Month: October 2019

Weekly Industry Brief: 10.28.2019

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

Brands + Retailers

    • LVMH bids $14.5B for Tiffany.  Bloomberg
    • Barney’s moves forward with sale to Authentic Brands Group.  The Wall Street Journal
    • Amazon stock tumbles after earnings and AWS revenues fall short of estimates.  Fast Company
    • Microsoft wins $10B Pentagon cloud contract, beating Amazon.  Fortune
    • Macy’s becomes the biggest US retailer to end fur sales.  The Guardian
    • Twitter stock plunges as company blames ad targeting problems for earnings miss. MarketWatch
    • Visa, Mastercard debut one-click checkout to compete with PayPal, Apple Pay.  Bloomberg
    • Mega-mall opens in New Jersey with more entertainment than retail.  Fast Company
    • Birchbox is looking beyond beauty for its next phase of growth.  CNBC
    • Playing the handbag stock market.  The New York Times 
    • The Body Shop builds sales with return to green roots.  WWD
    • Procter & Gamble beats expectations again amid media hikes and agency cuts.  AdAge
    • How Dick’s Sporting Goods is building a future on sports, not guns.  Fortune
    • Amazon pop-up helps shoppers find the perfect pair of jeans.  WWD
    • First Aid Beauty’s founder on being acquired by P&G.  WWD
    • Report says Google parent company, Alphabet, makes offer for Fitbit.  Fortune

Social Media + Marketing

    • Dior, Snapchat create AR experiences to back luggage collection created with Rimowa.  AdWeek
    • Gap focuses on digital with a holiday campaign that won’t air on TV.  AdAge
    • Facebook rolls out a stand-alone news service in its mobile app. AdWeek
    • Amazon ad sales show marked slow down.  MediaPost
    • Snapchat’s third quarter brings big gains.  AdWeek
    • Kind gets 18M views in less than a day on TikTok.  AdAge
    • 12 important updates made by Instagram this year.  Social Media Today
    • Snapchat makes sharing content easier.  The Drum
    • How programmatic disruption is creating a fourth era of digital marketing.  AdWeek

Start up + Acquisitions + Emerging Tech

    • Target incubator propels mission-driven Gen Z startups into the marketplace.  Fortune
    • Apple is revamping it’s smart home efforts after falling behind Amazon and Google.  AdAge
    • London’s top consumer VC’s share which trends they’re tracking.  TechCrunch
    • Combining StitchFix and Instagram, FlipFit ushers in the next phase of social retail.  TechCrunch
    • Why Target won’t be rolling out in-store robots.  CNN
    • VW is betting big on electric.  Bloomberg
    • Google search is starting to use machine-based learning.  Google

Weekly Industry Brief: 10.21.2019

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

Brands + Retailers

    • Authentic Brands Group bids $271M to buy Barneys New York.  Reuters
    • Under Armour to make spacesuits for Virgin Galatic flights.  CNBC
    • Best Buy touts first-party data capabilities as it looks to build its media business.  Digiday
    • Gymboree brand will stage a comeback in 2020 thanks to Children’s Place.  CNBC
    • How big box retailers are competing to win a greater share of holiday toy sales.  Modern Retail
    • Netflix stock skyrockets on profit beats despite looming threat from Disney, Apple.  Fast Company
    • How Amazon is redefining the expensive and wasteful process of returns.  CNBC
    • Ulta wins exclusive Kyle Cosmetics holiday collection.  Refinery29
    • Nike shifts distribution strategy.  Forbes
    • Why your next Louis Vuitton bag may hail from Texas.  The Wall Street Journal
    • Kellogg’s new inclusion cereal features 6 cereals and 6 mascots.  Fast Company
    • Hudson’s Bay in $1.5B deal to go private. Reuters
    • The North Face sharpens focus on sustainability.  Glossy

