Month: December 2018

Weekly Industry Brief: 12.17.2018

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And just like that, we’re on my last post for the year!

Back in the beginning of 2018, Amazon had just announced 20 finalists for their second headquarters and Toys ‘R’ Us was still a store. A lot has happened since then and I’m proud to have archived it here.

I am wishing all of you a wonderful holiday and a happy new year.  Hopefully you are closing out the year by spending with family, friends, and loved ones, taking time to reflect on this year and planting seeds for all of the potential of the year ahead.

(P.S. If you want a quick cry, check out the Google Year in Search video.)

With Love, Carolann

Brands + Retailers

  • Google will open a new $1B campus in NYC.  Fast Company
  • Report says Johnson & Johnson knew its baby powder had asbestos for decades.  Fast Company
  • Starbucks opens first east coast reserve roastery.  AdAge
  • Facebook discloses bug that opened private photos to apps.  AdAge
  • The data New York gave to Amazon.  The New York Times
  • Here’s how Nike, Alibaba and Walmart are reinventing retail.  Wired
  • A look inside Macy’s new retail strategy.  Retail Dive
  • Dollar General has suddenly become one of the biggest retailers in the US by store count.  Business Insider
  • Retailers embrace payment apps to sidestep $90B in swipe fees.  Bloomberg
  • Amazon looks to limit products that don’t drive profit.  Forbes
  • Amazon eyes private label toys.  Retail Dive
  • Starbucks adding delivery services to more than 2,000 stores via Uber Eats.  TechCrunch
  • Instacart and Amazon-owned Whole Foods are parting ways.  TechCrunch
  • Aerie momentum continues for American Eagle.  Forbes
  • What every direct-to-consumer brand can learn from Nike.  Forbes
  • How Barney’s, Saks and Neiman Marcus are tackling luxury beauty.  Glossy

Marketing + Social Media

  • The making of a computer-generated influencer.  The Wall Street Journal
  • Why beauty and wellness brands like New York City subway ads.  Glossy
  • Facebook’s version of YouTube takes shape with pranksters, magicians and cartoons.  The New York Times 
  • Stories from inside the $9B Instagram economy.  Fast Company
  • Instagram is testing creator accounts for high-profile influencers.  The Verge
  • Hulu introduces new programmatic marketplace.  AdAge
  • Facebook rolls out search ads and they’re currently free.  AdAge
  • Rookie cataloged a generation of girlhood.  The New York Times
  • Instagram will start telling brands which products users bookmark which could be used for ad targeting.  CNBC

Startup + Emerging Tech + Acquisitions

  • Walmart will soon use hundreds of AI robot janitors to scrub the floors of US stores.  CNBC
  • Procter & Gamble buys Walker & Co.  AdAge
  • Headspace vs. Calm: the meditation battle that’s anything but zen.  The Wall Street Journal
  • How “brick-and-mobile” is transforming in-store shopping.  Retail Dive
  • Powerful pricing: the next frontier in apparel and fashion advanced analytics.  McKinsey

International

  • eCommerce is thriving in Africa despite hurdles to the “last mile.”  Quartz
  • Walmart partners with Rakuten to open its first ecommerce store in Japan.  TechCrunch

Weekly Industry Brief: 12.10.2018

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Happy Monday! Here is a quick recap of news from around the industry in the last week.  Sources are in the hyperlinked text after the headline. Hope your holidays have been successful so far 🙂

Brands + Retailers

  • Marlboro maker buys $1.8B stake in cannabis company.  Adage
  • Amazon tests its cashier-less technology for bigger stores.  The Wall Street Journal
  • Amazon’s cashier-free Go stores may be coming to airports.  TechCrunch
  • What big consumer brands can do to compete in a digital economy.  Harvard Business Review
  • Walgreens launches next-day drug delivery with FedEx.  Forbes
  • Chanel is showing the first signs of evolving into a more flexible, millennial-oriented company.  Glossy
  • Walmart to acquire home decor site Art.com. CNBC
  • Stella McCartney, Burberry among brands uniting against climate change.  CNN
  • How digitally native brands are changing the American mall.  Glossy
  • Verizon trims 7% of staff in preparation for a 5G future.  TechCrunch

Marketing + Social Media

  • Google’s search data shows YouTube’s influence over this season’s hottest toys.  TechCrunch
  • Why the New York Times is going all in on march.  Fashionista
  • Lyft drops ‘L’ in solidarity with screwed Brooklyn commuters.  AdAge
  • Lululemon expands test loyalty program with annual fee.  CNBC
  • How Adidas is evolving dark social to stay ahead of the game.  Marketing Week
  • TV can now complete the attribution puzzle.  AdAge
  • Will ad dollars continue shifting from Facebook to Instagram in 2019?  AdWeek
  • Pringles returns to the Super Bowl.  AdAge
  • Social media tops newspapers as a top source for adults.  TechCrunch
  • Instagram adds voice messaging feature to Instagram Direct.  Fast Company

Startup + Emerging Tech + Acquisitions

  • Wearables are pivoting from fitness to wellness.  Glossy
  • Target’s Christmas tree sales aided by augmented-reality feature.  Bloomberg
  • Google has acquired one of India’s most popular train-tracking apps.  TechCrunch
  • Amazon Music customers can now talk to Alexa more naturally.  TechCrunch
  • Target replaces startup accelerator program, partners with German retailer.  Biz Journals
  • VR headset market grew 8.3% in Q3.  VentureBeat
  • American Airlines is offering biometric boarding at LAX terminal.  Fast Company

International

  • China’s Alibaba takes on Amazon in European cloud.  The Wall Street Journal
  • Macy’s fully exits China after closing its last online shop.  ZDNet
  • Amazon is planning to open a flagship Go store in London.  Fast Company 

Weekly Industry Brief: 12.3.2018

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

Brands + Retailers

Marketing + Social Media

  • Marketing through smart speakers? Brands don’t need to be asked twice.  The New York Times 
  • Retailers test Facebook-style shopper profiles to battle Amazon.  AdAge
  • Samsung overtakes P&G as world’s largest advertiser.  AdAge
  • Intel guts its high-profile internal agency.  AdAge
  • Amazon emerges as an advertising giant.  The Wall Street Journal
  • Amazon Teen targets kids on Snapchat.  Fast Company
  • For Birchbox and Glamsquad, it’s all about clicks and mortar.  Fortune
  • Apple launches online store with 10% discount for active military and veterans.  TechCrunch
  • DTC brand Parachute plans to have 20 retail stores by 2020.  Digiday
  • How this 7-year-old made $22M playing with toys.  Forbes
  • YouTube rolls out Stories to creators with over 10K subscribers.  TechCrunch
  • Amazon is letting Apple Musica onto its Alexa speakers.  AdAge
  • Facebook adds free TV shows to redefine Watch.  TechCrunch

Startup + Emerging Tech + Acquisitions

  • L’oreal’s Modifiche brings AR to nail care.  Glossy
  • Startup incubator Betaworks signs exclusive partnership with WPP’s Grey.  AdWeek
  • Payless opened a fake luxury store to see how much people would pay for $20 shoes.  AdWeek
  • YouTube lets European creators add a march store to their channels.  Engadget
  • This is the ultimate no-frills shopping site.  Fast Company
  • Bustle buys Mic.  Forbes

International

  • Amazon under fire in Europe as Germany adds antitrust probe.  AdAge
  • El Corte Ingles ties up with Alibaba.  Alizila
  • Toys ‘R’ Us Asia maps regional growth plan.  The Wall Street Journal