Omnichannel

One of the most important trends to track these days is that of online retailers making the jump to brick-and-mortar. The different strategies and tactics they have taken, and the new and different ways that retailers are adapting to the realities of an omnichannel world, can not only reveal some fascinating truths about retail today — but also provide some insights into where the retail industry might be heading in the future.

Industry veteran Jill Standish, senior managing director of retailer for Accenture Consulting, recently spoke with Chain Store Age about what she sees as some of the biggest IT-related trends facing the industry. Here is her take on the trends:

Amazon.com Inc. swung from loss to profit and significantly boosted net sales during a first quarter that topped analysts expectations.

The world’s largest online retailer reported better-than-expected net income of $513 million, compared to a net loss of $57 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2015.

Whatever you may have been doing at age 17, it was likely less impressive than launching a new e-commerce/ social media platform aimed at sneaker aficionados.

But that’s just what New York-based 17-year-old sneaker enthusiast Anthony Debrantt has done, founding a new online and mobile marketplace called Sneakmart. The site has offers hundreds of thousands of new and used sneakers, including major brands.

Expect the 365 by Whole Foods Market store format to look much different than the traditional Whole Foods store.

The concept, debuting in late May in Los Angeles, will feature a no-frills design, low fixtures and all-digital price tags, reported Business Insider, which was given a sneak peak of the format.

To see renderings of 365 and learn more about its details, click here.

Academy Sports + Outdoors has opened a 1.6 million square foot distribution center that dramatically increases the company’s ability to support store expansion and omnichannel initiatives.

The world’s largest ice cream manufacturer has opened its first U.S. storefront, a pop-up in Manhattan’s SoHo neighborhood.

Unilever is opening custom-dipping shops for its Magnum Ice Cream brand around the world, and the SoHo outpost is its first U.S. storefront. (Unilever’s other ice-cream brands include Ben & Jerry’s, Fudgsicle and Klondike.)

Ace Hardware Corp. is best known for selling home improvement merchandise, but also operates a growing grocery channel.

Using technology from ProLogic Retail Services, a provider of loyalty marketing solutions specializing in independent grocers, the retail cooperative is enabling its Ace Rewards loyalty program in co-located grocery stores. Ace operates grocery in both “store-within-a-store” configurations and adjacent storefronts with grocery partners.