Happy Monday! Here is a recap of industry news from the last week. Sources are in the hyperlinked text after the headline. Cheers!

Brands and Retailers

• Online retailer Sense opens brick-and-mortar.  Glossy
• Amazon studies body sizes to get that perfect clothing fit.  Wall Street Journal
• Blue Apron turns to Costco as customer growth slows.  The Wall Street Journal
• Apple has already built its next big business.  Fortune
• Sale spikes continue for Estee Lauder.  WWD
• Vitamins are trendy.  Vitamin stores are not.  Racked
• Birchbox has sold majority ownership to one of its hedge fund investors after sale talks with QVC fell through.  Recode
• Pandora and Spotify surprise investors.  Bloomberg
• Amazon launches Prime Book Box, a $23 kids’ book selection.  TechCrunch
• Nestle bets $7B on Starbucks to revive coffee sales.  Bloomberg
• Amazon’s share of all retail sales could reach nearly 10% in two years.  CNBC
• Online spending passes $100B for the first time.  RetailDive

Marketing and Social Media

• Under Armour launches real-time Steph Curry trivia game.  Fast Company
• Instagram is starting to take payments – but not for products just yet.  Fortune
• Hulu surpasses 20M subscribers, grows engagement by over 60%.  The Drum
• Snap stock plunges 15% on disappointing earnings that it partly blamed on redesign.  Fortune
• Cambridge Analytica shuts all operations after Facebook scandal.  Fortune
• Facebook is considering a paid, ad-free version of its social network.  Fast Company
• Twitter advising all users to change passwords after bug exposed them in plain text.  The Verge
• Facebook announces dating feature for meeting non-friends.   TechCrunch
• Twitter shares spike after Disney announces it will make shows specifically for the platform.  CNBC
• Instagram code reveals up-coming music feature.  TechCrunch
• WhatsApp new lets you play Facebook and Instagram videos within the app.  The Verge
• Microsoft and Amazon show off their Alexa-Cortana collaboration.  AdAge
• Bonobos showcases 172 kinds of diversity in priciest campaign to date.  AdAge

Startup + Emerging Tech + Acquisitions

• J.P. Morgan files patent for blockchain powered payments.  Fortune
• The $1B company that’s building wearable AI for blind people.  Fast Company
• Macy’s acquires New York concept shop, Story.  CNBC
• For all the hype about VR, advertisers are more excited by AR (for now).  Digiday
• Oculus aims for the masses with a new $200 VR headset.  Fast Company
• How beauty brands like Coty and Shiseido are using voice assistants.  Glossy
• Goldman Sachs to open a bitcoin trading operation.  The New York Times

International

• Walmart buys 75% share of Flipkart, India’s largest commerce platform.  AdWeek
• Why Walmart and Amazon are battling so fiercely over India.  Fortune
• Alibaba beats forecasts with 61% growth and predicts more of the same for the next year.  TechCrunch
• Impulsive, addictive social commerce is China’s latest craze.  Business of Fashion