eCommerce

Most U.S. consumers now carry a smart credit card, but they haven’t had all that much opportunity to stop swiping and start dipping their cards into upgraded terminals.

That’s according to a survey of 932 U.S. credit card-holders by CreditCards.com, which found that 70% of respondents carry at least one chip-based card. This is up from only 14% in a survey conducted by the same company in September 2015, before the October 1 deadline that shifted liability for some fraud shifted from card issuers to merchants that can't accept the new cards.

Amazon is the best place in the world to fail—that’s just one of the  insights and observations in CEO Jeff Bezos’ annual letter to shareholders.  

The outdoor apparel retailer plans to open a flagship on Fifth Avenue, in the space formerly occupied by Canadian fast-fashion merchant Joe Fresh, the Real Deal reported.

The retailer signed an eight-year sublease from Joe Fresh for approximately 20,000 sq.ft. at Vornado Realty Trust’s landmarked building at 510 Fifth Avenue, according to the report. The space includes three levels of retail.

The North Face is also looking for a larger space in Manhattan’s SoHo area, the report said.

Brand awareness and sales growth are accelerating at Duluth Holdings where the company’s rapidly expanding store base is so young it won’t be able to report same-store sale growth until 2017.

Belleville, Wisconsin-based Duluth Holdings, known to customers as Duluth Trading Company, grew sales 27.5% to $140.4 million and net income increased 25.8% to $17.5 million, or 58 cents a share, during the quarter ended Jan. 31. For the full year, total sales rose 31.2% to $304 billion. Net income grew 16.1% to $27.4 million, or $1.06 a share.

Design is at the center of Ethan Allen’s new retail format at Garden City Center, Cranston, Rhode Island.

The 6,000-sq.-ft. store, features an innovative display concept that showcases the company’s new interactive design service.

The open floor plan has design stations and six large touch-screens that invite customers to work directly on projects with the company’s design professionals in a space outfitted with the latest technology.

Target Corp. is hoping New Yorkers and tourists alike will come out to help it celebrate the launch of its next limited-edition collection — Marimekko for Target.

Dov Charney, the founder and ousted CEO of American Apparel, is scouting sites for a factory in South Central Los Angeles as he plots his comeback, Bloomberg reported.

Charney’s new venture reportedly will sell USA-made basics, starting off as a wholesale business and then expanding into a consumer online brand.

“I have a vision,” Charney told Bloomberg. “My business model works.”

Specialty retailer 1-800-Flowers.com operates across several banners and channels, and is trying to present as unified a customer experience as possible.

1-800-Flowers has chosen the IBM Commerce on Cloud solution to ease the process of conducting transactions across all its brands, including Harry & David, Wolferman’s and Fannie May. The platform will also help deliver a seamless customer experience across the Web, mobile and call center channels.