Headless Ecommerce 2.0: Handling Platform, Mid-Market Issues

| Jake Loveless

Headless ecommerce is driven by developers and appeals to developers. Despite years of effort and billions of dollars, the customers (CMOs, ecommerce executives) aren’t ready to abandon their existing functional solutions. For ecommerce, two factors hold back adoption — one pertaining to the platform and one to the mid-market. 

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Casper Goes Private, CEO Steps Down as High Flyer Sinks

| Mike O'Brien

Casper Sleep, the once high-flying DTC mattress-in-a-box company whose star descended as profits shrank despite brisk pandemic-era sales, is going private in an acquisition by Durational Capital Management for about a quarter of its $1.1 billion valuation when it went public in February 2020.

How to Snap Out of Amazon “Stockholm Syndrome”

| Jan-Christopher Nugent

Stockholm Syndrome is what happens when stressed-out captives sometimes end up copying and relating to their captors. In a similar fashion, are we seeing something like an “Amazon Stockholm Syndrome” for retailers and consumer product brands? Is Amazon, by dint of its major influence, forcing others to copy them?

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MCM Top 3PLs 2022: Calling All Leading Providers

| Mike O'Brien

Now in its seventh year for 2022, Multichannel Merchant’s MCM Top 3PL listing showcases leading third-party logistics companies serving ecommerce and direct-to-customer (DTC) businesses. How does your organization measure up? We’re accepting submissions now through Nov. 5, 2021. Be recognized as a true leader in the field!

Large Brands Going DTC, But Hurdles Remain

| Jimmy Duvall

On the surface DTC seems like a no-brainer: Cut out the middleman, increase margins, gain customer insights in an increasingly crowded retail marketplace. However, this pivot will still be difficult for larger brands. Let’s take a look at some of the roadblocks and lessons retailers can learn from those who have been successful. 

3PL Ruby Has Launches DTC Consortium

| Mike O'Brien

Ruby Has, a top 3PL, has launched an industry consortium aimed at helping both direct-to-consumer merchants and those providing support services to share expertise, resources and best practices aimed at benefiting all. Among the 100-plus charter members are DTC jewelry brand Ana Luisa and ecommerce platform firm Linnworks.

Pursuing a DTC Model: The Pros and Cons

| Andrea Leigh

One of the biggest retail trends influenced by the pandemic is the increasing popularity of the direct-to-consumer or DTC model. For many brands, a long-running DTC channel proved priceless over the past year, but it’s important to weigh the pros and cons. Here are six considerations when looking at pursuing a DTC model.

8 Things DTC Brands Should Look for in a 3PL Partner

| Esther Kestenbaum Prozan

For any DTC brand, choosing a 3PL is a huge decision. Order fulfillment is your single biggest cost line item. More importantly, your fulfillment provider will be entrusted with all of your inventory. The consequences of a poor choice can be catastrophic, while those of a good choice could be life-changing. Here are 8 key things to look for.

DTC Brands: Don’t Overlook TV to Drive Traffic

| Adam Seaborn

TV has the reputation of being a highly untargeted, legacy media platform that is expensive, largely unmeasured and sometimes a vanity purchase by CMOs who want to see their brand’s name on the big screen. But TV can not only improve brand awareness, authority and recognition, but help lower CAC and improve ROAS.

Post COVID, It’s Time for DTC Brands to Shine

| Derek O'Carroll

The DTC “discovery to delivery” business model has many advantages. You own the end-to-end customer journey, and develop a direct, digitally-driven and engaging relationship with them. DTC brands using smart technology also have unfiltered insight into customer behavior and real-time data at every step along the process.