Business Insider | January 12, 2022 Costco plans to open up to 28 stores in 2022. Costco, the warehouse chain, which operates 828 stores globally, plans to spend $4 billion in 2022, using the money to beef up its logistics business and grow its store network. Though the majority of its stores are located in the US, it is also present in Canada, Mexico, parts of Europe, and Asia and has been steadily growing in these regions. Costco, which sells products in bulk at discounted

Forbes | January 11, 2022 Being out-of-touch is totally in, QR codes are quickly finding a new home and robots are strolling the line between novelty and value. This is what retail innovation will look like in 2022. Funding for retail technology reached a record $29 billion in the first quarter of 2021, as retailers and tech companies sought to blend online and in-store experiences, personalize interactions at every point and elevate their fulfillment processes to make it all

Retail Dive | January 11, 2022 Pottery Barn Kids is kicking off the new year with the debut of a product line with beloved toy brand Lego. The collection was designed in partnership with the Lego Group and is meant to bring "an artistic interpretation of the Lego brand's beloved icons and colorful bricks to children's home furnishings for the first time," per Pottery Barn Kids. Lego has partnered with a number of retailers over the years, most recently with Target during the

Target | January 7, 2022 At Target, making a positive impact on people and the planet is at the heart of our purpose and culture. With the launch of Target Forward, Target doubled down on their promise of co-creating an equitable and regenerative future together with their guests, partners and communities. As Target's HQ team gradually moves toward a new hybrid work model, they reopened and revamped workspaces across their headquarters buildings in 2021 to give the team optio

Target | January 5, 2022 Starting the new year by getting your home in order can be therapeutic, but where to start, right? With more than 450 products that make home organization easy and so pretty. Say hello to Brightroom, Target's first dedicated storage and home organization owned brand, offering well-designed, affordable solutions that take the stress out of organizing and put the joy into spending time at home. The collection is designed with all storage challenges in m

Retail Dive | January 5, 2022 Best Buy's launch of an in-house media company sees the electronics retailer formalizing its ad offerings amid a surge in retail media advertising, which eMarketer forecasts will grow 31.4% to $41.37 billion in 2022. The company says it has 3 billion interactions with customers per year, giving it a wealth of data and insights that can be helpful in connecting brands to consumers at various times and places as they adapt to increasingly tech-driv

Walmart | January 4, 2022 Today, Walmart introduced their latest exclusive collaboration with The Home Edit co-founders Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin from the Emmy-nominated Netflix series “Get Organized with The Home Edit.” Over the last year and a half, Walmart customers have been spending more time in their homes, resulting in a bigger investment in home organization. As the home continued to be the primary destination for all things — work, school, meals, fitness and a

WWD | January 4, 2022 In 2022, consumers shop heavily for expensive cookware, garden accessories, equipment for outdoor kitchens, luxurious fabrications and versatile clothing suitable for Zoom calls, office meetings, sitting in a café and the “new normal” of hybrid work schedules. Inflation has been the highest in almost four decades; labor costs continue to increase; anniversarying 2021 COVID-19 stimulus checks; the flight to the suburbs, and, of course, COVID-19 with the r

Walmart | December 16, 2021 Just in time for the last-minute holiday rush, Chico’s FAS customers across its brand portfolio will, for the first time ever, have the option for online orders from the company’s three unique fashion brands — Chico's, White House Black Market and Soma — to be delivered directly to their doorsteps in as little as two hours. This convenient delivery option is made possible by Chico’s FAS new delivery service provider, Walmart GoLocal, and launches t

Target | December 15, 2021 Earlier this year, Target shared their plan to invest at least 5% of their annual media budget with Black-owned media starting in 2022. It’s one piece of their efforts to better reach Black guests in ways that are most meaningful to them as part of our Racial Equity, Action and Change (REACH) commitments. Target is excited to share their latest progress toward that goal, including a new project with REVOLT in support of Black entrepreneurs, part of

