Douglas P. Clement
Douglas P. Clement is principal of Boardwalk Media + Communications, a Connecticut-based provider of digital content, branding, social media management, strategic communications and more. Previously Senior Editor and Digital Editor of Connecticut Magazine, and Executive Editor of The Litchfield County Times publishing group, he was named national Editor of the Year by a leading journalism industry group in 2005, won the nation’s top award for lifestyle journalism from the University of Missouri Schools of Journalism seven times, and has covered arts, culture, design and theater regionally for The New York Times.
Ecommerce holiday sales rose 18.8% over 2018, driving 3.4% overall growth in seasonal retail, delivering a very merry season for merchants, according to the Mastercard SpendingPulse holiday report. Ecommerce growth was up slightly from an 18.4% gain in 2018, accounting for 14.6% of total retail, according to Mastercard.
Amid scant post-Super Saturday reports, Adweek was signaling more Super Saturday shopping took place in stores vs. online, despite Amazon’s modified delivery options, for example, and competition for fast last-minute delivery between retail giants Target and Walmart.
Target’s new last-minute delivery deals and deadlines for holiday gifts has it going head-to-head with Walmart over whose fulfillment is faster and more accommodating for shoppers. Both retail giants offer free two-day shipping, but Walmart has the edge in guaranteed delivery by Christmas for ultra-last-minute shoppers.
Digital payment platform startup Payoneer, which is doing battle with PayPal and other major players, is acquiring Munich-based optile, a tech firm that streamlines the payment acceptance process for merchants. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Accel Robotics, a startup using AI and computer vision to enable checkout-free stores, has raised $30 million in a Series A round led by SoftBank. The system lets shoppers in grocery and convenience stores, quick service restaurants and drugstore chains grab items and go, getting a receipt sent via text or app to their phone.
Shopping fulfillment center venture ShopFulfill will give digitally native DTC brands a physical presence by Q2 2020 in two prime East Coast locations, downtown Philadelphia and a mall in Moorestown, NJ. Its Anchor Shops will integrate retail storefronts with distribution networks for multiple brands.
Amazon is enabling Prime customers in eligible areas to shop millions of products on Christmas Eve, and receive them in time for gift exchanges with free same-day delivery if ordered by 9:30 a.m. local time. Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods Market purchases on Christmas Eve in those eligible areas offer free two-hour delivery.
Old Navy is partnering with Postmates to provide same-day delivery in 4,000 U.S. markets as it competes with Amazon, Walmart and Target for the holiday retail joy of robust sales driven by aggressive delivery fulfillment.
Delivery will be free from Dec. 21-23 as an incentive for last-minute consumers to buy its casual clothing.
Hoboken, NJ-based Flow has secured $37 million in Series B funding to drive its mission of helping businesses market, sell and ship to global consumers online by providing localized experiences. The funding will be used to build up product offerings, grow customer acquisition, add staff and expansion in the U.S. and Europe.
So-called Grinch bots buy up popular toys in bulk at Christmas and resell them at a profit. They affected as much as 97% of traffic to ecommerce sites in the week ending Cyber Monday, Radware claimed. Now Congress is considering legislation for the third time to combat the threat. Will a new law or technology solve the problem?