Tech Infused Retail Monday Morning Reads #342 - Ghost Kitchens, Uber & Postmates, Prison TikTok

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Business Wars latest, Diamond Wars. Such a fascinating retail and wholesale industry. Link

Links

  • Our ghost kitchen future. Link

  • Abandoned malls are being turned into hybrid apartment housing. Link

  • Walmart transforming 160 parking lots into drive-in movie theaters. Link

  • FedEx results reflect sure in eCommerce. Would expect more of the same from UPS and Stamps.com. Link

  • Just like mobile/wireless being more expensive than landlines, streaming is quickly turning into a more expensive answer to cable TV. Link

  • German shoppers are back. Link

  • Google still paying Apple billions to be the default search engine in Safari. Link

  • TransferWise (serious competitor to PayPal longer term) has been given permission to offer investment products. Link

  • Facebook boycott continues to gain more advertisers. Link

  • Uber missed Grub and now looking for Postmates. Link

  • The Mall Can’t Survive If There Aren’t Any Stores. Link

  • Lulu looks into the Mirror. Link

Off Topic

  • The Patriots Fan Who Stole the Giants’ Super Bowl Rings. Link

  • Troubles in Quinn Country. Link

  • Prison TikTok. Link

Tech Infused Retail Monday Morning Reads #341 - Kanye Lifeline, Social Shopping, In-Store Traffic

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Links

  • Add Starbucks, Verizon and others to the Facebook boycott but keep in mind that the top 100 account for well under 10% of overall ad sales. Link

  • Microsoft shutters all but a few stores for good. They never really made sense anyway. Link

  • In-store traffic at about 52% of 2019 levels. Link

  • Kanye throws Gap a lifeline. Link

  • Spotify testing in-app ads on podcast episode pages so users won’t have to remember offer codes. Link

  • Google’s Phone app could soon tell you why a business is calling you. Link

  • Denmark retail reopens to a roaring 9% increase. Link

  • A new credit card tied to your social media stats. Link

  • H&M forced to care about eCommerce with the current retail environment. Likely kicking themselves as this should have become a focus years ago. Link

  • Google’s ad revenue to decline for the first time since 2008 when they began tracking. Link, image below

  • Social shopping still waiting on the major inflection point. Link, image below.

Off Topic

  • Boss of the Beach. Link

Tech Infused Retail Monday Morning Reads #340 - WhatsApp Payments, Boycotting Facebook, TikTok Madness

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Business Wars: Uber vs Lyft. Link

Links

  • VF Corp’s The North Face, REI and Upwork say they are boycotting Facebook ads. Link

  • Walmart partners with Shopify. A move that is desperately needed to engage the vast number of sellers. Link

  • Bizarre cyber stalking harassment allegations for former eBay executives. Link

  • YouTube provides ‘storefront’ video format. Link

  • WhatsApp adds payments, starting in Brazil. Link

  • TikTok continues to explode with time watching nearly as much as YouTube in US, UK and Spain. Link

  • Airbnb had more US bookings from May 17 to June 3 than during the same period in 2019. Link

  • Starting to finally see reasons for Apple credit card. Interest free payment plans for Apple product. Link

  • Brooks Brothers woes. Link

  • Amazon’s new AI technique lets users virtually try on outfits. Link

Off Topic

  • Wide ranging interesting interview of Jon Stewart. Link

Tech Infused Retail Monday Morning Reads #339 - Facebook & Shopify, Malls Reopenings, Jet.com Closes

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Links

  • How JC Penney’s eCommerce strategy ultimately faltered. Link

  • Why Amazon Is Betting You’ll Buy a $1M Prefab Home. Link

  • Amazon circling JC Penney. Link

  • Prime Day is speculated to be pushed from July to September. Link

  • Costco’s Kirkland Signature and other store brands are having a moment. Link

  • Facebook Shops gets a fresh coat of paint and features. Link

  • Walmart officially closing Jet.com. Link

  • Walmart’s winning ways will last after lockdown. Link

  • DTC brands attracted to TV ads as prices drop. Link

  • “Google’s a problem for anyone who sells online.” Link

  • Is the New York Times ad platform really better at protecting user data more than Facebook and Google? Link

