TECHNOLOGY

Wayfair is making it easy for customers to emulate decor trends from one of cable television's most popular series.    Wayfair is collaborating with HGTV home improvement and house flipping series “Brother vs. Brother.” The popular show features siblings Jonathan and Drew Scott competing to see who can make the biggest profit when flipping renovated properties. The Wayfair-HGTV partnership will enable viewers to shop the looks featured on the show directly on Wayfair.  

Woolworths is taking steps to bolster its online shopping experience.   Woolworths South Africa, a division of Woolworths Proprietary Limited, is known for its vast assortment ranging from groceries, fresh produce and prepared food to clothing, beauty products, home goods and general merchandise. As the company entered into the world of omnichannel, it knew it had to deliver easy access to its merchandise, and provide a painless experience for online customers.  

Wary about business conditions and jobs, consumer confidence dipped a bit further in May. But consumer still remain optimistic on the whole about the economy.     The Conference Board said Tuesday that its Consumer Confidence Index fell to 117.9 in May, from a revised 119.4 in April. The index hit 124.9 in March, its highest mark in 16 years.  

Chipotle Mexican Grill is coming clean about a cyber-attack that targeted the chain last month.   An extensive investigation lead by leading cyber security firms, law enforcement and the payment card networks revealed that malware accessed payment card data used at point-of-sale (POS) devices at certain Chipotle and Pizzeria Locale restaurants between March 24 and April 18. Not all locations were involved, and the specific timeframes vary by location, according to the chain.  

Amazon’s latest grocery initiative is now up and running for customers.   AmazonFresh Pickup, the online grocer’s drive-by grocery delivery service, allows Amazon Prime members to order groceries online and pick them up in as little as 15 minutes. The concept launched in March, with two locations in Seattle. Initially in a beta mode, the service was available only to Amazon employees. But as of May 25, it is now open also to Amazon prime members in the general public.   

Knowing efficient in-store fulfillment is key to omnichannel success, Browns Shoes has just taken a big step toward optimizing these orders.      Browns Shoes, a family-owned business established in Montreal in 1940, owns and operates more than 60 retail stores throughout Canada. When the retailer merged its e-commerce channel with its brick-and-mortar operations, Browns was ready to use its retail network as another fulfillment avenue.   

Warby Parker is taking self-service to a new level.   The eyewear retailer built its brand on enabling online shoppers to create their ideal pair of specs. Now the company is further extending its self-service options with an app that lets shoppers take a vision test at home.  

Sephora is all about offering top-notch service to its customers — even its business partners.   According to the Incentive Research Foundation and Incentive Gift Card Council, business-to-business (B2B) gifting is becoming more prevalent across U.S. companies, as they spend $22.7 billion per year on gift cards. Sephora’s new partnership will enable the company to claim a bigger portion of this market share.