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.
Hard to believe it, but it’s here! Ecommerce Operations Summit 2021 is kicking off this Tuesday, Aug. 17 at the Gaylord Opryland in Nashville, and we have lots of great things on tap for you as we regather in person as a community of ecommerce/DTC operations and fulfillment professionals.
Consumers focus on curbside pickup, fast delivery, trouble-free returns and seamless experiences, but retailers face heightened fulfillment challenges, leading more of them to embrace 3PLs. And getting it right is essential. This special report dives into the trends, outlining key decision factors when considering a 3PL partnership.
Cart.com, a startup founded during the pandemic aiming to be a one-stop shop for brands scaling up their ecommerce business, has raised $98 million in a Series B round to fuel further expansion, platform buildout and yet more acquisitions.
Even a year-plus into the pandemic, more U.S. consumers are leaning into e-grocery and less are visiting stores, according to a new study from Gallup, reflecting continued uncertainty and concern among shoppers. Overall, the percentages of consumers using e-grocery remain in the single digits.
Amazon is providing a new avenue for consumers who receive defective products sold by third parties that cause personal or property damage: Amazon itself will help facilitate the claim process, but the seller remains liable for any damages. Starting Sept. 1, Amazon’s policy calls for consumers to contact Amazon directly to file the claim.
While record spending is anticipated for back-to-school season this year, consumers may experience shortages in certain areas due to high demand, reduced inventories and ongoing pandemic-related supply chain and distribution issues, as well as fewer discounts.
While Happy Returns has solved for the efficient consolidation of ecommerce returns at its growing network of mall-based returns bars, a new joint solution from BlueDot and Adeptmind aims to take the same approach on the purchase end by consolidating curbside pickup at U.S. malls. BlueDot’s CMO explains how it works.
In an interesting twist, Walmart is offering access to services such as ecommerce order pickup and delivery to smaller retailers via a subscription program through partnering with Adobe, expanding revenue by selling its services a la Amazon’s cloud computing juggernaut.
BigCommerce added a significant piece to its arsenal by acquiring the assets of feed management tool provider Feedonomics for $145M as it does battle with Shopify to be a platform of choice for everything from SMB, mid-market and enterprises. Observers said it brings BigCommerce closer but Shopify is still in a runaway lead.
Ecommerce fraud prevention company Riskified has taken the major step into the public markets, launching an IPO today at $21 a share on the New York Stock Exchange as it looks to expand in Asia-Pacific, Latin America and western Europe and improve its technology for keeping bad actors out.