused...
Levanta Acquires Affiliate Network Perch+
Levanta announced the acquisition of Perch+, an affiliate network focused on Amazon sellers, adding roughly 60,000 vetted partners to its Marketplace. The deal brings Perch+ brands into Levanta’s suite of tools, including the Paid Placements model that enables flat‑rate creator...
OPINION: Ecommerce in 2026 – How Online Shopping Will Blend Into All Digital Experiences
E‑commerce in 2026 is defined by the convergence of content, community and shopping, moving the purchase decision from a final step to the moment of engagement. Live virtual events now serve as high‑attention windows where 80% of attendees are receptive...
Customer Experience Horror Stories and How Better Connection Prevents Them
Lisa Orford argues that most retail customer‑experience horror stories stem from disconnected internal systems, not bad intentions. She outlines recurring failures such as vanished requests, endless re‑explanations, channel ping‑pong, and uninformed agents. The piece positions unified communication and real‑time team...
ColdTrack’s National Logistics Network Helping US Seafood Companies Widen E-Commerce Reach, Save on Shipping Costs
ColdTrack, a New Jersey‑based e‑commerce logistics firm, has built a national perishable‑goods network that delivers seafood to U.S. consumers within two days. The company leverages proprietary route‑planning software and carrier partnerships across hubs in New Jersey, Indiana and California. After...
US Beer Industry Uncovers More ‘Meaningful’ Routes to Market
The latest Sovos ShipCompliant and Brewers Association report shows overwhelming consumer appetite for direct‑to‑consumer (DTC) beer shipping in the United States. Sixty‑three percent of adults and 81 percent of regular craft drinkers favor expanding the current 12‑state limit. The data...
What to Know About Dynamic Pricing — and How to Beat It
Dynamic pricing leverages AI‑driven algorithms to fluctuate prices based on demand, competition, and individual shopper data. The practice, long used by airlines, now spans hotels, ride‑hailing apps, event tickets, and major e‑commerce platforms like Amazon and Walmart. Recent investigations revealed...
Half of UK Shoppers Want Laws to Stop Ultra-Cheap Goods Flooding the Market
Research from the Retail Technology Show shows that 54% of UK shoppers want the government to tighten the de‑minimis threshold to curb ultra‑cheap imports, with support rising to 68% among Gen Z. Last year, 45% of UK consumers bought from low‑price...
Thinking of Opening a Liquor Store? Here’s What You Need to Know About Digitization
Prospective liquor store owners must treat digitization as core infrastructure rather than an afterthought. The article stresses that searchable, well‑structured online inventory and integrated POS systems are more critical than sheer product depth. It also highlights the value of first‑party...
Checkatrade Marketplace to Launch This Spring
Checkatrade is launching a new Marketplace this spring, adding a commerce layer that lets both tradespeople and homeowners purchase tools, materials, and finished products alongside service bookings. The platform already supports about 50,000 trade businesses and attracts millions of UK...
NFuse Raises $2M as Messaging Overtakes B2B Ordering Apps
nFuse, an AI‑driven B2B ordering platform that lets retailers order via WhatsApp, Viber or SMS, secured $2 million from Eleven Ventures and LAUNCHub. The startup claims over 70 percent adoption among enterprise clients, cutting deployment time to eight weeks and driving order...
Esetrix Launches to Power the Next Generation of Marketplace Infrastructure
Esetrix, formerly Avasam Enterprise, has rebranded to offer enterprise‑grade marketplace infrastructure. The platform lets retailers, brands and distributors launch multi‑seller marketplaces, automating seller onboarding, order sync, payments and fulfillment. By removing the need for inventory ownership, Esetrix aims to help...
Zeus Adds Catheter Components to Chamfr Marketplace
Zeus, a global polymer and catheter manufacturer, has added over 100 liner and heat‑shrink components to Chamfr’s online marketplace. The catalog now includes PTFE liners, FEP heat‑shrink tubing and the FluoroPEELZ peelable shrink, giving engineers on‑demand access to critical materials....