Retail Technology News: November update
The "Walmart Realm" immersive shopping experience got a holiday update..
Retailers in November 2024 focused technology efforts in areas including mobile and metaverse holiday promotions, smart carts, and budget e-commerce.
Here are some of the most noteworthy and innovative technology stories as reported by Chain Store Age in November, starting with the most recent.
- Adobe: Initial holiday e-commerce spending up 10%, passes $77 billion According to Adobe Analytics data for Nov. 1-24, U.S. consumers have spent $77.4 billion online, up 9.6% year-over-year and trending above Adobe’s full holiday season forecast of 8.4% year-over-year growth.
- EXCLUSIVE: American Eagle, WhatsApp team on Gen Z-focused holiday pilot In an exclusive email to Chain Store Age, a spokesperson for American Eagle said that since the beginning of November 2024 the retailer has been leveraging Meta ads (Meta is WhatsApp’s parent company) to drive users to its shopping experience on the WhatsApp mobile app.
- Walmart updates metaverse shop for holiday season Walmart is gearing its "Walmart Realm" immersive shopping environment for holiday shoppers. In an email to Chain Store Age, a representative for supporting technology provider Emperia said Walmart Realm is now launching a holiday update which includes four new virtual shops inspired by social trends from Pinterest and TikTok, with gifts and holiday ideas curated by influencers.
- Carvana selects Northeast city for fourth auto reconditioning facility An omnichannel platform for buying and selling used cars is expanding its capacity to auction reconditioned vehicles in a new geographic region. Carvana Co. is developing its fourth auction and reconditioning "megasite" in the Boston area.
- Geissler’s achieves first in Instacart smart cart deployment Geissler’s Supermarkets has rolled out artificial intelligence-equipped smart carts from Instacart to of its stores. The regional supermarket chain with seven locations in Connecticut and Massachusetts began deploying the Instacart Caper Cart solution in November 2023 and is now the first grocer to replace a majority of its traditional shopping carts with Caper Carts at all locations.
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- QVC parent company Qurate Retail Group to rebrand, expand into social commerce Qurate Retail Group, part of Qurate Retail Inc. and whose portfolio includes QVC, HSN, Ballard Designs and more, is launching a new strategy to build on its legacy in TV shopping and will expand into a live social shopping company. As part of the initiative, Qurate Retail Group will become the "QVC Group" in the first quarter of 2025.
- Target turbocharges supply chain, marketing for holidays Target Corp. is getting holiday deliveries to customers faster. It's also launching its second holiday marketing campaign of the season, featuring a new take on a familiar red-suited, bearded Christmas character.
- Amazon takes on Temu & Shein with low-priced storefront Amazon is launching Amazon Haul, a new dedicated section of its U.S. e-commerce site and shopping app that offers fashion, home, lifestyle, electronics, and other products with what Amazon describes as "ultra-low" prices of $20 and under, and with typical delivery times of one to two weeks.
- Wonder buys Grubhub for $650 million Wonder, which operates similar to a delivery food hall, will acquire on-demand delivery platform Grubhub from Netherlands-based global online delivery conglomerate JustEatTakeaway.com. The deal is valued at $650 million, including $500 million of senior notes and $150 million cash.
- How the Trump presidency will affect digital retailing The return of Donald Trump to the U.S. presidency will have an impact on several key areas of digital retail, including TikTok’s operationsin the U.S., cryptocurrency, and X (the social network formerly known as Twitter).
