COVID-19 has wreaked havoc on retail and accelerated a number of trends that were already challenging for traditional malls. One such trend, the growth of ecommerce, was fast-tracked in 2020, with stay-at-home orders and retail shutdowns driving much of the change. According to Adobe Analytics, U.S. online sales reached $73.2 billion in June, an increase […]

Despite the economic turmoil brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, one segment of the consumer products industry continues to race ahead as though nothing is wrong: plant-based foods. Leaders like Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat continue to grow but are now facing increased competition from other emerging plant-based food brands and new products and lines […]

In a year in which seemingly nothing has gone as it usually does, Walmart has just added to this year’s long list of anomalies. The Company announced that all stores will be closed on Thanksgiving this year, breaking the tradition of kicking off the Holiday shopping season the night before Black Friday for the first […]

“No more pencils, no more books. No more teacher’s dirty looks.” – Alice Cooper   This song favored by students is belted out every year at the end of the school year.   However, in these strange times, this song may have relevance at the beginning of this school year. The Back to School season is […]

In an attempt to keep some of the millions of new customers it gained during the pandemic, at the end of this month Walmart is reportedly ready to announce the debut of its new loyalty program, called Walmart+. Walmart, like other ubiquitous brick and mortar and ecommerce retailers selling essentials, gained sales and new customers […]