In April 2020, Daphne Howland of Retail Dive wrote “Few retailers will come out of this unprecedented moment unscathed, but department stores are at a point of no return. None can go back to business as usual. Some may not come back at all.” What a difference a year makes. Now, in the face of […]

The rapid spread of the highly contagious COVID-19 Delta variant has grabbed national headlines and put a dent in people’s optimism that the pandemic will soon be over in the U.S. According to the New York Times, as of this morning, case counts in the U.S. are continuing to climb rapidly, with the seven-day rolling […]

With early-returning school districts already opening their doors and welcoming back students, the back-to-school shopping season is in full swing.  But for a second year in a row, COVID-19 is creating significant uncertainty for students, parents, teachers, administrators, and the retailers that can typically count on a surge in school-related spending at this time of […]

For Hallmark Channel viewers, Christmas in July is a thing.  And at least some of us are beginning to think that Christmas shopping in July should be a thing too. Import logistics issues have dogged the U.S. for months now. It started with shipping capacity shortages for goods sourced from Asia, which has resulted in […]

The past year has been extremely challenging for certain sectors of the consumer economy, including physical retail and the apparel industry. However, as overall clothing sales struggled last year, the resale market for clothing saw strong growth. Thredup, a resale platform that allows consumers to buy and sell secondhand apparel and footwear, estimated in its […]