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- 🏷️Noticing more product recalls lately? It's not just you.
🏷️Noticing more product recalls lately? It's not just you.
It reflects an actual increase
Greetings from the Retailist editorial team! As we head into the weekend, the dynamics within e-commerce, retail, and Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) industries continue to evolve swiftly. Over the recent week, we've observed an array of updates, burgeoning trends, and fresh narratives across the retail sector. Join us as we explore the top stories.
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Reddit’s Big Move on Money-Making Features: Here’s What You Need to Know
Reddit is making strides in the e-commerce realm. Although still in its infancy, the platform has introduced an e-commerce product offering, signaling Reddit's ambitions to become a more comprehensive marketplace.
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In the news: Top headlines this week
Beyond Inc. acquires Zulily brand for $4.5M. The Overstock and Bed Bath & Beyond parent company acquired the online discount retailer Zulily to enhance its position in the off-price market, leveraging Zulily's intellectual property and market presence. Marcus Lemonis, executive chairman of Beyond, emphasized the move as a strategic effort to expand the business, improve margin profiles, and grow the customer base by integrating Zulily with Overstock, offering vendors and customers more value. Zulily, established in 2010 and reaching a peak market cap of $7 billion in 2014, discontinued operations after significant layoffs, selling off its inventory and brand assets early this year. [Retail Dive]
Target joins crowd of big US retailers seeking store expansion. After years of store closures and fears of a "retail apocalypse" driven by the surge in online shopping, several major U.S. retail chains are reversing the trend by opening new stores as a strategy to gain market share. Retail giants such as Target, Walmart, Sam's Club, Bloomingdale's, and Bluemercury are expanding their physical presence with hundreds of new locations. This shift reflects a continued consumer preference for in-store experiences, including store pickups and delivery services, which have contributed to increased store visits and sales, with Walmart and Target noting significant boosts in traffic and customer engagement through their pickup and delivery options. [Reuters]
Noticing more product recalls lately? It's not just you. The recent surge in product recalls across various categories, including food items and medical products, is not coincidental; it reflects an actual increase in such actions. In just the past two weeks, the FDA has recorded numerous recalls, market withdrawals, and safety alerts for a diverse range of products, from ground cinnamon and eye ointment to chocolate bars. Retailer Trader Joe's alone has initiated recalls for at least six items this year, with chicken soup dumplings being one of the latest due to potential plastic contamination. [Business Insider]
Gap shares pop as company’s holiday earnings blow past estimates, Old Navy returns to growth. Old Navy, Gap's largest division, experienced growth for the first time in over a year during its holiday quarter, significantly exceeding Wall Street's expectations with a 6% increase in sales to $2.29 billion. This contributed to Gap's overall gross margin rising by 5.3 percentage points to 38.9%, surpassing analysts' expectations of 36%. The positive earnings report led to a 9% increase in Gap's shares in extended trading. [CNBC]
The Home Depot leans on distribution centers to deliver pro orders. The Home Depot is implementing a delivery initiative that alleviates the workload on associates by eliminating the need for them to pick, pack, and stage items, aiming to enhance the shopping experience for its valuable Pro customers and boost sales. By the end of 2024, the company plans to equip 17 top Pro markets with new fulfillment options, localized product assortments, an expanded salesforce, and improved digital features, including trade credit and order management systems, as stated by Chair, President, and CEO Ted Decker. The Home Depot utilizes a variety of facility types, including flatbed distribution centers for efficient handling of building materials and direct fulfillment centers for shipping products like flooring and windows. [Retail Dive]
Why the World’s Most Pricey Handbags Keep Getting More Expensive. To maintain exclusivity amid industry growth, designers are increasing the prices of their signature bags, as reported by The Wall Street Journal. For example, the price of a standard Hermès Birkin handbag has risen by $1,000, marking a significant trend towards enhancing the exclusivity of luxury brands' most popular items. PurseBop, a luxury handbag forum, noted that Hermès has increased the price of its basic Birkin 25-centimeter bag by 10% in the U.S., now selling for $11,400 before sales tax, with bags from exotic skins seeing price increases of over 20%. This pricing strategy, the largest in a decade, is attributed to rising manufacturing costs. [Retail Wire]
Temu spent so much on Meta ads that staffers joked they should thank the company with a hefty gift card, report says. Temu, a Chinese online shopping platform celebrated for its extremely low prices, was identified as the top advertiser for Meta in 2023, spending nearly $2 billion on ads. This spending spree led to jokes among Meta staffers that Temu should express its gratitude by giving Meta one of its own gift cards, highlighting the significant financial relationship between the two companies, as reported by The Wall Street Journal.[Business Insider]
Citing momentum over the holidays, Nordstrom moves deeper into off-price. Nordstrom plans to expand its off-price segment, Nordstrom Rack, by opening more stores in 2024 than it did in 2023, following a successful holiday season and a push for growth despite analysts' concerns about the need for improvements in its full-line business. After closing several major stores, including its Canadian locations and San Francisco flagship, the company is looking to bolster its position with 22 new Rack store openings, driven by positive sales momentum and improved assortments. Nordstrom's CFO, Cathy Smith, announced that the company will start sharing comparable sales data starting in the first quarter to highlight its progress. [Retail Dive]
American Eagle tops estimates on robust apparel demand, fewer discounts. American Eagle Outfitters exceeded Wall Street's fourth-quarter expectations, driven by strong demand for its full-price denim and activewear during the key holiday shopping season, leading to a surge in its stock by up to 12.8%. The company, which owns the Aerie brand, anticipates revenue growth for 2024 that aligns with analysts' forecasts and targets mid-to-high teens growth in annual operating income over the next three years. This optimistic outlook is based on American Eagle's strategy to focus on higher-margin categories and innovate in design and fabrics. [Reuters]
Foot Locker Shares Plummet on Profit Projection Disappointment. Foot Locker's shares saw a dramatic 27% drop after the company projected lower profits for 2024 than anticipated, citing plans for significant investments to boost demand as a key factor. While the retailer enjoyed a strong performance during the holiday quarter, it announced a delay in meeting its long-term profit margin goals until 2028 due to aggressive promotional activities that have been impacting margins. Amidst a restructuring effort, Foot Locker is focusing on its "Lace Up" strategy to improve its digital footprint and increase full-price sales, despite the need for markdowns to clear inventory. [Retail Wire]
Oura to sell its smart rings on Amazon as Apple, Samsung wearables competition grows. Oura, a company known for its smart rings focused on health and wellness, is expanding its retail presence by offering its products on Amazon, marking a significant step in its retail strategy. This move allows U.S. customers to purchase Oura's full range of rings and accessories, along with sizing kits, directly from its Amazon brand store, with sizing kits offered at a discounted price. Building on its partnership with Best Buy from last year, this new venture into Amazon's marketplace represents Oura's ongoing efforts to widen its retail footprint beyond direct-to-consumer sales through its website.[CNBC]
A Jeff Bezos-backed startup and Oscar Mayer want to charge you a lot more for a meatless hot dog than a meaty one. Oscar Mayer is making its debut in the plant-based meat market by introducing vegan hot dogs and sausages across the United States, but consumers should be prepared for higher prices. Bloomberg reports that these plant-based options are expected to cost 40% to 60% more than Oscar Mayer's traditional meat hot dogs. For example, a four-pack of the plant-based NotHotDogs is suggested to retail at $5.99, contrasting with the $2.84 to $7.99 price range for an eight-pack of meat-based hot dogs in the Washington, DC, area. [Business Insider]
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