  • Traffic to malls reopening (traffic image below). Link

  • American’s TV time will grow for the first time since 2012 (usage image below) Link


Off Topic

  • The Haunting of Girlstown. Link

Tech Infused Retail Monday Morning Reads #338 - Twitch Beyond Gaming, Facebook & Giphy, Expedia = Uber

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Talking streaming and Twitch with a top gamer as he evolves beyond gaming. Fascinating. Link

Links

  • eCommerce on fire. Link

  • Even if you are trying to call your favorite restaurant to avoid Grubhub, there still could be fees charged. Link

  • Story behind Facebook buying Giphy. Link

  • The reason for buying Giphy. Link

  • Dara is following his Expedia strategy for Uber. Link

  • Here is what Dyson’s electric car was looking like. Link

  • Brands flock to Amazon to pickup missed sales. Link

  • Profile of Borders founder as Webvan reemerges. Link

  • Neiman Marcus creditor proposes sale to Hudson’s Bay. Link

  • Contactless payments see boost. Link

  • Here come the returns. Link

  • How a gaming YouTuber makes money. Link

Off Topic

  • The Hacker Who Saved The Internet. Link

  • The Day the Live Concert Returns. Link

Tech Infused Retail Monday Morning Reads #337 - TikTok Craze, Shopify and Pinterest Tie Up, Walmart PRIME

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With brick and mortar closed, eCommerce making up nearly 30% of card spend

Links

  • TikTok tops 2 billion downloads and toys with Shop Now buttons. Link

  • Walmart gets serious about 2 hour delivery. Link

  • Lord & Taylor officially liquidating. Link

  • What happens when the only restaurants left are chains? Link

  • Germans stay home as stores reopen. Link

  • Costco sales down for first time since July 2019. Link

  • Deliv shutting down as Target acquihires CEO and buys assets. Link

  • Harry & David exits brick and mortar to focus on eCommerce. Link

  • Nintendo had to do a virtual rate cut on their digital assets. Link

  • Shopify and Pinterest partner for cross listings/pins. Link

  • We all knew TikTok was growing in users but take a look at the time spent:

Off Topic

  • The Hollywood Vigilante. Link

  • The Man Who Runs 365 Marathons Each Year. Link

Tech Infused Retail Monday Morning Reads #336 - YouTube Size, Fornite Concerts, Macy's Deathbed

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Links

  • Google to stop charging for placement in Google Shopping. Link

  • Macy’s looking to tap real estate to remain alive. Link

  • Brands find online growth on Facebook Marketplace. Link

  • Fortnite concert drew 12.3 million concurrent viewers. Link

  • Ads still coming to WhatsApp and Facebook invests BIG in India. Link

  • Trump: Postal Service must raise prices on Amazon or ‘I’m not signing anything’ for USPS aid. Link

  • Amazon scoops up data from its own sellers to launch competing products. This one tends to pop up every 6 months or so. This is no different than traditional retailers launching generic or private label items in stores right next to branded items on shelf. Link

  • Everyone bullish on eCommerce. This assumes the decline in consumer spending post stimulus is offset by the growth. Link

  • MrBeast. Fastest growing YouTuber profile. Link

  • Walmart finally realizes it should have never been in streaming and offloads Vudu to Fandango. Link

  • Brands are selling their names to the latest fashion accessory in Miami. A luxury condo. Link

  • American who said they’ll feel safe in each type of reopened store (Link)

  • Size of YouTube (Link)

Off Topic

  • The Forgotten Tiger King of Harlem. Link

  • Couldn’t help it, another story on the coronavirus cruise. Link

Tech Infused Retail Monday Morning Reads #335 - Eating Out/Delivery > Eating At Restaurants, Neiman and JC Penney Bankruptcy

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Links

  • Grocery, health and non-store (eCommerce) sales were only sales up in March. Link

