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.
Tokyo-based marketplace and logistics supplier Rakuten has acquired Curbside, a startup with $50 million in funding that powers same-day store and restaurant pickup of online orders, for an undisclosed amount. See what this deal means for the retail and restaurant customers of Curbside.
With ecommerce booming, e-fulfillment strategies often aren’t advancing quick enough to keep pace. To help you find solutions and optimize your operations, Multichannel Merchant is holding a free one-day virtual event, “The E-Fulfillment Summit: Meeting Today’s Challenges Head On” on Thursday, June 28 from 10 a.m.-2:30 p.m. EDT.
Dick’s Sporting Goods is moving from centralized ecommerce fulfillment to regional east and west coast operations as it revamps its supply chain to speed up deliveries while also testing pickup lockers, the company’s CEO told analysts on a Q1 call. See what other changes have contributed to the company’s growth.
Jetblack, Walmart’s new invite-only, personalized shopping service aimed at busy moms in Manhattan and Brooklyn, allows members to get same-day orders fulfilled by texting them in, at $50 a month. It’s the latest example of the beast of Bentonville seeking to go upmarket and out-innovate main rival Amazon.
A U.S. Appellate Court ruling in Washington DC upheld the U.S. Postal Service’s pricing methodology, knocking down a challenge from UPS that categorized it as unfair and anticompetitive.
The ink was barely dry on the European Union’s new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) when a European privacy advocate sued Google, Facebook and Facebook-owned Instagram and Whatsapp, claiming they violated the regulation by using “forced consent” practices to obtain consumer data.
Best Buy saw its online sales increase 12% to $1.14 billion in the first quarter, representing 13.6% of total revenue, up from 12.9% a year ago. This was helped by the company’s continued omnichannel investments, improved inventory management and ongoing supply chain transformation.
Amazon, vaunted for its free two-day shipping with Prime membership and free returns, has apparently been shutting out some shoppers based on how often they return purchases, according media reports. See what the reaction was and what Amazon said in response.
Sephora, Amazon, Target and Staples are among those making changes to their distribution network in Multichannel Merchant’s latest distribution center roundup.
More than a quarter of organizations globally are not prepared to comply with the European Union’s new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which went into effect May 25, according to a survey conducted by SAP Hybris. See what else the survey revealed about compliance efforts, or lack thereof, as the major directive impacts the use of customer data worldwide.