NRF | December 10, 2021 Consumers will spend the last few weeks of the holiday season stocking up on gifts and taking advantage of holiday sales and promotions to splurge on extra items for themselves and their families. However, some of those gifts and other purchases will inevitably end up as returns. In fact, last year, retailers estimated that 13.3 percent of their 2020 holiday sales would come back as returns, adding up to over $100 billion in returned merchandise. Myth

Target | December 9, 2021 This year, all Target stores and distribution centers are embarking on a coast-to-coast effort to get holiday gifts and essentials into the hands of families in need. It’s called The Great Giftogether, and it all started on a November day in 2020. Ron Brown, group vice president of stores at Target, on his way home, he had something on his mind. “I spotted a woman and her children standing on a corner, asking for food and support,” Ron says. “I stopp

Retail Dive | December 8, 2021 Uber's holiday hub launch follows the relationships it has developed with retailers over the past year. In May, the company partnered with GoPuff to create an "everyday essentials" online shop for GoPuff customers across the country. It then went on to collaborate with Rite Aid on last-mile deliveries from more than 2,000 locations in 17 states, and then partnered with Bed Bath & Beyond to help launch a baby and kids vertical on the Uber Eats ap

Retail Dive | December 7, 2021 Online furniture retailer Wayfair on Tuesday announced its bringing its brands offline. The company is planning three store openings next year: two for its AllModern brand and one for its Joss & Main brand. After first testing out physical retail in 2018, Wayfair appears to have its eyes set on the channel. Over the years, the company launched a number of pop-ups, as well as a smaller-format permanent store under the Wayfair name, which closed e

NRF | December 7, 2021 Livestream merchandising via social media is gaining traction as retailers continue working to reach customers where they are. Shopping via livestream is a more interactive and fun commerce experience that simulates the social aspect of shopping and allows brands to tell a story with their products, launch new products or partnerships and stand out as a marketing tactic. Last month Twitter launched Live Shopping with Walmart, the first retailer to host

Target | December 2, 2021 A lot goes into building a new Target store. From location and product considerations to interior and exterior design, retailer listens to guests and communities every step of the way to create a one-of-a-kind shopping experience. The 32 new Target locations opened in 2021 are proof of just that, each showcasing the very latest in ease and safety, two areas Target guests say are most important, as well as local touches that reflect the new neighborho

Retail Dive | December 1, 2021 The revived Toys R Us plans to open a new two-story, 20,000-square-foot flagship at the American Dream mall in New Jersey. The new store is likely more a marketing vehicle for the brand than a sales channel. In the release, WHP said that the new store would be "reminiscent of the beloved toy store customers know and love, as visitors can shop their favorite toy brands, meet Geoffrey the Giraffe, [and] rediscover their love of play with interacti

LinkedIn | November 23, 2021 NRF President and CEO, Matthew Shay, discusses consumers and the holidays. The holiday shopping season has begun, and the balance sheets of American consumers are in a very good place. Despite some significant challenges, we are anticipating perhaps the strongest holiday shopping season on record. Though the pandemic is not yet in the rear view mirror, we are seeing meaningful signs of a much-welcomed return to normal behavior. More Americans are

Retail Dive | November 22, 2021 As digital advertising becomes less reliable and more expensive, retailers are turning back to print to win over consumers during peak season. Catalogs have a deep history in retail. Of the first direct-mail catalogs for the holidays, Sears Christmas Wish Book, was first sent out in 1933, and J.C. Penney's Big Book, first sent out in 1963. This year, retailers maybe turning a page back to stand out among competition and flooded email inboxes. W

Walmart Corporate | November 22, 2021 Over the last year, Walmart has been leading the way in social commerce by creating first-to-market experiences for customers, doubling-down on shoppable content and shoppable livestreams. More and more customers are tuning in to shop and Walmart applies feedback for even more fun engagement. Last December Walmart had its very first shoppable livestream with TikTok. After testing 15 shoppable livestream events across five platforms, Walma