eCommerce

I recently had the opportunity to visit the Wayfair Next innovation lab at Wayfair’s downtown Boston headquarters.   My genial hosts, Wayfair co-founder Steven Conine and Wayfair Next director Mike Festa, explained the lab’s mission and let me demo some very cool technologies.  

Nordstrom  plans to shutter its location at Horton Plaza, in downtown San Diego.  The store, which opened in 1985, will remain open through August 26, 2016.   "These are always tough decisions to make, but in taking a look at the store's performance and our business needs into the future, we believe this is the best direction to take," said Jamie Nordstrom, president of stores for Nordstrom. "We look forward to serving our loyal Horton Plaza customers at our other San Diego stores.”  

I recently had the opportunity to visit the Wayfair Next innovation lab at Wayfair’s downtown Boston headquarters.   My genial hosts, Wayfair co-founder Steven Conine and Wayfair Next director Mike Festa, explained the lab’s mission and let me demo some very cool technologies.  

Determining if an online clothing purchase will fit properly is a challenge for many women.    Launched in May 2016, e-commerce site Fovo curates apparel selections that are tailored to female shoppers’ specific body shapes.   “The way forward is personalization,” said Fovo cofounder Kiana Anvaripour in a Chain Store Age interview. We want to help women optimize the experience of shopping online for apparel so the ‘endless scroll’ doesn’t exist.”

Malls and outdoor centers are increasingly seeking out small and local merchants to help them stand out from the competition.   Kimco, for example,  has expanded a program that offers small businesses one year of free rent and reduced property charges, CNBC reported.  Originally started in California four years ago, the program has since been expanded to centers in 19 states.    

Watch out Best Buy, the nation’s largest ecommerce retailer is on your tail.   According to a report by barrons.com, Amazon has moved ahead of Walmart to take the number two spot, behind Best Buy, as the nation’s largest electronics retailer.    

Many kids are just starting their summer vacations, but back-to-school shopping is well underway.  

Barnes & Noble is getting serious about restaurants.   The bookseller announced it has promoted Jaime Carey, currently COO, to president of development & restaurant group, effective immediately. Carey will be responsible for overseeing the chain’s real estate development and its newly created restaurant group.