Today's Retail Pulse
Fresho acquires Nation Wilcox to dominate UK food‑wholesale software
Fresho, the Australian‑origin order‑management platform, has acquired UK ERP specialist Nation Wilcox, creating the largest software suite for British food wholesalers. The combined platform now serves over 400 wholesalers and caterers and processes more than £2 billion (≈$2.5 billion) in annual GMV.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Spinny targets $250-300M in IPO
Michaels Lowers Prices on More than 3,000 Items
Michaels announced price cuts on more than 3,000 items, spanning arts and crafts, DIY, party supplies, sewing and home décor. Discounts average roughly 10% and represent the final stage of a multi‑month value‑driven initiative. The retailer also rolled out an enhanced rewards program that lets members earn up to 9% back and unlock Everyday Perks of up to 25% off regular‑priced merchandise. Earlier reductions included a 50% cut on in‑store birthday parties and deep discounts on Celebrate It party products.
Meta Leases From Vornado Again, This Time for Retail Space
Meta has signed a 10‑year lease for the entire five‑story, 15,000‑square‑foot townhouse at 697 Fifth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan. The space will serve as a permanent retail showcase for Meta’s virtual reality headsets and Ray‑Ban smart glasses, following a successful...
Shopify’s USDC Integration Shows How Platforms Could Pick Stablecoin Favorites
Shopify has embedded USDC stablecoin into its core payments stack, allowing merchants to accept digital dollars at checkout without new providers. The integration, built with Stripe and Coinbase, lets shoppers pay via crypto wallets and gives merchants the option to...
How AIOps Is Keeping Retail Lights on Behind the Scenes
Artificial intelligence for IT Operations (AIOps) is helping retailers keep e‑commerce platforms running smoothly by automatically detecting and fixing order‑flow glitches, pricing mismatches, downtime, and data‑sync issues. Machine‑learning models surface anomalies before customers notice them, enabling proactive remediation. A real‑world...
Video Forum: Jennifer Beatty, Emerson Group
Jennifer Beatty, vice‑president of sales at Emerson Group, announced the next Future of Commerce event, which will focus on the supermarket industry. The two‑day conference is scheduled for June 9‑10 in Nashville and will feature program highlights drawn from previous...
AI-Assisted Commerce Is Here. Trust Will Define Who Wins
Google introduced the Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP) in January 2026, creating a standardized, machine‑readable layer for product data, pricing, carts, payments and order tracking. UCP already powers AI‑driven purchases on Google Search’s AI Mode and Gemini for retailers like Etsy...
Publix Whips up a Batch of Its Own Cookies
Publix announced its entry into the cookie market with a spring launch of four private‑label flavors. The lineup includes Double Cookies & Cream, Vanilla Celebration, Double Chocolate, and Raspberry Cream Cheese, with more varieties slated for summer. The rollout follows...
NRF Projects 4.4% Retail Sales Growth This Year
The National Retail Federation (NRF) projects U.S. retail sales to rise 4.4% in 2026, reaching $5.6 trillion, outpacing the 10‑year pre‑pandemic average of 3.6%. The forecast, built with Oxford Economics, attributes growth to resilient consumer spending, especially among higher‑income households, and...
Prophit Engine Delivers Accurate Forecasts, Consistent Growth, Lower Costs
More isn't always better. Better is better. Forecast more accurately, grow contribution more consistently all while saving money with the Prophit Engine from CTC. Big love to the boys: @Seanfrank @iamshackelford @Jaredorkin @stevenborrelli @steviej @SJohnson_89 for the acting brilliance. This one is a...
UNFI Ramps up AI, Digital Push Across Supply Chain
United Natural Foods (UNFI) is accelerating its AI and digital transformation by expanding the RELEX supply‑chain planning platform across its distribution network, with a dozen centers slated to go live next week and a full rollout expected by the end...
Doba Adds Walmart Marketplace Integration for Drop Shipping Sellers
Doba announced a verified integration with Walmart Marketplace, using OAuth 2.0 to automate product listings, inventory syncing, and order processing. The connection replaces legacy APIs, reducing manual errors and ensuring compliance with Walmart’s strict performance standards. Walmart ranks #2 among U.S....