  • Shopify now handling the equivalent volume of Black Friday. Link

  • JC Penney skips interest payment. Link

  • Neiman to file bankruptcy. Link

  • Hotels offering enticing deals for future discounts. Link

  • Don’t kill the US Postal Service, unshackle it. Link

  • Ad rates are even putting Google and Facebook earnings at risk. Link

  • Amazon slashes affiliate commission rates. Link

  • Bob Iger is back at Disney. Link

  • Interview with heir apparent at JD.com. Link

  • Eating out has officially overtaken eating at restaurants:

Off Topic

  • Socially Distance This. Link

  • The Incredible Story of Bruce and Michael Buffer. Link

Tech Infused Retail Monday Morning Reads #334 - Recession Advertising, Facebook CPM All Time Low, Department Store Struggles

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Links

  • Department stores top list of those most likely to default. Link

  • Nordstrom warns of becoming distressed. Link

  • Amazon suspends delivery service that competes with UPS and FedEx. Link

  • A student created a program to let customers know when a Whole Foods or Amazon delivery slot opens up. Link

  • Facebook CPM fell to an all-time low. Link

  • Bob Iger thought he was leaving Disney. Link

  • Hotels see record low in occupancy. Link

  • What happens to ad spend in a recession, here is what happened in 2009 (Link):

Media spending.png

Off Topic

  • Inside the strip clubs of Instagram. Link

Tech Infused Retail Monday Morning Reads #333 - DTC Stats, Global Streaming, Walmart Grocery

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Apple now at 19% vs Spotify at 35% (Link):

Links

  • Microsoft Edge has jumped into 2nd behind Chrome (yet built on Chrome). Link

  • Though not confirmed just yet, Amazon Prime Day likely to be pushed to August. Link

  • YouTube coming out with their TikTok copycat. Link

  • OpenTable to allow people to reserve shopping times at supermarkets. Link

  • Newspapers are guaranteeing recall rates on ads. Link

  • Even Michelin star chefs have to serve takeout. Link

  • Traffic soars but programmatic costs drop. Link

  • Direct to consumer sales expected to grow 24% in 2020 with 43% of total digital buyers buying direct (Link):

Off Topic

  • Colombia’s narco-submarines. Link

Tech Infused Retail Monday Morning Reads #332 - Ecommerce Ad Spend Doubles, Retailers Stop Paying Rent, Neiman Bankruptcy

Featured Tweet or Podcast

Business Wars: North Face vs Patagonia. Link

Links

  • US Retailers plan to stop paying rent. Link

  • Neiman Marcus in bankruptcy talks. Link

  • Will Facebook’s massive usage turn into revenue? Link

  • Should we still go shopping online? Link

  • Are you an essential retailer? Link

  • Department stores can make it another 8 months. Link

  • Amazon picks up new supermarkets in NJ as part of Fairway closures. Link

  • The inside story of how H-E-B planned for the pandemic. Link

  • Instacart workers are planning a nationwide strike. Link

  • Apple officially says bye bye to marketing cookies. Link

  • Ecommerce ad spend doubled as social distancing took place (Link):


Off Topic

  • Two epic rides meeting in the middle. Link

  • South Korean drive-in cinemas seeing a resurgence. Link

Tech Infused Retail Monday Morning Reads #331 - OpenTable Global Demand Trend, Consumer Trust & Brands

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OpenTable global demand snapshot (Link):

Screen Shot 2020-03-23 at 8.57.41 AM.png

Links

  • The coronavirus is what Amazon was made for. Link

  • Luxury’s hidden supply chain. Link

  • News app downloads have exploded. Link

  • Advertisers are using MAIDs to replace cookies. Link

  • Startups are building companies on WhatsApp. Link

  • Fox buys Tubi to join the streaming wars. Link

  • Peloton using the at-home push as opportunity to provide 90 day trial. Link

  • The D List celeb matching engine, Cameo. Link

  • TikTok is the largest advertiser on Snapchat. Link

  • Costco buys final mile delivery. Link

  • Who do consumers trust (Link):

Off Topic

  • Real Estate for the apocalypse. Link




Tech Infused Retail Monday Morning Reads #329 - Delivery Wars, Burlington Nixes eCommerce, Final Sales Results in Retail

