Omnichannel

Uniqlo is in the final stages of an extensive makeover of its first-ever store in New York City.      Located in Manhattan’s Soho neighborhood, the 10-year-old, 36,000-sq.-ft. store is being redone to the theme of "a new Tokyo in Soho." Scheduled to unveil its new look on Sept. 2, the store was the chain’s first global flagship. Hiroshi Taki, Uniqlo U.S.A. CEO, described it as “an important milestone in the company's plans to expand internationally.”  

Wal-Mart Stores announced it will acquire retail start-up — and would-be Amazon rival — Jet.com for approximately $3 billion in cash. Additionally, $300 million of Walmart shares will be paid over time as part of the transaction.   The deal will go a long way to helping Walmart expand its e-commerce growth and customer reach, and also give it more firing power as it competes with Amazon.  And Jet.com’s popularity with millennials will help the discounter attract a younger, higher-income customer. 

Just as Amazon transformed e-commerce through its convenience, assortment and ease of use, look for the pairing of Jet.com and Walmart to introduce additional completion in the online shopping space that will give more options to consumers. Both companies stand to gain exposure to more and different customers as well as benefits in terms of service, delivery, and technological enhancements.   

The brand known the world over for its iconic crocodile logo has a new retail strategy.   In a move to enhance its brand in the United States, Lacoste is renovating high-profile locations and opening more impactful, larger-format retail stores in the its key U.S. markets, which include New York, south Florida and southern California.   

Lowes Foods is the first supermarket retailer to launch an integrated digital coupon solution.   Lowes is using a solution developed by Unata, a provider of one-to-one digital solutions for grocers, and Inmar, a technology and analytics company, which integrates digital coupons directly into the grocer’s e-commerce and e-circular programs.  

Instant delivery. Athleisure wear. Rented and used clothing.    These are among the five trends identified by consumer financial services company Synchrony Financial as impacting both the retail and mobile payments space.   Here’s a review of what Synchrony says consumers are especially interested in:  

Credit card fraud is down by more than 60% at Mastercard’s top five EMV-enabled merchants since chip cards were introduced late last year, according to the company.   “Mastercard has helped over 150 countries adopt EMV and, time and again, we’ve seen the same result — significant reductions in counterfeit card fraud,” said Chiro Aikat, Mastercard’s senior VP of EMV product delivery.  

Having already served as an early innovator in e-commerce, eBay has turned its attention to a new emerging technology area. In an interview on CNBC, eBay CEO Devin Weng said the company intends to take a leading role in artificial intelligence.   "We are planting the seeds right now to ensure that eBay is not only relevant, but a leader — a disruptor — in artificial intelligence," said Weng.