Avalara, a provider of tax compliance automation software, is being acquired and taken private by global investment firm Vista Equity Partners for $8.4 billion, a generous 27% premium over the July 6 closing price as demand grows worldwide from retailers needing to sort out complex tax issues.
Even when retailers want to pay suppliers quickly, the inefficiencies of manual accounts payable (AP) and payment processes can get in their way. This involves printing checks, chasing down signatures and mailing. To address these issues, many retailers are using software to automate and optimize services to support those efforts.
The CHIPS act, which passed Congress in late July, sets aside $52B in subsidies and tax credits to boost domestic production and R&D, helping reduce our dependence on China’s semiconductor dominance. In this MCM CommerceChat podcast, Spencer Shute, a consultant at Proxima, helps us understand the importance for retail.
Digging out a few more shovelfuls to deepen the Prime moat, Amazon is now offering same-day delivery for subscribers in 10 metro areas, who can shop retailers including PacSun, GNC, SuperDry and Diesel and either have the order delivered or picked up in store.
UPS exceeded its Q2 revenue and earnings projections, but lower volume due to consolidation steps, including reducing Amazon packages by contractual agreement, plus the challenged macro picture didn’t resonate well on Wall Street. UPS is also piloting a delivery density program for major retailers through an OMS partnership.
Can selfies help solve the nagging problem of apparel returns? That’s the assertion of Nosto, provider of what it calls a commerce experience platform. Of consumers surveyed in the U.S. and UK, 61% said if brands posted photos and videos online of actual shoppers wearing their products, it would cut down on the number of returns.
More than a third of U.S. consumers said they plan to cut back on other spending in order to be able to shop for back-to-school items due to ongoing inflation concerns, according to the annual survey from Prosper Insights & Analytics commissioned by the National Retail Federation. More than half had started shopping as of early July.
WineDirect, a leader in ecommerce and fulfillment for wine brands, was seeing its subscription business explode, requiring greater personalization on many orders. In this special report, learn how its used technology to meet the challenges of various order types and regulatory requirements, while maintaining a top-flight CX.
Back-office is one of the most important functions of an ecommerce business. Accounting, finance, inventory, order fulfillment, shipping, vendor management and website updates contribute to building a strong back-office system. The back-office team handles these aspects, allowing the business to keep running smoothly.
Amazon once again claimed that the latest Prime Day event was the biggest ever, with 300 million items sold and importantly, more than $1.7 billion saved by shoppers, as some observers had said ahead of the fact that deals weren’t all that spectacular compared to everyday offerings.