On this week’s Modern Retail Rundown, the staff breaks down Bed Bath & Beyond's parent company Beyond Inc.'s decision to invest $40 million in The Container Store through a new partnership. Next, the team discusses ways in which shoppers plan to spend big this holiday season, even if it means going into debt. Finally, we take a look at Urban Outfitters's move to slash prices on more than 100 items ahead of the holidays.
Oct 19, 2024•25 min
Celebrity-led brands have become one of the biggest trends. But it's not enough to simply have a big name associated with a company -- the person actually has to be involved. That's what has helped Made By Gather be such a success. Made By Gather is the parent company of Beautiful, Drew Barrymore's homewares company. Now, Made By Gather is relaunching another brand, Bella, alongside Demi Lovato. Made By Gather has been around since 2003, but only in the last decade has it begun really focusing o...
Oct 17, 2024•33 min
On this week's Modern Retail Rundown, the staff discusses a recent letter from two high-profile politicians sent to CPG leaders like PepsiCo and Coca-Cola over their pricing practices. Then, we dive into news that the NRF isn't running its annual report on retail shrink. Lastly, the team discusses how rising cocoa prices are going to impact Halloween candy sales.
Oct 12, 2024•27 min
Plant-based milk has reached a point of maturation -- and Malk is helping take the products even more to the mainstream. The company launched in 2015, starting first in a farmer's market and expanding over a few years into retailers like Whole Foods and Sprouts. Now, the company's products -- which include almond, oat and cashew milk and creamers -- are sold in nearly 10,000 stores around the country and is the official alternative milk used in Erewhon smoothies. According to CEO Jason Bronstad,...
Oct 10, 2024•36 min
On this week’s Modern Retail Rundown, the editorial team discusses the latest Levi’s earnings, including the potential sale of the under-performing Dockers brand. Meanwhile, QVC struck a deal with the USA Pickleball league for the rights to stream matches with and other shoppable pickleball content. Finally, this week also saw a major food acquisition, with PepsiCo buying Mexican staples startup Siete Foods to add to the conglomerate's better-for-you snack portfolio.
Oct 05, 2024•31 min
Grove Collaborative thinks it has found the way to become the Chewy of sustainable home products. The company has been around since 2012 but has gone through many iterations. For years, it was focused on being a subscription service that delivered curated baskets of its products -- such as paper towels and soaps -- to people's homes. It has tested out private labels as well as wholesale partnerships in stores like Target. The company went public via SPAC in 2022 and has faced some difficult terr...
Oct 03, 2024•40 min
On this week’s Modern Retail Rundown, the editorial team starts by discussing a new lawsuit filed by American Eagle against Amazon, in which the retailer alleges that counterfeit versions of its Aerie products are being listed on Amazon. Meanwhile, publicly traded e-commerce startups Grove Collaborative and Stitch Fix have provided updates on their latest progress in narrowing losses and becoming profitable.
Sep 28, 2024•25 min
Soccer is having a moment, and that has meant online destinations like Soccer.com are seeing newfound growth. But according to Soccer.com CEO Mike Moylan, this has been a long time coming. When Lionel Messi signed with Inter Miami last year, bringing the Argentinian soccer star to the United States, it was clear that the sport was becoming a mainstream pastime for Americans. But there were times before that also brought soccer to the mainstream U.S. -- including when the U.S. women's team won th...
Sep 26, 2024•36 min
On this week's episode of the Modern Retail Rundown, the editorial team dives into some of the updates announced at Amazon Accelerate, the company's annual sellers' conference. Then, we discuss two prominent bankruptcies: Tupperware and Red Lobster. The Tupperware news was just announced this week, and Red Lobster has emerged from bankruptcy with a new owner.
Sep 21, 2024•27 min
"I'm like a dinosaur," said Reggie Milligan. While literally hyperbole, there is some truth to his claim. Milligan is the founder and CEO of Mantry, a male-targeted food subscription box. Mantry, which is available in the U.S. and features up-and-coming American brands, has been around since 2012 -- it experienced the precipitous rise of subscription boxes and its fast decline. But the company is still around, still seeing growth and has some plans for expansion. Milligan, a Canadian entrepreneu...
