Mike O'Brien
Mike O’Brien has worked in journalism, marketing and public relations for … well, quite a while. At Multichannel Merchant he focuses on the world of direct-to-customer operations and fulfillment, editing MCM’s weekly O+F Advisor newsletter, and programs the annual Ecommerce Operations Summit conference. Previously Mike was a senior account executive for Marx Communications, a boutique public relations firm working with marketing and advertising technology companies. Other past work includes stints as a media relations consultant for a concert promoter, a marketing communications specialist for a pharma software firm, a research analyst covering corporate e-learning and a daily newspaper reporter on every beat imaginable – except sports.
Adobe Digital Insights is predicting U.S. holiday spending online will rise 10% over 2020, hitting a record $207 billion, with global spending to reach $910 billion, an 11% increase, while calling for a decreased emphasis on traditionally major days during Cyber Weekend as demand pulls forward.
Truck leasing, logistics and fleet management provider Ryder has made an investment in Gatik, whose technology will power autonomous middle mile deliveries for retail and ecommerce clients in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, initially equipping 20 leased Ryder box trucks for the purpose.
Supply chain delays, ongoing carrier issues and expectations of late deliveries or out of stocks has driven a record number of U.S. consumers to begin holiday shopping earlier than ever, with 52% of them in an Oracle Retail survey saying they’ve already begun to do so. Major retailers like Target and Best Buy have kicked off promotions.
For years, Amazon has been accused of stealing IP and copying successful products sold on its marketplace, selling them as Amazon branded, and now a Reuters report called “The Imitation Game” claims internal documents from 2016 show that’s exactly what it did in India.
Regional carrier LaserShip is acquiring competitor OnTrac for $1.3 billion deal, in one fell swoop changing the equation in last-mile parcel delivery by giving the combined entity coverage of three-quarters of the continental U.S. as ecommerce demand continues to soar.
The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) has decided to temporarily suspend a planned reduction in service level standards for First Class package delivery until after the peak holiday season, a week after the Postal Regulatory Commission which oversees it said the plan “lacked demonstrable evidence.”
Home Depot has signed on as the first retail customer of Walmart’s new service, GoLocal, with Walmart providing same-day and next-day delivery in select stores in Texas, New Mexico and Northwest Arkansas in the coming weeks, expanding thereafter.
Pattern, which helps brands expand and grow revenue on marketplaces and other channels, has raised $225 million, bringing its total valuation to over $2 billion as it sees its role as a market accelerator as a more logical path to success than the growing ranks of Amazon brand aggregators.
Amazon has announced a raft of Black Friday-like deals designed to jumpstart the holiday spend quite a bit ahead of time and draft ahead of the rest of the retail pack, capturing early consumer interest and hopefully easing some of the massive network strain later in the season.
Fintech startup SKUx is looking to create a new category of digital payment to address rampant fraud in online coupons, offers and promotions by using a distributed public ledger system to create serialized, one-time payments that can be tracked and traced.