Technology

Most people are wondering what life after this recent pandemic will look like. Will we commute back to work, or will working from home and meeting in virtual space become the new norm? Better yet, will we ever vacation away from home - even internationally? Similar questions are also being asked as communities begin to entertain the idea of reopening retail stores. A recent survey by Progressive Grocer already revealed a dramatic shift in the grocery sector, where 31 percent of U.S. households used e-commerce in the past month versus 13 …

The New Normal for Retail: Is It Time to Lean Toward Online?Read More

We are all living in a time warp as our collective confinement continues, but let’s reminisce back to Q1 2020.  In January, California residents gained the right to wrestle back their user data from the tech platforms, retailers, and any other companies that had captured and exploited it. In February, Senator Josh Hawley posited that the FTC take over Google, and Senator Amy Klobuchar introduced an antitrust modernization bill as a cudgel against big tech. The country was speeding toward a new era where the big technology companies would be …

We Like Big Tech AgainRead More

This year Gen Z will surpass millennials as the largest generation. The oldest members of Gen Z are in their early 20s and, as consumers, they're a force to be reckoned with. When we talk about retailing for Gen Z, mobile commerce needs to be at the forefront of the conversation. Gen Z has a 30 percent higher engagement rate than older generations in non-gaming apps. This isn't because Gen Z shop on mobile devices to the exclusion of other channels (you've all seen the stats on Gen Z's return to physical retail), but because young consumers use …

The New Mobile: What Gen Z Wants from In-App RetailRead More

The pace of change over the past few years has been truly astounding. It's easy to forget, but most of us began our professional lives long before Al Gore invented the internet. Smartwatches were once only worn by Dick Tracy - and Maxwell Smart walked around on the world's only mobile phone. Fast-forward to today, and organizations of every size and in every industry have become wholly reliant on computers and data. From customer insights to logistics; from ecommerce to HR; from social media to financial transactions, every aspect of every …

The Top Target for Cybercrime: RetailersRead More

In 2019, nearly half of all ecommerce sales happened on mobile devices. We'll get even closer to 50 percent in 2020 and should tip over the halfway mark by 2021 when the majority of e-commerce transactions will happen on mobile devices. To work in that format, e-commerce experiences must feel intimate, personal, and immediate. Mobile devices, after all, are where we go for up-to-the-second news and information about the people we care about most. Commerce needs to replicate that experience authentically and transparently. Here's what this …

Top E-commerce Predictions for 2020Read More

Surprisingly, Walgreens has a few new tricks up its sleeve. In fact, there are two major new-world developments in the works. Walgreens is poised to become the first retailer to fulfill product orders directly to consumers' residences by means of airborne drones. Not many retail observers would have predicted that Walgreens would be first off the ground with that capability. Secondly, Walgreens will soon start to offer a range of Kroger's successful private brands for sale in its stores. This is a highly unusual arrangement given that …

Walgreens’ Drones Will Make Your Personal DeliveriesRead More

The next big thing is being rolled out by the thousands on almost a daily basis. To name them in the aggregate, we're calling them tech-driven startups. They sprout up overnight, fueled by billions of dollars thrown at their models by crazed, casino-addicted investors. These risk-takers are willing to lose millions on nine out of ten they're funding, hoping that one will be the next Facebook, Amazon, Uber, Airbnb and others who quickly have become unicorns and continually scale upward. However, the irony is that these accelerating …

The Tech HuntersRead More