Data & Analytics

Kroger customers who don’t have time to do their own shopping have another option.

At its investor meeting, Kroger officially announced the name of its click & collect program – “ClickList.” Click & collect lets customers select (and in many cases pay) for groceries online. Store employees then gather the items off store shelves for convenient customer pickup.

E-commerce and payment solutions provider First Data is in a new partnership with a financial services company led by a PayPal co-founder that is said to increase average order values by as much at 80%, and conversion rates by more than 20%.

FedEx says a big boost in online shopping will propel its business between Black Friday and Christmas Eve at least 12.4% above 2014 levels.

FedEx expects the holiday period to include three shipment volume spikes: Cyber Monday and the first two Mondays in December.

The company said it was adding 55,000 employees for the holidays to handle the increased demand.

Etsy is getting crafty with its customer service offerings.

The online handmade arts & crafts marketplace is launching a home delivery pilot called Etsy ASAP in the New York market for the holidays. Patterning with on-demand delivery provider Postmates, Etsy ASAP enables same- and next-day delivery from participating sellers in New York City for a flat $20 fee.

With (believe it or not) the holiday season almost upon us, it is time once again to take part in the annual ritual of crystal ball gazing and seasonal sales forecasts.

Moms are now much more likely than ever to complete a purchase via mobile, rather than simply using their devices to compare prices and find coupons.

According to a new infographic from pregnancy and parenting website BabyCenter, in just one year, there has been a 33% increase in moms using their smartphones for making actual purchases. Sixty-four percent of moms say they had completed a purchase via mobile in the last month, in comparison to 48% who said the same in 2014.

As omnichannel and e-commerce-only stores have exploded in popularity, delivery timescales and costs have become a key differentiator for retailers. In parallel, advancements in supply chain technology created new opportunities for retailers to make more informed decisions about shipping operations to protect and increase margins.

Sleepy’s, The Mattress Professionals is staying awake when it comes to the latest in consumer payment.

The privately held specialty mattress and bedding accessories retailer has committed to upgrading to Ingenico Group smart terminals to securely accept EMV credit and debit cards and NFC/contactless mobile payments at all of its 1,000-plus stores by the end of 2015.