Stein Mart Looks to Amazon Lockers, Other Initiatives to Boost Sales

| Mike O'Brien

Stein Mart has become the latest retailer to partner with Amazon, betting that increased traffic to the ecommerce giant’s lockers in the back of its stores for order pickup and returns will translate to sales for the struggling discount chain. The lockers will be located in about 200 of Stein Mart’s 283 stores by early June.

MCM CommerceChat podcast

Tackling the Challenges of Store Inventory Accuracy

| Mike O'Brien

If stores are the weak link in inventory accuracy, how do you improve it to avoid stock-outs and dissatisfied customers? Steve DeNunzio of Ohio State’s graduate logistics program covers the challenges and solutions in this MCM CommerceChat podcast. He’ll also lead this discussion at Ecommerce Operations Summit in Columbus, OH.

NRF Study Finds 75% of U.S. Consumers Expect Free Shipping

| Mike O'Brien

Free shipping for ecommerce orders is an increasingly high priority for U.S. consumers, who are also embracing buy online pickup in store, according to a new Consumer View report from the National Retail Federation. The report found that 75% of consumers expect free delivery even on orders under $50, up from 68% last year.

Report Finds U.S. Retailers Underperforming in Key Omnichannel Categories

| Mike O'Brien

Given all the attention paid to buy online pickup in store including its popularity with shoppers, only 28% of U.S. retailers currently offer the service, compared to 64% of British retailers providing its cousin, click and collect, according to a report from OrderDynamics. Retailers here were also found lagging in other categories.

Promotion: The Missing BOPIS Link

| Nick Mclean

Ecommerce and in-store shopping converge when retailers offer buy online, pickup in-store or BOPIS. But surprisingly, they promote this convenient, increasingly popular checkout option less often than you think, especially in the U.S. To make your program a success and drive sales, here are some BOPIS promo tips.

Study Finds Young Shoppers Still Love Stores, Will Wait for Packages

| Mike O'Brien

A new study of shoppers ages 14-24 by Fluent Commerce found that young shoppers weren’t as eager for fulfillment immediacy as you’d think in the age of Amazon Prime and guaranteed two-day delivery, with most digital natives still good with hitting the stores. See what else matters to the next wave of consumers.