Xandres Expands Its Secondhand Service Online
Xandres has launched its second‑hand platform, Xandres Preloved, via a dedicated website covering the Benelux region and Germany. After pilot programs in Ghent and Bruges, the brand is rolling out the service nationwide, allowing customers to buy and sell pre‑owned...
Coca-Cola Launches FIFA World Cup 2026 Campaign in Canada
Coca‑Cola has launched a nationwide FIFA World Cup 2026 campaign in Canada, featuring limited‑edition collectible cans, QR‑code contests, and Panini sticker‑tied bottles. The brand will also operate fan‑zone experiences in Toronto and Vancouver, offering product sampling, apparel customization, and social‑media‑ready installations....
Marks & Spencer Becomes ‘Exclusive Digital Wholesale Partner’ for David Gandy Wellwear
Marks & Spencer has launched David Gandy Wellwear on its Brands at M&S platform, becoming the brand’s exclusive digital wholesale partner. The partnership adds the designer’s best‑selling T‑shirts, loungewear, underwear and robes to M&S’s expanding third‑party menswear portfolio. Gandy, who...
Merchants Sound Alarm as Swipe Fees Hit $198B
Swipe fees in the United States surged to a record $198.25 billion in 2025, a 5.9% increase over 2024 and an 80% jump since the pandemic began. Credit‑card fees dominate, with Visa and Mastercard alone accounting for $118.8 billion, while total credit‑card...
Shopify POS Smart Grid Now Lets Merchants Select Discount Codes From a Dropdown Instead of Typing Them Manually
Shopify has upgraded its POS Smart Grid editor to include a dropdown menu for selecting discount codes when building Discount tiles. The change replaces the previous free‑text field, which was vulnerable to typos and mismatched codes. Each tile now pulls...
EBay Beta Testing Video Ads in Promoted Listings Priority Cost-per-Click Placements Starting in Australia
eBay has begun beta‑testing a video‑enabled version of its Promoted Listings Priority in Australia. The feature allows sellers to attach 5‑ to 60‑second videos that auto‑play in eligible ad placements, reverting to static images where video isn’t supported. Pricing remains...
How a Fortune 100 Retailer Rebuilt Its Mobile Foundation To Outpace Desktop
A Fortune 100 retailer overhauled its mobile architecture, adopting a unified deep‑linking and QR‑code framework to accelerate app installs and transaction volumes. The new foundation integrated privacy‑first measurement tools, allowing the retailer to track cross‑channel performance without compromising user data....
Family Dollar to Open Smaller-Format Stores in Urban Locations
Family Dollar, now a private company after a venture‑capital buyout, announced plans to roll out an extra‑small box (XSB) store format aimed at dense urban markets. The retailer, which operates 7,250 locations, reported fiscal 2025 revenue of $13 billion and a...
FonQ Is Struggling: Payment Deferral and Online Store Shut Down
Dutch online home‑furnishings retailer fonQ is facing collapse after its holding company filed for a stay of payments. An administrator will now assess options to keep the business afloat. The company, which also owns brand Naduvi, saw CEO Itai Gross...
New Whole Foods Market in Los Gatos, Calif., To Open April 15
Whole Foods Market will open a new 43,130‑square‑foot store in Los Gatos, California on April 15, 2026, relocating from its 30‑year‑old location. The space is nearly double the size of the former store and adds a coffee‑and‑juice bar, expanded seating,...
Nikon’s Experiential Pop-Up at SXSW Targets Experienced Photographers and Creators
Nikon is running a week‑long experiential pop‑up beside SXSW in Austin from March 12‑19, offering free photo walks, studio sessions, light programming and panels. The brand targets about 2,000 experienced photographers and creators, hoping 60% will post on social media....
Why Delivery Reliability Now Matters More Than Speed
Retailers have spent a decade chasing Amazon‑style speed, but a Locus survey shows only 9% of shoppers believe promises are consistently met. Missed windows and silent delays erode trust, with 92% of customers abandoning a brand after just a few...
Global Signs Nectar Deal to Boost Digital Audio Activity
Global Media has struck a data partnership with Sainsbury’s Nectar360, merging first‑party shopper information with its own listener data on the DAX digital audio platform. The integration lets advertisers target UK audio audiences using anonymised purchase insights and directly measure...
