Coresight Research reported a total of 9,275 U.S. store closures by major retailers in 2019, 35% higher than the 6,897 closures recorded in 2018 as the bleeding continues. Closings outpaced store openings more than 2 to 1, Coresight found, with 4,454 new doors in 2019, compared to 4,311 in 2018.
A seeming disconnect between fewer last-order promise dates and faster holiday delivery times is explained by the rising popularity of buy online, pickup in store, according to an annual survey from Kurt Salmon. This season, 53% of retailers didn’t offer a last order promise date to avoid disappointing customers.
Through new partnerships with Michael’s, CVS and Advance Auto, UPS is more than doubling its network of U.S. Access Point locations and adding Sunday pickup and delivery in January for business and residential customers as it engages in an arms race with FedEx. This gives UPS 63,000 U.S. locations, compared to 62,000 for FedEx.
CVS Pharmacy is piloting a paid membership rewards program called CarePass in the Boston area, offering additional benefits to its Extra Care rewards club members for $5 a month or $48 a year. Here are some of the perks the new membership program promises to its members.
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.
Fearing possible encroachment from Amazon into prescription delivery, CVS will begin offering next-day delivery of both prescriptions and other retail items in major cities in 2018, and same-day service in Manhattan beginning Dec. 4.
Descartes Systems Group, a provider of Software-as-a-Service for logistics in B2B and B2C companies, has acquired parcel shipping software firm ShipRush for $14 million, expanding its services as it goes after midmarket ecommerce shippers. See what the business combination means for their joint customers.