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.
To close out the year, we’re highlighting a handful of retail startups for whom 2023 was a big year. We look forward to coming back in the new year and hope those of you who are kicking around an idea go for it.
Popping off: Footwear and lifestyle brand Vivaia has taken its talents to the West Coast with its second US pop-up location that’s operating through the end of the year. Vivaia first brought its stylings to physical spaces in October with a NYC pop-up that closed near the end of that month.
- While Vivaia’s hook since its inception in 2020 has been a fully DTC model with no wholesale or retail, the brand now wants to make a deep connection with its customer base, which includes some big names including Selena Gomez, Scarlett Johansson, and Emma Roberts.
- By the end of the year, the company expects to see 3x year-over-year growth.
“Our decision to open an experiential pop-up store was driven by our desire for a more intimate connection with our customers,” co-founder Jeff Chan told Forbes. “After three years of digital engagement and valuable insights from our Japan pop-up, we’re eager to meet our customers face-to-face and let them experience our shoes firsthand.”
Lock it down: In the span of a month, CPG manufacturing platform Keychain launched its first product and secured an $18 million seed round. The company uses AI to find manufacturers for different brands and retailers, and its first product, called Crossroads, allows those companies to see the availability of manufacturing for US products and make reservations at market rates.
- For example, Keychain said, manufacturing a 24-pack of 12 oz. water should cost between $1.28–$1.92, but brands are often required to pay more because of the lack of transparency in the industry.
“If we can take that process from months down to days, we think we can unlock innovation in product development for this whole industry. That, in turn, will result in healthier, more affordable products on our store shelves,” co-founder Oisin Hanrahan told TechCrunch.
Keep on track: Standard AI, a visual AI startup whose clients include Circle K and Compass Group, released its latest product latest month called Standard AI Zone Monitoring. Starting with tobacco and beer, the AI technology uses cameras and its back-end system to identify potentially lost inventory. The company said it can reduce theft using the technology.
- “Every new product we build is designed to help our customers solve immediate problems while ensuring they are on a path to an autonomous future,” Jordan Fisher, CEO of Standard AI, said in a statement. “Zone Monitoring puts our powerful visual AI to work in the most lucrative parts of the store.”