Ikea Expands Its Secondhand Marketplace to Belgium
Ikea will launch its digital secondhand marketplace in Belgium on April 29, extending the service to six European countries. The free platform lets Ikea Family members scan items, receive auto‑generated pricing, photos and details, and sell for cash or a 15%...
A Lot Of A Little Is Still Not Enough
Bain’s 2026 analysis shows insurgent FMCG brands, representing less than 2% of the market, contributed 36% of the sector’s 2% aggregate growth in 2025. However, half of that growth stems from household and population increases, not genuine brand‑driven expansion. Established...
AI Tools Enter Retail Platforms as Canadian Adoption Grows
Canadian small‑business owners are moving from AI experimentation to everyday use, according to a 2026 Square survey showing 60 % of respondents already employ AI tools and 74 % are familiar with them. Commerce platforms such as Square, Shopify and Lightspeed are...
Kohl’s Stores Closing Update: CEO Reveals What Happens Next After Dozens of Locations Shuttered Last Year
Kohl’s announced the closure of 27 underperforming stores and its San Bernardino e‑commerce fulfillment center in early 2025, completing the shutdown by April. The closures spanned 15 states and followed a slump in comparable store sales during 2024. In November, Michael...
AI Is Changing How Shoppers Find Products – with Signs Pointing to Brands Creating AI-First Marketing Strategies
The Criteo 2026 Commerce & AI Trend Report shows AI is reshaping product discovery, with 47% of shoppers using it for comparison and 39% for finding new items, yet only 8% rely on AI to finalize purchases. Consumers crave “relevant...
How Delivery Platforms Are Becoming the New Digital Shelves for Brands
Food‑delivery aggregators such as Talabat, Deliveroo and Careem have turned into digital shelves for restaurants across the UAE and wider Middle East. Visibility on these apps—driven by algorithmic rankings, menu presentation and promotions—now determines a brand’s ability to attract orders,...
Kiabi Is Expanding Its Online Marketplace to Spain and Italy
Kiabi is extending its newly launched online marketplace beyond France to Spain and Italy, introducing third‑party brands alongside its own apparel line. The rollout adds complementary categories such as children’s products, baby gear, and home essentials, creating a broader family‑focused...
Revlon Lands Licence for Salt Life’s First Fragrance
Revlon has signed a licensing agreement with Salt Life, the ocean‑focused apparel brand owned by Iconix International, to develop its first fragrance collection. The debut line, inspired by Salt Life’s “ocean‑driven lifestyle,” is scheduled to hit retail shelves in 2027....
Turn Seasonal Shops Into Year‑Round Online Profit
Case Study: Spotting Opportunity in Underutilized Businesses: A Seaside Retail Example I recently had an interesting conversation that highlights a great opportunity for those of you looking to buy a business rather than start one from scratch. The Situation A friend of mine...
IoT Cuts McDonald's Ice Cream Outage From 19 Clicks
"The ice cream machine is broken." Those are six very depressing words. McDonalds had a 19-click process for marking ice cream as unavailable. Now with IoT and tech solutions, there's failure detection and response. https://t.co/w6mR84wNiX https://t.co/2ufj3Zp3MB
Macy’s Inc. Ends Year on Encouraging Note, Q4 Sales Beat Expectations
Macy’s Inc. reported a stronger fourth‑quarter performance, with comparable sales increasing 1.8% and net sales of $7.6 billion, surpassing its own guidance. The company’s Bloomingdale’s division led growth, posting an 8.5% rise in net sales and 9.9% comparable‑sales growth, while re‑imagined...
Huge Performance Gap Revealed in 2026 Email Benchmark
The 2026 Klaviyo Email Benchmark Report is here 📊 We analyzed: • 600+ brands • 740M emails • $300M in 30 days ($3.6B annualized) And found a massive gap between top performers and everyone else. Most ecommerce brands have no idea where they actually stand. https://t.co/N9YXthbeeI
Faherty Launches First Overseas Store in Biarritz
Faherty, the premium American coastal lifestyle brand making waves in the U.S. fashion market, is launching its international expansion in Biarritz, France. Surfing-Inspired Faherty Rides A Wave To Open In Biarritz, France via @forbes https://t.co/RAy0CmcnN8
UK Exclusive: Revive Collagen Signs Spice Girl Mel B as Ambassador for Menopause Range
Revive Collagen has appointed Spice Girls icon Mel B as the ambassador for its new menopause product range. The 50‑year‑old MBE, known for her advocacy of women’s health, said the brand’s focus on supporting women during menopause resonated with her. The...
