As the retail world kicks into high gear with the official start of holiday shopping, November brought with it some big stories. Cyber Monday hit a record $7.9 billion in sales and of note, 33.5 percent of Black Friday sales and 27.7 percent of Cyber Monday Sales were made using smartphones. Digitally-native brands continue to make headlines with more and more predicted to turn to brick-and-mortar shops in 2019. And we enjoyed reading an article in Axios about the future of malls and how Columbus, OH has become the ‘SIlicon Valley of retail.” These stories and more are below.
1. How digitally native brands will shape brick-and-mortar retail in 2019 (eMarketer)
Retail is far from dead and in fact is experiencing its best growth since 2011. eMarketer reports on how digitally native brands are reinvigorating retail by opening up physical locations or pop-up shops, helping to lure customers back to brick-and-mortar stores. According to a survey from Euclid, 50% of internet users most likely to check out pop-up stores subscribe to monthly subscription boxes, and 38% shop online every week.
2. The future of malls could look more like towns (Axios)
At a time when most developers are closing malls, a developer in Columbus, OH is looking to expand, with a focus on creating experiences for shoppers. The newly envisioned space will include not only retail, but residential space, office space and a hotel – making it a complete destination for living, working and playing.
3. Cost of doing business: Target’s e-commerce sales growth means higher logistics costs (Digiday)
Digiday reported on Target’s recent earnings call and its 49 percent year over year growth of digital sales, as it works to compete with Amazon and others heavy in e-commerce. Due to increased online sales, Target’s margins dropped, based on higher supply chain costs. The article delves into the updates it has made in infrastructure, delivery and in-store pickup locations to modernize the supply chain.
4. The merging of retail and entertainment will transform both industries (Adweek)
This interesting Voice article in Adweek by Alecia Vimala hints that shoppable entertainment will be the future of retail and entertainment. The author describes a version of product placement 2.0 where customers can shop on the spot (based on what they see on screen), leaving little room for second guessing.
5. Netflix, Prime, BlueApron: How subscription businesses are taking over (Fast Company)
Fast Company interviews Tien Tzou who founded Zuora, a software company built to aid organizations shifting to a subscription model. He shares his insight about why companies and customers have been attracted to the direct relationship, and why now is the time for brands to consider shifting to the model.