ECOMMERCE

Online luxury retailer Gilt.com is kicking off its 10th anniversary with the launch of a new website.   The company, a pioneer in online flash sales, unveiled a complete site redesign on Tuesday. Dubbed “The New Gilt,” the site continues to feature daily new arrivals and the flash sales that it's known for, but it will also feature easier site navigation, more exclusive offerings, and edited and dynamic editorial content — all of which will contribute to a more tailored customer experience, Gilt said. 

Online mattress start-up Casper is getting more upfront with shoppers.   The fast-growing company plans to open some 15 pop-up shops in cities across North America, including New York, Los Angeles and Chicago. The pop-ups are scheduled to launch in October 2017, and will remain open through spring of 2018.  

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.

An e-commerce giant is making a big push into the brick-and-mortar world.    Alibaba, China’s largest online sales platform, is building its own shopping mall, with a goal of enriching the real-world shopping experience with technology and convenience, reported MarketWatch.  

Amazon is getting ready to introduce its same-day delivery service in its 10th country.   Canada will be the newest country to offer Amazon Prime Now’s free two-hour delivery service. The online giant reportedly plans to pilot the program in Vancouver. Based on positive results, Amazon will expand the service to other Canadian cities throughout 2018, according to Nasdaq.  

Brick-and-mortar stores are crucial to supporting a retailer's e-commerce growth.  

Walmart is making a bold move as it continues to seek out ways to distance itself from Amazon.   The discount giant is investing in Nvidia chips. These high-level graphical processing units (GPUs) will be the foundation of a robust cloud network where Walmart data scientists can build out AI systems, reported Geek Wire.  

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.  

Amazon is wasting no time in leveraging its ownership of Whole Foods Market.   Amazon Fresh has made “hundreds" of new items from Whole Foods' house brands available online. Merchandise includes fancier fare and bath products from Whole Foods Market, staples from 365 Everyday Value, and pet foods from Whole Paws, according to CNBC.  

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.