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Retail news that keeps industry pros in the know
Retail Brew delivers the latest retail industry news and insights surrounding marketing, DTC, and e-commerce to keep leaders and decision-makers up to date.
We’re just about 50% through 2023, and earlier this week, we reviewed our Q1 coverage, including our look at predictions for the year, robots in retail, and supply chains. In Q2, we dug into resale, customer experience, and Gen Z.
Resale
Resale and sustainability—they’re often mentioned in the same breath. And while we at Retail Brew often do just that, we also try not to conflate the two concepts: Instead, we view resale as a category that warrants its own examination. In April, we took a look at retailers, like Chanel, Hermès, and L.L.Bean, that are not yet sold on resale. You know who’s sold on resale, though, and pretty much always have been? Thrift shops and Goodwill. But does it still make sense for fashion retailers to launch resale platforms? Turns out, it depends. And we wouldn’t be Retail Brew if we didn’t delve into the emerging technologies changing the resale game.
Customer experience
Retailers spend a tremendous amount of time and energy striving to improve their relationships with consumers and creating what they believe are the best possible experiences. Wayfair sought to tackle these challenges with—what else?—AI. In 2020, Amazon introduced Amazon One, which allows customers to check out by scanning the palm of their hand. Two years later, it’s putting the biometric tech in front of more consumers. How different are luxury consumers’ expectations for the customer experience around the world, and what do international retailers need to keep in mind? We also reported on virtual beauty try-on tech, which, it turns out, is somewhat of a bellwether in the space.
Gen Z
News flash: Gen Z is and in all likelihood will continue to be retail’s big focus, and virtually everyone in the industry wants to unlock the secrets to understanding and reaching the cohort. Here, in no particular order, are just a few of the categories (and products) Gen Z is disrupting: home improvement and furniture (because they’re homebuyers now), tinned fish (you read that right), dupes (more like they’re disrupting luxury with their love of dupes), and beauty (yes, the entire category).