eCommerce

Walmart is stepping up its hurricane relief efforts.   The discount giant announced that it will donate up to $10 million in additional support for 2017 hurricane relief efforts in the United States, a move that will bring Walmart’s total commitment to hurricane relief efforts this year to $30 million. This additional support comes on the heels of donations already provided in response to Hurricane Harvey that hit the Gulf region less than three weeks ago.  

Amazon is getting ready to host its fourth-annual flagship sale in India.   The online giant is gearing up for its “Great Indian Festival,” an event similar to Amazon’s Prime Day sale. Amazon is banking on the sale’s deep discounts, exclusive merchandise and buyback offers to attract new customers, according to Live Mint.  

RadioShack is entering the latest chapter in its ongoing financial saga — but on a positive note.     On Thursday, RadioShack’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan cleared a preliminary court review. This decision enables the retailer to move forward with its strategy to reorganize, and save a small portion of the company, according to Dealerscope.  

PREIT, which has long been pursuing a strategy of unloading underperforming malls from its portfolio, announced it has sold the Logan Valley Mall for $33.2 million net of credits issued to the buyer. The new owner’s identity was not released.   The Altoona, Pennsylvania, mall -- anchored by Macy's, J.C. Penney and Sears -- had been turning in sales-per-square-foot of $324 versus an average of $475 for the rest of the PREIT portfolio.  

Postmates just made a strategic move in the online delivery war.    Knowing that delivery fees can exceed the cost of a food order, the on-demand app-based delivery provider has killed delivery fees for orders over $20. This decision entitles Postmates Unlimited subscribers to free delivery for orders placed with any of its 250,000-plus merchant partners.    Postmates members pay a $9.99 monthly subscription fee.  

Amazon is stepping up its commitment to machine learning.   The online giant plans to open a new research and development (R&D) hub in Barcelona, dedicated to machine learning. Amazon expects to open the lab in early 2018, according to The Verge.   Amazon plans to hire more than 100 engineers and scientists for the lab.   

Rebecca Minkoff is making it easier for Chinese customers to purchase from the brand.   Through a partnership with Chinese online payment provider Alipay, upscale apparel retailer now enables Chinese shoppers to use their Alipay Mobile Wallet to make purchases at any United States-based Rebecca Minkoff store, or while shopping online. The mobile wallet is accepted in all Rebecca Minkoff stores located in New York, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles.  

One of the first holiday quarter sales forecasts is out of the gate.   Global retail consulting firm Kantar Retail predicts that U.S. retail sales will grow 3.7% in the fourth quarter of this year. The forecast represents an improvement relative to weak growth of only 2.9% in the year ago period. But it is underwhelming compared to average growth prior to the recession of 5.0%, according to Kantar.