Square Report Finds Group of Loyal ‘Regulars’ Generates 6x More Revenue for Canada’s Small Businesses
Square’s inaugural Local Economy Report shows that repeat customers—defined as shoppers who visit four or more times a year—generate nearly six times more annual revenue for Canadian neighbourhood businesses than one‑time visitors. In Montreal, regulars produce seven times the value,...
Seats and Sofas to Reimburse Customers Following Warranty Dispute
Seats and Sofas, a Dutch furniture retailer, has agreed to reimburse nearly 1,500 customers a total of €100,000 after the Dutch Consumer Authority ruled that its warranty‑related fees were unlawful. The disputed charges included €75 for home pick‑up, €49.95 for...
Battersea Power Station Director on Why Social Influence Is Redefining Retail Destinations
Battersea Power Station’s leasing director says social influence has become a critical leasing KPI, reshaping how landlords curate retail mixes. Gen‑Z now turn to social media before search engines, prompting landlords to prioritize brands with strong digital followings. Battersea leverages...
Plaud Pro Launches in India at ₹19,490
Plaud is finally selling in India through Amazon. The company is now officially selling its new Plaud Pro device for ₹19,490. The device sells for $189 in the U.S. https://t.co/O2S52C07LL
Supplier Performance Exposed as GNFR’s Golden Quarter Weak Link
Goods Not For Resale (GNFR) is the operational glue of retail, yet it remains a blind spot for many leaders. New research of over 100 retailers shows 38% view supplier performance as the biggest GNFR weakness during the peak "golden...
Harrods Launches Circular Fashion Initiative to Tackle Textile Waste
Harrods has unveiled a circular fashion programme in partnership with charity retailer Traid to curb textile waste. The scheme will collect surplus clothing and materials, then sort them for reuse, repurposing or redistribution, keeping items out of landfill. Employees will...
Increase in DIY and Hardware Retailers Offering Same Day Delivery
New Gophr research shows UK hardware and DIY retailers increased same‑day delivery adoption from 22 % to 32 % year‑on‑year. Yet speed remains uneven: only 26 % can fulfil orders within an hour and 46 % impose conditions such as cut‑off times or location...
Kingfisher Partners with Google Cloud to Roll Out AI-Powered Shopping Across Europe
Kingfisher has entered a multi‑year partnership with Google Cloud to embed Vertex AI across its B&Q, Castorama and Brico Dépôt e‑commerce platforms in Europe. The collaboration replaces traditional keyword search with AI‑driven, conversational discovery and introduces agentic assistants that can...
Amazon vs Perplexity: The Court Ruling that Just Put Agentic Commerce on Trial
A federal judge granted Amazon a preliminary injunction preventing Perplexity’s Comet browser agent from accessing Amazon’s systems, citing likely violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. The court distinguished user permission from platform authorization, ruling that even with a...
New Rules Proposed to Hold Temu, Shein Accountable in SA
South Africa’s consumer regulators have released a joint position paper proposing new rules to hold offshore e‑commerce platforms such as Temu and Shein accountable. The draft guidelines would require foreign sellers moving significant volumes into the country to register locally,...
Q & A: Ben Collier, Co-Founder, Ocasta
Ben Collier, co‑founder of Ocasta, describes a frontline operations platform that unifies communications, task management, knowledge, inspections, and coaching to eliminate guesswork for retailers. Built around real‑world store moments rather than head‑office assumptions, the system provides instant task tracking, photo...
Miss Amara Rebuilds Online Store, Updates Brand Identity
Miss Amara, an Australian rug retailer, has launched a refurbished e‑commerce site and refreshed its brand identity to better align with its design‑led, customer‑obsessed strategy. The new platform offers streamlined navigation, richer educational content, and a smoother purchase journey across...