TECHNOLOGY

The mattress wars are heating up
There's more disruption in the mattress category at retail. West Elm has entered into a partnership with hot online mattress company Leesa Sleep, which will replace another hot online startup — Casper — as the home furnishings retailer's official mattress partner. The news come on the heels of Casper's announcement that it will open up more than a dozen pop-up stores in cities nationwide.
Dunkin' Donuts names marketing chief
Dunkin' Donuts has tapped an agency marketing/advertising veteran to head up its U.S. marketing efforts. The company appointed Tony Weisman, 57, to the position of U.S. chief marketing officer, effective in late September. He most recently served as the North American CEO of DigitasLBi, a global digital agency network, which has worked on the Dunkin' Donuts account for some six years.

Walmart pledges up to $20 million in hurricane relief

Walmart is significantly expanding its Hurricane Harvey relief efforts. Walmart and the Walmart Foundation announced they have committed up to $20 million in support of relief efforts in response to the severe weather impacting the Gulf region. This is an increase from the retailer's previously announced $1 million of in-kind donations for immediate relief.
Uniqlo creates plan to embark on digital transformation

In a move to attract more specialized information technology specialists, Uniqlo is renovating its digital DNA.
Delivery wars heat up as two more retailers expand same-day services

Best Buy and Macy’s are stepping up their same-day delivery efforts as they continue to bolster their defenses to compete with Amazon and other rivals. Best Buy announced on Thursday it is expanding its same-day delivery of online orders from 13 metro areas to 27, with more to come. The retailer expects that customers in nearly 40 cities will be able to take advantage of service for the holiday selling season.
Walmart takes its marketplace north of the border

Walmart is expanding its online breadth in Canada. The discount giant expanded its global online marketplace to its Canadian e-commerce store, Walmart.ca, a move that doubles the site’s online product assortment. The retailer expects this number to quadruple by the end of this year, according to Walmart.
Amazon positioned to give food and beverage e-commerce a much needed spark

Based on its recent bold expansion into the grocery segment, Amazon is primed to give food and beverage e-commerce a shot of adrenaline. This was according to “U.S. Grocery Market Focus: The Amazon Food Shopper,” a report from Packaged Goods. According to the firm’s estimates, Amazon's 2016 online food and beverages sales, including AmazonFresh, is at $1.5 billion. This volume is expected to rise to $2.3 billion in 2017, giving the company a 19% share of the online market.
Moody's: Amazon is ‘weakest’ of large retailers

Amazon isn't as dominant as is widely believed — at least not according to a new report from Moody's Investor Services.
Online giant’s partnership expands Alexa’s reach

Amazon’s newest move could take voice-assisted ordering to new levels. The online giant is joining forces with Microsoft to integrate the companies' two digital assistants. This will allow Amazon’s Alexa to activate and talk to Microsoft’s Cortana device, and vice-versa.
Study: Shoppers look for deals

As much as today's shoppers want convenience, they also prioritize saving money and will make time to uncover the best deals online and offline. Over half (53%) of consumers indicated they invest over two hours a week looking for deals and savings across all sources, according to a survey from Valassis. About 25% of millennials and moms spend over four hours a week in their search for value.