| September 5 – 11, 2022
 Gap and American Eagle Outfitters both recently announced that they are offering their logistic expertise as a service, hoping other retailers will use their warehouses and distribution networks as clients. To us, this sounds like a smart idea and similar to the tactic we’re suggesting mall operators employ, but in reports of the new offerings we’ve heard the same chorus of concerns we’ve heard for years about the risks of competitors also being collaborators. Hasn’t it been proven that avoiding collaboration is more of a risk than collaboration itself? If you’re still on the edge about this, give us a ring – we have plenty of case studies to prove this point.
This week we also saw a roundup of the retail technologies released this summer, how some expect robots can help “fix” the supply chain, and what the recipe for success is when it comes to mall foot traffic. Want to hear more? Find us over on Twitter or LinkedIn!
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Digital Meets Physical
Cool retail technology rollouts from a steamy summer [Chain Store Age]
Summer 2022 featured scorching temperatures and retail innovations in robotic, cloud and freshness technology. As always, summertime has come and gone fast enough to give some of us the blues. But summer always leaves behind great memories, which this year include several notable retail technology implementations. |
Recommerce tech firm grows as REI, Lululemon expand used apparel sales [RetailDive]
Trove, a recommerce operating system, announced last week that its technology is now present in more than 700 stores nationwide.Lululemon, Patagonia, REI and Levi’s are among the brands that have adopted the technology, which touts its ability to help companies reach sustainability goals while “extending the life of high-quality products.” |
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How does smartphone shopping differ from laptop shopping? [RetailDive]
A new university study finds that the intimate nature of a smartphone causes consumers to reflect inward, elevating their preference for unique and self-expressive options while shopping, versus when buying products on a laptop. |
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Micro & Last Mile Fulfillment
Retailers Start Selling Something New: Logistics Services [The Wall Street Journal]
Apparel sellers Gap and American Eagle Outfitters are betting their logistics expertise can bring in revenue alongside the sales of jeans and T-shirts, at a time when strains in supply chains are raising the importance of delivery reliability and speed.The retailers want other businesses, including rival merchants, to use their warehouses and distribution networks to manage their flow of goods. The efforts echo the strategy undertaken by Amazon.com. |
Amazon closes, abandons plans for dozens of U.S. warehouses [BBN Bloomberg]
MWPVL International Inc., which tracks Amazon’s real-estate footprint, estimates the company has either shuttered or killed plans to open 42 facilities totaling almost 25 million square feet of usable space. The company has delayed opening an additional 21 locations, totaling nearly 28 million square feet, according to MWPVL. The e-commerce giant also has canceled a handful of European projects, mostly in Spain, the firm said. |
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The Supply Chain Broke. Robots Are Supposed to Help Fix It. [The New York Times]
The people running companies that deliver all manner of products gathered in Philadelphia last week to sift through the lessons of the mayhem besieging the global supply chain. At the center of many proposed solutions: robots and other forms of automation. |
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Restaurants & Ghost Kitchens
Empower Delivery Looks to Streamline the Ghost Kitchen Segment [QSR Magazine]
Co-Founder Chris Baggott and CEO Meredith Sandland today announced the launch of their new venture, Empower Delivery. Born from ClusterTruck, the vertically-integrated virtual restaurant and ghost kitchen, Empower Delivery is a software company that enables delivery-centric restaurants to profitably and sustainably serve off-premise demand. |
Instacart buys e-commerce tech provider Rosie [GroceryDive]
Instacart has acquired Rosie, an e-commerce technology startup that focuses on independent and local retailers and wholesalers. Rosie’s services are now part of the Instacart Platform, a range of digital tools designed to help grocers manage their online and in-store operations that Instacart rolled out in March. |
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New California law could raise fast-food minimum wage to $22 an hour [CNN Business]
In a move the restaurant industry warns could raise fast-food prices, California’s governor signed into law a bill creating a “Fast Food Council” to determine standards for pay, hours, and working conditions for the state’s fast food workers. Under the legislation, the council could raise the minimum wage for fast food workers to up to $22 an hour — well above the $15 an hour in the state for employers with more than 26 workers. |
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Mall Talk
The Pandemic Didn’t Kill Malls. It Made Them Smarter, Traffic Report Shows [Forbes]
The pandemic made mall owners get a lot more creative with their leasing decisions. And the bold moves they have made are paying off in increased foot traffic, according to a recent report by analytics firm Placer.ai. Placer.ai looked at nine U.S. malls that added innovative tenants over the past year and found that each of the malls saw an increase in visitors. |
Highest price is paid for a mall in five years: $537.5 million [Chain Store Age]
Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield has taken a big step on its quest to depart the American mall business. The France-based mall owner has sold the 1.5 million-sq.-ft. Westfield Santa Anita mall, in Arcadia, Calif., for $537.5 million dollars — the highest price paid for a mall since Brookfield Properties sold a 49% stake in Fashion Place near Salt Lake City for $594 million in 2018. |
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Retailers Say They Are Prepared to Meet Demand this Holiday Season [Footwear News]
Even with a longer shopping period, retailers have recently noted their readiness to meet demand in key categories this season. This is partly due to higher-than-usual levels of inventory across the board as a result of delayed orders from Q1 and Q2 that have only recently arrived, compounding existing orders for the season. “With regard to stock, retailers are more confident this year,” Saunders said. “If anything, the problem is having too much inventory rather than too little — which is a big change over last year.” |
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