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Links

  • Who are the winners and losers in legacy retail through the end of 2019? Link

  • Nordstrom closing Trunk Club stores and folding into broader full line offering. Link

  • Burlington closing eCommerce. Link

  • Modell’s filing for bankruptcy. Link

  • Amazon Go Grocery will deliver a food revolution. Link

  • How Many Hotel Brands Is Enough? Link

  • Apple now lets apps send ads in push notifications. Link

  • DoorDash Faces Its Latest Challenge: Wooing Wall Street. Link

  • Growth vs Profits. Delivery war. Link

  • Rebekah Neumann, co-founder of WeWork profile. Link


Off Topic

  • The invisible city. Link



2019 Sales Recap: Retail Winners & Losers

Each quarter I update a chart detailing their net/comp sales increases/decreases to better understand where the pockets of growth are coming from and who is gaining share.

The themes of the last year continued to play out this year:

  • Off-price strength - Retailers like Ross, Burlington and TJ Maxx continue to shine and have yet to reach the saturation point everyone fears and seem to be fending off Amazon for now.

  • Mass retailer strength - Costco, Walmart and Target to gain share quarter over quarter from the rest of retail. Sam’s Club is the only one who is losing market share on an inflation adjusted basis.

  • Department store weakness - No end in sight to loss of share. This will continue to play out for years to come.

See the breakout below.

2019 Sales Recap @ryanmcraver.png

Tech Infused Retail Monday Morning Reads #328 - TikTok Growth, Walmart Flexes Prime and FBA, $100k Mattresses

Featured Tweet or Podcast

  • New Business Wars on Starbucks vs Dunkin. Link

Links

  • Bed Bath & Beyond streamlining operations. Link

  • Walmart launching Amazon FBA competitor officially. Link

  • Walmart+ to challenge Amazon Prime. Link

  • Amazon now accounts for 14% of menswear in UK but only 4% in womenswear. Link

  • Amazon launches full scale cashierless grocery store. Link

  • The case for the $100,000 mattress. Link

  • DoorDash files for IPO. Link

  • Instagram slowly opening the floodgates for Instagram Checkout. Link

  • YouTube inspiring toy industry. Link

  • TikTok growth slows significantly in 2020 (Link):


  • Twitter popularity and penetration by country (Link):

Off Topic

  • That time Obama pardoned a guy who stole a valuable baseball card. Link

  • How a shipwrecked crew survived 10 days lost at sea. Link


Tech Infused Retail Monday Morning Reads #327 - Pier 1 Bankruptcy, Groupon Stops Selling Goods, Walmart Selling Vudu

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Links

  • There is a reason retailers love gift cards. Many go unused allowing the retailer to still claim sales eventually. Link

  • Comcast in talks to buy Vudu from Walmart. Link

  • Toronto rejects some of the smart neighborhood suggestions from Sidewalk Labs. Link

  • Zillow’s home buying business isn’t profitable yet. Link

  • Groupon is no longer selling product (hard and soft goods). Link

  • Why the Restoration Hardware catalog won’t die. Link

  • Pier 1 files for Bankruptcy. Link

  • How Adidas uses WhatsApp for direct marketing. Link

  • Flipkart and Amazon are winners in India but China’s Club Factory is on the rise (Link):

  • Vast majority of advertisers plan to spend more on Amazon (Link):

Off Topic

  • The Great Bank Heist. Link

Tech Infused Retail Monday Morning Reads #326 - Retail Grooming Hits Post Q4 High, 2020 Streaming Wars

Featured Tweet or Podcast

2020 Streaming Wars - Ben Thompson and Bill Simmons. Link

Links

  • Q4 was weak for most of retail. Another strong month of retail sales for non-store (online) retailers and restaurants. Just look at the headlines below, this grooming period will continue. Add a weaker winter than expected and supply chain disruption in China. Link

  • Wayfair is not one of the invincible .com pure plays. Stock drops as Wayfair cuts jobs and states they grew the business in too many unprofitable ways. Link

