ECOMMERCE

Destination Maternity is making it easier for its customers to connect with the brand.   The maternity clothing retailer transitioned from a custom e-commerce platform to Salesforce Commerce Cloud, with the help of global commerce provider Lyonscg. The transition enabled the chain to launch customized mobile sites for its Motherhood, Motherhood Canada, A Pea in the Pod and Destination Maternity brands. All sites feature more intuitive navigation, improved site merchandising and on-site search, and easier check out.   

Online-only retailers may be taking a toll on omnichannel companies, but traditional companies are finding ways to fight back.   This was according to “Brick-and-Mortar Retailers Fight Back: Winning Strategies to Compete with Online-Only Players,” a report from Applied Predictive Technologies (APT).  

To effectively service shoppers at store-level, managers need to evolve beyond their sales roles and become “problem solvers.”   This means store managers must learn to master the combination of order fulfillment, inventory visibility and staffing to keep up with customer demands, according to the “Voice of Store Manager Survey,” a study from JDA Software Group. The second annual study is based on responses from 252 US-based retail store managers compiled in August.  

Starbucks Corp.’s online store has officially closed its virtual doors.   The e-commerce site, which sold Starbucks’ branded merchandise — from mugs and coffee brewers to coffee, tea, and flavored syrups — shut down on Sunday, Oct. 1. The coffee giant decided to close the online store to focus on integrating its physical and digital channels, and to establish stores as destinations, according to Business Insider.  

Toys “R” Us is adding a new customer touch-point that it will use to get merchandise into shoppers hands faster.  

Silver Jeans Co.’s newest service solves one of female consumers’ most dreaded tasks — shopping for jeans.   By partnering with Fitcode, a fashion-data company that specializes in women's denim, Silver Jeans Co. now has a way to deliver a personalized, fit-focused shopping experience. Integrated on the retailer’s e-commerce site, the service allows consumers to take a fit quiz, and then shop personalized style recommendations tailored to their unique body types.  

Private-label introductions are increasing on a seemingly daily basis, but Amazon-owned products are transforming the marketplace.   This was according to “AmazonBasics Spearheads Amazon Private Brands,” research from One Click Retail.   

The nation's supermarket retailers are positioning themselves to capture a significant majority of online grocery sales over the next decade or so.   That's according to Joe McKeska, president of Elkhorn Real Estate Partners. He made his remarks during a panel discussion at Marquette University’s annual commercial real estate conference.  

Consumers are growing increasingly comfortable using connected devices for daily tasks — and shopping is not far behind.    As more devices connect to chatbots and virtual assistants, an increasing number of consumers are ready to embrace the automation and convenience delivered by IoT technologies. Nearly half of consumers (48%) said they would feel comfortable with a connected device, such as a refrigerator, ordering items on their behalf.  

Tailored Brands has taken steps to identify shoppers and drive customer satisfaction.   The menswear company operates more than 1,400 locations in the U.S. and Canada, as well as digital channels, across a variety of brands. By partnering with ForeSee, Tailored Brands now has a solution that manages all customer experience (CX) intelligence from one centralized location.