Social Media + Marketing

    • Facebook tweaks algorithm, opens search ad placement.  AdWeek
    • Adidas admits that it over-invested in digital advertising.  MarketingWeek
    • How Abercrombie ditched its past to try to bring back customers.  CNBC
    • Amazon charges brands top dollar to be in its curated holiday toy guide.  AdAge
    • Shoppable ads pop up on TikTok.  Economic Times
    • Facebook launches new ‘Disruptor Hub’ to outline how businesses are seeing major growth online.  Social Media Today
    • Influencers tell you what to buy while advertisers wonder who’s listening. The Wall Street Journal
    • Google teams up with Dominos for special Pixel 4 deliveries. AdAge
    • Snapchat’s targeting direct-response advertisers with new dynamic ads product.  Digiday
    • Kohl’s teams up with Instagram and Facebook to update its beauty department.  Glossy
    • Small retailers are prioritizing Amazon as search ads continue to grow.  Modern Retail

Start up + Acquisitions + Emerging Tech

    • Walgreens makes first drone delivery in Virginia test.  The Verge
    • Bose is the latest tech company to expand into healthcare.  Fast Company

International 

    • Travel retail spending on the rise.  WWD
    • ASOS invests to grow global online sales.  Forbes
    • Ikea’s India growth plans feature smaller cities and formats.  The Economic Times

Weekly Industry Brief: 10.15.2019

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Hi! Here is your weekly recap of industry news. Sources are in the hyperlinked text after the headline.

Brands + Retailers

  • Handbag sales reveal a major shift in where consumers are shopping.  CNBC
  • Toys ‘R’ Us taps Target to fulfill online orders.  AdAge
  • How Glossier grew from millennial catnip to billion-dollar juggernaut.  Vanity Fair 
  • LVMH bets on a mental health-focused streetwear label.  Fast Company
  • Sears, Kmart to shutter more stores by year’s end.  The Wall Street Journal
  • Amazon changes “add-on” policy to allow small-item fast delivery.  Vox
  • With new sampling program, Uniqlo takes page from DTC brands.  Modern Retail
  • Walmart subsidizing some vendors in price wars with Amazon.  AdAge
  • Target expands Goodfellow & co into razors.  Glossy
  • Why eBay, Stripe and MasterCard are bailing on Facebook’s Libra. Fast Company
  • Victoria’s Secret exec resigns as retailer trims HQ staff.  CNN
  • Best Buy promises loyalty members Black Friday price matching.  Star Tribune
  • Wegman’s fan count the days to Brooklyn store opening.  The Wall Street Journal
  • How Unilever plans to dramatically slash its use of plastic.  Fast Company 
  • Google is funding climate-change deniers.  Fast Company
  • Kith’s co-founder in final talks to buy Barneys New York.  GQ

Marketing + Social Media

  • Facebook agrees to pay advertisers $44M over inflated video stats.  AdAge
  • Google introduces price-tracking and enhanced visual search in latest ecommerce bid.  RetailDive
  • Abercrombie & Fitch focuses on mental health.  MediaPost
  • Apps hit $21.9M in global Q3 revenue.  TechCrunch
  • Instagram introduces Threads, taking on Snapchat messaging. Business of Fashion
  • Reddit strikes sharing deal with Snap.  AdAge
  • Gen Z spends more time on YouTube than Netflix.  AdWeek
  • “Aspirational realness,” the Instagram cool-girl look disguises advertising as authenticity.  Quartzy
  • Disney+ tweets full lineup of movies and shows coming to its platform.  TechCrunch
  • Are ‘closet accounts’ the future of fashion journalism?  The New York Times
  • Brands build buzz with TikTok initiatives.  Glossy
  • Amazon Music arrives on Apple TV.  TechCrunch
  • Facebook upgrades business capabilities ahead of holidays.  Social Media Today
  • Pinterest unveils mental health resources.  AdWeek
  • Amazon nibbles away at Google’s search advertising dollars.  AdAge

Startup + Emerging Tech + Acquisitions

  • Comcast and SK Telecom form joint eSports company.  ZDNet
  • Uber to acquire majority stake in grocery-delivery service CornerShop.  The Wall Street Journal
  • Amazon develops drones that won’t crash into other things.  Fortune
  • Whole Foods welcomes robotic barista.  Supermarket News
  • Dyson scraps plan for electric car.  BBC

International

  • Why luxury goods are so expensive in China.  CNBC
  • TMall is becoming luxury fashion’s online gateway to China.  Quartz
  • How China is fueling the growth of beauty brands.  CNBC
  • Nestle’s personalized vitamin-pack subscription service set to expand globally.  Forbes
  • Flipkart confirms its entering the the food retail business in India.  TechCrunch