  • In times of weakness, consolidating happens…..with malls. Link

  • Kohls is restructuring. Link

  • Stage Stores eyes bankruptcy. Link

  • Amazon picks up a mall. Link

  • 7-11 testing cashierless stores. Link

  • Hollar closes up. Dollar stores struggle online. Link

  • Brandless shutting down. Link

  • Walmart shutters Jet Black. Somehow I feel Walmart is regretting their acquihire of Jet. Link

  • Although smart speakers are exploding in sales, customers use direct statements for control and don’t seem to be shopping due to complexity. Link

  • Roku still growing like a weed. Link

  • The Ride Hail Utopia That Got Stuck In Traffic. Link

  • Apple now lets you shop directly in augmented reality. Link

  • Online-only platforms are going offline with permanent spaces. Link

  • Facebook’s latest experiments is a Pinterest-like app. Link

  • Teens are hacking Instagram to create eBay-like thrift shops. Link

Off Topic

  • Was the oldest person who ever lived a fraud? Link

Roku Still Growing Like a Weed

Roku’s Q4 earnings are in and the weed like growth continues from last quarter. A couple of points to note:

  • Sales and marketing expense has accelerated the last two quarters as Roku builds up their army of sales people driving advertising sales for the platform and Roku Channel.

  • Players were sold for a cumulative loss this quarter. Selling the players at breakeven or a loss is possible with the added revenue growth from the platform advertising/subscription sales and the platform accounting for 100% of company profit.

  • The company narrative or growth plan is shifting from platform to international. Successful traction in Canada mixed with successful launches in the UK, Mexico and Brazil are Roku’s new tagline.

  • The overall growth figures remain strong. Total active accounts grew 36% to ~37 million. ARPU was up nearly 29% year over year and hours of streaming is still growing more than 60% year over year.

Bottom line: Cord cutting has legs and Roku remains well positioned to continue to benefit as the smart TV platform of choice.

Tech Infused Retail Monday Morning Reads #325 - Cloud Wars, Top 20 Retailers 2010 vs 2020

Featured Tweet or Podcast


Links

  • Macy’s running out of tricks, will sell/develop air rights to build office tower above NYC store. Link

  • Macy’s Story didn’t work, management cuts taking place and 125 stores are closing. Haven’t we heard this story before? Time to rip the bandaid. Link

  • Is Macy’s too Macy’s? Link

  • Here comes higher merchant fees specifically for eCommerce. Link

  • Stein Mart to go private. Going private doesn’t hid the structural issues most retailers are facing. Too many stores and lower than industry growth rate in eCommerce. Link

  • Amazon to double down on 4 Star stores. Link

  • Competition for Amazon Flex drivers is fierce. Link

  • Forever 21 sells. Link

  • Instagram is larger than YouTube and makes up 25% of Facebook revenues. Link

  • Sleepless IPO from Casper. Link

  • 30% of US adults have said they have used a dating site or app. Link

  • The fight for the cloud (Link), image below.

  • Lyft poised to catch up to Uber (Link), image below.

Off Topic

  • Who’s Killing Horses in Central Florida? Link

Tech Infused Retail Monday Morning Reads #324 - Amazon Earnings, Shopify Dominance, Venmo > PayPal (Copy)

Featured Tweet or Podcast

BuzzFeed on reboot as the former Editor leaves for legacy media New York Times. Link, Link

Links

  • Amazon’s New Growth Narrative: Third Party Services (+ Earnings Recap). Link

  • How Shopify levels the playing field for smaller merchants and has Amazon in its’ sights. Link

  • Microsoft Advertising is struggling to grow. Link

  • Walmart’s investment in Flipkart is paying off. Link

  • Home Depot launches a drive through distribution center for customers. Link

  • How Private Equity buried Payless. Link

  • UPS and Amazon keep sharing the love. Link

  • Similar to legacy department stores struggling against off-price retailers, legacy gyms struggle against budget chains. Link

  • Venmo continues to be the engine that drives PayPal. Link

  • Top new apps being used in workplace per Okta. Link

  • A warehouse robot that learns the tricky stuff. Link

  • Pinterest lets its’ users try on makeup. Link

  • Online micro grocery fulfillment. Link

Off Topic

  • Houston Astros bang scandal. Link

  • The Sting. Link