Sep 19, 2024•39 min
On today's Modern Retail Rundown, the staff kicks things off with the latest on Big Lots' Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, including a private equity takeover bid. With a valuation of $2 billion, Selena Gomez's Rare Beauty is reportedly pausing plans to sell the 4-year-old company given the current instability of M&A activity. Finally, Amazon sent out a notice to sellers that it plans to sell ad space for its AI assistant Rufus, which launched in beta in early 2024.
Sep 14, 2024•27 min
Many department stores and apparel retailers are facing industry headwinds. But one New York-based retailer has been able to buck the trend. Menswear retailer Rothmans has been around for decades, and continues to see sales grow every year. It's also become a well-known destination for media personalities and entertainment industry designers. It also helps that Rothmans is in a part of retail that's especially hot right now. "I don't know if I'm the first to say this, but menswear is the new wom...
Sep 12, 2024•37 min
On the Modern Retail Rundown this week, the staff discusses three retailers' latest growth roadmaps. First, Walmart Marketplace announced a new partnership with sneaker bidding site StockX. Then, the founding Nordstrom family is bidding to buy out the retailer to take it private. Finally, nearly a year after Rite Aid filed for bankruptcy, the now privately-held drugstore has a new CEO and plans to operate fewer stores.
Sep 07, 2024•32 min
Croissant believes it has found a way to get more retailers and brands excited about resale. The business isn't a resale platform, per se. Instead, Croissant users can go to any retailer or brand's website and see a guaranteed resale value price that they would recoup if they bought the product new and then resold it to Croissant sometime later. "We describe ourselves as the first shopping tool that provides guaranteed resale values at the point of sale and beyond," said co-founder and CEO John ...
Sep 05, 2024•42 min
On this week's Modern Retail Rundown, the staff discusses the issues plaguing Dollar General as it tries to lure bargain shoppers with its low-priced products. Lululemon's stalled growth in the U.S. also shows that the company isn't as economy-resistant as it has been over the last few years. Meanwhile, Foot Locker is scrapping international growth in favor of cost-cutting to improve profit margins.
Aug 31, 2024•26 min
Liquid Death is masterful at going viral. But the man leading its marketing team doesn't like it described as such. "I hate the word viral," said Dan Murphy, svp of marketing at the canned beverage brand Liquid Death. In his mind, it's not precise enough. Liquid Death, by all accounts, is a viral product. Its very concept is meant to make people laugh and share. The company is best known for its canned water products that appear like beer cans. And as it gained prominence, the viral campaigns co...
Aug 29, 2024•31 min
This week’s Modern Retail Rundown starts by unpacking why price cuts are drawing shoppers back to Target but not Macy's. Next, Peloton is slowly digging itself out of the red through price cuts and new revenue-generating initiatives. The company's latest strategy is to charge a $95 activation fee on pre-owned bikes and treadmills purchased through resale marketplaces. Finally, Chick-fil-A is reportedly counting on creating unscripted shows for its own streaming service as part of a bigger market...
Aug 24, 2024•26 min
Walmart is heavily investing in new technology and trying out new programs and processes to be more consumer-friendly. Helping lead this charge is Jon Alferness, the big-box retailer's chief product officer. What does Walmart's chief product officer do? In his words, he "[acts] as a nexus point to bring together [employees across teams] -- whether it's folks in design, engineering or business science -- to solve customer problems that deliver against the business goals and the business outcomes ...
Aug 22, 2024•42 min
This week’s episode of the Modern Retail Rundown unpacks the latest retail sales in the U.S., which were better than expected. Next, beauty brands are self-funding their businesses and seeking government loans as venture capital dollars dry up. Finally, the team discusses takeaways from this year’s eTail East conference in Boston.
Aug 17, 2024•28 min
Nail salon and nail care brand MiniLuxe wants to make its employees "mani-millionaires" through franchising. MiniLuxe has been around since 2008, but in the last year has introduced a new model to open more locations via franchising. Right now, the company has a little over 20 locations around the U.S., but it has plans to increase that by the thousands via franchising. Its co-founder and CEO, Tony Tjan, joined the Modern Retail Podcast this week and spoke about the company's ambitions. "There i...
