| A Weekly PropTech Newsletter bringing you industry updates from across the real estate spectrum |
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| While we might be getting just a smidge tired of hearing about AI, we are wise enough to know that this is truly just the beginning. Deemed as the “first fully AI-enabled shopping season,” there is clearly a strong embrace of the technology by just about everyone looking to experiment and find out for themselves, “does this AI stuff really work and make life easier?” And it makes sense that retail is one of the first places to see such strong interaction as it’s a place full of decisions, and in a world of decision overload, turning things over to the robots seems appealing. But, the question remains about if the technology lives up to the promise. As tech-enthusiasts, we’re optimistic, but we do expect this next bit to be a bit…confusing. Stay tuned while we try to help make sense of it all.
This week last-mile delivery attempts to speed up even more, the old is new again online, and Black Friday look-backs and 2025 predictions continue to roll in. If you have a 2025 prediction, we’d love to hear it – send it our way or on LinkedIn. |
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| Target launches generative AI gift finder [RetailDive] As customers use the tool on the retailer’s mobile app and website, personalized product recommendations for kids are given based on factors such as age, hobbies, favorite brands and other criteria, per a company press release. Target launched the tool with a focus on toys and is adding thousands of gift ideas for kids throughout the holiday season.
Amazon Tests 15-Minute-or-Less Grocery Delivery in India [PYMNTS] Amazon is reportedly testing 15-minute-or-less grocery deliveries as it takes on Walmart in India. The eCommerce giant is joining a wave of “quick commerce” companies promising super-fast deliveries of products such as groceries and electronics in India.
AI played a bigger role in this year’s Black Friday and Cyber Monday [ModernRetail] During Thanksgiving week, furniture and home decor brand CB2 used artificial intelligence as part of its text messaging marketing campaigns. Over the busy holiday sales periods like Black Friday and Cyber Monday, when so many retailers are trying to reach customers, the more targeted messages helped the brand stand out from the crowd. |
| Lord & Taylor’s New Owner Readies for Online Rebirth [WWD] The Lord & Taylor banner has a new retail chapter in its line of sight. The new owner of the Lord & Taylor intellectual property assets since Sept. 10 is Regal Brands Global. While a revamped website for the retail nameplate is slated for early 2025, a soft launch could be up and running as soon.
The First Fully AI-Enabled Holiday Shopping Season Is Here [Forbes] As the holiday season nears its peak, retailers are leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) like never before to manage inventory, personalize customer experiences, and optimize operations during the final weeks of holiday shopping. This year marks a pivotal shift where consumers benefit directly from these AI-driven innovations, resulting in smoother, more efficient, and tailored shopping experiences.
Over half of holiday shoppers already use or plan to use AI [RetailDive] Nearly 70% of shoppers plan on spending less on gifts this year, according to a holiday shopping trend report. The survey found that this season, customers adopted more mindful spending habits and are incorporating tech while they shop to avoid overspending. |
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| 4 Retail Technology Trends Set to Transform Customer Experience in 2025 [Yahoo!Finance] In an era where artificial intelligence can predict your next purchase and virtual try-ons have become commonplace, the retail landscape in 2025 promises an ever-evolving challenge to keep up with the preferences of today’s shoppers. As traditional boundaries between physical and digital commerce continue to blur, retailers face a critical inflection point: embrace emerging technologies that reshape customer expectations or risk becoming tomorrow’s cautionary tale. |
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| Gen Z to the rescue? How malls are winning over a generation of in-person shoppers [CNBC] Gen Z consumers, despite growing up as digital natives, shop in stores about as much as their baby boomer grandparents do, according to a survey by the ICSC, a mall industry group. Mall owners and retailers are trying to cater to teens and twenty-somethings with unique store features, such as selfie mirrors or videos, and experiences such as pop-up concerts.
Macy’s speeds up store closures to amp up turnaround [RetailDive] The fleet of stores that are not going forward continues to shrink faster than originally planned. The company now expects to shutter about 65 locations this year, up from the 55 or so it had estimated earlier in the year, an effort that Spring said “gets us even closer to our go-forward end state of becoming a more profitable Macy’s Inc.” |
| From Retail To Rentals: How Empty Malls Became Housing Solutions [Forbes] America is in the grip of a housing shortage, with a staggering 4.5 million homes needed to meet demand. Meanwhile, sprawling malls across the country are facing a bleak future, with nearly 34 million square feet of retail space vacant. For innovative developers and entrepreneurs, defunct malls represent an extraordinary opportunity.
Placer.ai: Black Friday shopping drives mall visit increases in November [Chain Store Age] Holiday shopping, including on and before Black Friday, helped propel indoor malls, open-air shopping centers, and outlet malls to a successful November. According to retail analytic firm Placer.ai’s November 2024 Mall Index, all three segments saw year-over-year increases in traffic during the month, with indoor malls leading the way at a 6.4% increase. |
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| ‘Omni-channel’ shopping is ‘winning the day’ for consumers, says Kimco CEO Conor Flynn [CNBC] Conor Flynn, Kimco Realty CEO, joins CNBC’s ‘Power Lunch’ to discuss outlooks on the consumer amidst the holiday shopping season. |
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