News Briefs

The offering follows Amazon’s January 2025 release of a generative AI-based natural language interface that lets advertisers on the Amazon Ads retail media platform generate SQL queries for their desired audience use case in the Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC); as well as the October 2024 rollout of a range of new AI-equipped solutions and insight-based features for advertisers on Amazon Ads

[READ MORE: Amazon launches AI tools, new capabilities for advertisers]

As of Nov. 6, Starbucks is officially in holiday mode.

The coffee giant has launched its holiday menu, which include seasonal beverages and bakery items, along with special merchandise. Starbucks has also rolled out its annual holiday cup line, with this year’s designs feature a cheerful color palette with warm coffeehouse textures and flowing ribbons. On the back of each cup is a little tag for writing a message

The motif used for the cups continues throughout the chain’s cafes, with boughs of evergreen garland and velvet ribbons.

“We’ve dipped the stores in rich textures and a deep coffee cherry red, and Starbucks green” said Starbucks creative director Kristy Cameron. “We hope our coffeehouses feel warm and festive, a place where you want to come and sit with us a little while and enjoy the holidays together.” 

In addition, Starbucks unveiled new festive drinkware and gifts set to arrive in stores in early November. Each item in the lineup, which includes cold cups and tumblers, features joyful designs and wintry textures, the company said. 

Also in time for the holidays, Starbucks and Hello Kitty have teamed up to launch a “super cute” merchandise collection. The exclusive collection features an array of items and collectibles, including a Hello Kitty plush dressed in the iconic Starbucks green apron (and her signature red bow), alongside her teddy bear, Tiny Chu.

A newer form of payment continues has jumped in popularity during the past year.

Buy now, pay later (BNPL) loans have overtaken store credit cards in popularity, according to LendingTree’s 2025 Store Credit Card Report. More than half (53%) of surveyed consumers prefer BNPL over store credit cards as a payment option, up from 42% last year. 

Also, nearly three-in-four parents of young children prefer BNPL, as do 70% of millennials, 64% of Gen Zers and 60% of men.

The growing popularity of BNPL doesn’t mean shoppers are completely abandoning store cards. Forty-three percent of Americans are likely to apply for a store credit card this holiday season — up 14 points from last year and the highest since 2020 (44%). 

In other findings, the average interest rate on a new store credit card is 30.58%. That’s down from 30.78% a year ago, but it is still the second-highest since we began tracking in 2018. And more than half (57%) of store cardholders say store cards are their most used credit card, up from 46% a year ago.

LendingTree commissioned QuestionPro to conduct an online survey of 2,000 U.S. consumers ages 18 to 78 from Oct. 2 to 6, 2025. To read the full Lending Tree report, click here.

An app known as "Refundly" tracks and manages online returns and refunds across all U.S. retailers.

Currently available for iOS devices and launched in advance of the holiday shopping season, Refundly uses proprietary AI technology to scan users' email receipts, identify returns, and track each step, from initiation to reimbursement.

Designed by veterans in the retail, e-commerce, entertainment, and technology industries, Refundly says it is the only app that tracks and manages online returns across all U.S. retailers and alerts users the moment their refund is credited to their credit card.

[READ MORE: NRF: Consumers expected to return nearly $850B in merchandise in 2025]

"Each year, consumers return hundreds of billions in merchandise, but a portion of that money never makes it back to them," said Lindsay Goffman, co-founder and CEO of Refundly. "The system was built to send purchases from retailers to shoppers – not the other way around. Refundly puts the power back in the hands of consumers, while helping retailers strengthen relationships with their customers."

In the coming months, Refundly plans to expand to offer retailers new engagement tools, such as exclusive, personalized promotions once refunds are processed.

During its stealth phase, Refundly analyzed return and refund patterns across 120 major online retailers and reported finding a 7.5% error rate, representing mistakes such as incorrect fees or missing refunds. Overall, 4% of refund amounts were never returned, representing what the company says is a potential $14 billion unreturned consumer funds.

Lindsay Goffman co-founded the company with her husband Mark Goffman (COO) and Mark Mucchetti (CTO, formerly BeautyCounter and Meta). According to Refundly, early adopters have included professional stylists, parents, and small business owners who frequently buy, return, and track purchases online. The company is also part of the Google Cloud startup program.

Another retail giant has launched a holiday meal deal ahead of Thanksgiving.

Target’s holiday meal for four is back again this year, but this time at its lowest price ever, according to the retailer. For under $20, or less than $5 per person, guests can enjoy a full-course Thanksgiving meal, featuring turkey, potatoes, stuffing, pie and more from national brands as well as Target’s Good & Gather and Favorite Day private label brands. Target is offering the Good & Gather turkey at its 2024 price of 79 cents per pound.

Last month, several major grocery players, including Walmart, Sam’s Club and Aldi, all announced similarly low-priced Thanksgiving meals.

"What I love about Target during the holidays is our ability to help families celebrate in style while spending less – and that's exactly what we're doing this Thanksgiving," said Lisa Roath, executive VP and chief merchandising officer of food, essentials and beauty at Target. "Our under-$20 Thanksgiving meal is priced even lower than last year's, but we're not stopping there. We also have new seasonal sides, stylish table décor, festive apparel and beautiful greenery and florals. Put it all together and Target's making it an absolute joy for everyone to create an elevated, unforgettable Thanksgiving experience."

Ahead of Thanksgiving, Target shoppers can also take advantage of the retailer's flexible fulfillment services for quicker options, including Same Day Delivery, Drive Up and Order Pickup available within hours, plus Next-Day Delivery or 2-Day Shipping for free with orders above $35.

[READ MORE: Target's holiday plans include in-store events, deals — return of ‘hot’ Santa]

Minneapolis-based Target operates nearly 2,000 stores nationwide.

Retailers report an inventory accuracy problem, but have identified a primary solution.

Persistent inventory inaccuracy is undermining the trust between retailers and the consumer brands that fill their shelves, according to research from IHL Group. The majority (67%) of major U.S. retailers face daily or weekly relationship challenges with consumer brands due to inventory inaccuracy.

The retail industry loses $1.73 trillion annually due to inventory distortion (the cost of out-of-stocks and overstocks).  A new study conducted by IHL Group in partnership with autonomous technology company Brain Corp. indicates robotics is the top-ranked solution to improve inventory accuracy, ahead of devices such as handheld RFID, mobile image capture, fixed cameras, or barcode scanners.

In addition, 72% of more than 200 retailers surveyed for “The Shelf Intelligence Report: Rebuilding Retail Relationships Through Automation” study are ready to deploy in-store robots, with 60% already planning deployment by the end of 2027 and two-in-three preferring not to own or manage an inventory scanning robot themselves.

[READ MORE: Southeastern Grocers tests ‘one-of-a-kind’ robot subscription service]

Other findings from the study are below.

• 47% of retailers say their inventory inaccuracies have led to reduced engagements with consumer brands.
• The largest respondents with more than $5 billion in annual revenue are 87% more likely to identify strained brand relationships as a major consequence of inventory inaccuracies.
• Half of respondents report lost sales and 47% cite customer dissatisfaction as a result of inventory execution failures.
• Fewer than one-in-four respondents achieve more than 80% accuracy in key shelf metrics such as on-shelf availability, planogram compliance, and promotional execution. 

"Retail doesn’t just have an operations problem when it comes to inventory, it has a trust problem," said Greg Buzek, president of IHL Group. "Our research shows that many retailers still lack a clear, consistent view of on-shelf conditions. That visibility gap undermines confidence across the value chain, including the trust consumer brands place in retail partners."