Aug 15, 2024•34 min
This week’s episode of the Modern Retail Rundown kicks off with a Reuters report of Mars allegedly looking to acquire Kellanova, the parent company of Cheez-It and Pop-Tarts. Over at resale platform ThredUp, the company has made the decision to pull out of the European markets and focus on its U.S. business. Finally, employees at an Apple store in Maryland receive their first union contract two years after voting to unionize.
Aug 10, 2024•31 min
Revo is not a new company, but it's now in the process of reintroducing itself to more people. The performance eyewear brand first launched in the '80s selling fashionable sunglasses with science-backed sun protection. Over the years, the brand got sold to many big players, including Ray-Ban and Essilor Luxxotica. But in 2018, an eyewear company called B. Robinson -- with the help of some outside investors -- decided to purchase Revo. "It didn't have the same level of investment and the same lev...
Aug 08, 2024•40 min
On this week’s episode of the Modern Retail Rundown, the staff begins with a recap of some food establishment earnings, which include growing sales at Chipotle and Starbucks' continued slump. This week also saw Etsy’s announcing its first-ever membership program to incentivize shoppers with perks. Finally, a new report from Semafor outlines how former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz is still indirectly involved in the company through joint investments in olive oil.
Aug 03, 2024•26 min
Nespresso's U.S. marketing strategy is about going beyond the coffee machine. "We, first and foremost, are a coffee brand," said Jessica Padula, Nespresso's vp of marketing. She joined the Modern Retail Podcast and spoke about the brand's growth plans in the U.S. Nespresso has had retail locations for years. But the brand -- best known for its pod-based coffee brewing system -- has always tinkered with the model, testing out new markets and concepts while sunsetting others. According to Padula, ...
Aug 01, 2024•39 min
On this week's episode of the Modern Retail Rundown the staff starts out with an analysis of the pending Kroger and Albertsons merger, which is now on hold. This week also saw LVMH-backed L Catterton reportedly approaching toy maker Mattel for a potential acquisition. Finally, Amazon returns are overwhelming retail drop-off points like UPS and Staples -- so much so, the store employees now refer to customers with these returns as "Amazombies."
Jul 27, 2024•25 min
Tecovas wants to be more than just about cowboy boots. The nine-year-old company has big plans to become a high-end Western wear lifestyle brand. "Initially, it sort of was known as the Warby Parker of cowboy boots, if you will," said CEO David Lafitte on the Modern Retail Podcast. "We've tried to sort of migrate the positioning of the brand into more of a premium lifestyle brand." Lafitte -- who previously held C-suite positions at Deckers -- has been leading Tecovas for the last two years, and...
Jul 25, 2024•34 min
On this week’s Modern Retail Rundown, the staff discusses the numbers behind this year's Prime Day, and what people bought during the two-day Amazon sales event. Following that, we’re talking about Limited Too’s comeback as it relaunches in Kohl's this week. Finally, mall-based retailer Pacsun is expanding further into activewear with a new men's athleisure line called ARC.
Jul 20, 2024•26 min
A little over a decade ago, energy drink brand Celsius was being delisted from many of its retail partners. Now, it's become one of the hottest beverage companies on the market. According to CEO John Fieldly, it took time and effort, but the company was able to rebrand itself as a lifestyle beverage associated with health and wellness. When it first launched, "it was positioned as a negative calorie drink. It got tons of interest from retailers," he said. The brand, however, "just couldn't get t...
Jul 18, 2024•34 min
On this week’s Modern Retail Rundown, the staff discusses the latest funding round raised by NA beer company Athletic Brewing in an effort to meet demand. Meanwhile, Nike announced it's bringing former executive Tom Peddie back to be vp of marketplace partnerships as the company refocuses on wholesale. Lastly, in September, Costco is raising its annual membership fee by $5 -- the first increase since 2017.
Jul 13, 2024•25 min
Lucky Energy wants to take on the Red Bulls and C4s of the world. The company's drink line, Lucky F*ck, launched last year and has been slowly building out its distribution. It's now available in around 2,000 store doors in Texas and California and is also sold on Amazon. According to CMO Hamid Saify, the strategy of growing Lucky Energy has been to get people's attention. Thus, the name of its product. The company has also launched some splashy guerrilla campaigns -- including a Coachella activ...
Jul 11, 2024•37 min
