Hearing from JD.com and Alibaba’s Tmall on the Distinctions of Chinese Retail

This week, the Coresight Research team was at World Retail Congress 2018 in Madrid. There, we heard senior executives from China’s two e-commerce giants—JD.com and Alibaba—speak about what makes Chinese retail unique and what the future of retail could hold.… Continue Reading

There Is Much We Can Learn from Retail in China

Shopping is different in China. There, it’s an integral part of social conversations, and it’s not uncommon for people to show each other what’s in their digital shopping carts at dinners and other gatherings. Online, Chinese retailers offer shoppers a… Continue Reading

Fewer Happy Returns in Retail Land as Companies Tighten Generous Return Policies

Retailers have finally started to scale back liberal return policies in the face of a litany of abuses by customers. Although there are many legitimate reasons for returns—including receipt of a damaged product, the wrong item or a product that… Continue Reading

Taking a Dive into Amazon’s 2017 Metrics

Amazon wowed analysts and investors last week with a dramatic earnings beat on the back of remarkable fourth-quarter sales growth of 38%. Amazon provides updates on sales in specific international markets only when it reports its full-year results, as it… Continue Reading

Amazon Finally Opens Its Amazon Go Store…in a Changed, Crowded World

On January 22, Amazon finally opened its unstaffed, cashless Amazon Go retail store to the public, and long lines of consumers queued up to get a glimpse of the future of retail. The store achieves its cashier-free magic by relying… Continue Reading

CES 2018 Wrap-Up: Lots of Nice Toys, but No Killer Apps This Year

The FGRT team attended this year’s CES trade show in Las Vegas last week. From the preshow press days through the final day of exhibits, it was, as usual, a whirlwind experience. There seemed to be no new killer apps… Continue Reading

Sam’s Club Is Closing One-Tenth of Its Stores and Converting 12 to E-Commerce Hubs: Proof That Store Closures Have Become Respectable?

Walmart did not enjoy the positive headlines for very long this past Thursday. Shortly after the company announced that it will be pushing up its hourly wages, boosting parental leave benefits and handing out bonuses to most store-based staff at… Continue Reading

New Year Preview: 2018 Is Likely to Look a Lot Like 2017

Here we are again, at the outset of a brand new year that’s full of promise. Many of us have made New Year’s resolutions to exercise more, save money or make improvements in other areas of our lives and, whether… Continue Reading

Reviewing Retail in 2017, Part 2: Collaborations

As retail’s foundations shifted in 2017, legacy retailers sought out collaborations designed to drive shopper traffic, build their appeal to demographics such as millennials and maximize the value of their real estate holdings. This trend was particularly apparent in the… Continue Reading

“Will that Be Cash, Credit, WeChat Pay or Alipay?”

Some 40 years ago, American Express told its credit card holders, “Don’t leave home without it.” If that famous ad campaign were created today, it would likely refer to users’ smartphones, not their credit cards. That is because electronic payment… Continue Reading