Singles’ Day, November 11, is the biggest online shopping day in the world. The holiday was originally created in the 1990s by Chinese college students who wanted to celebrate their single status. In 2009, Alibaba used the idea to market… Continue Reading
Tired of long checkout lines? Do not worry. We think 2018 could be the year when checkout-less stores go mainstream thanks to a glut of new technologies that will turn our local shops into something akin to giant vending machines.… Continue Reading
In the ancient days, before e-commerce, when you wanted to return something, you had to go back to the store where you bought it (if you bought it in a store) or wait in line at the post office, if… Continue Reading
This holiday season will see digital channels capture more spending, digital devices play a greater role in the shopping process and digital assistants help more shoppers. Here, we share our top trends in digital retailing for this holiday season. US… Continue Reading
In the beginning, there was Siri. The groundbreaking voice assistant only worked with recent-model iPhones, however, and its imperfect voice recognition led it to be the object of many a joke and cartoon. Siri’s wake saw additional assistants from other… Continue Reading
In the battle against e-commerce—and especially against e-commerce behemoth Amazon—long-standing brick-and-mortar retailers are often urged to differentiate themselves by offering exclusive product and quality experiences. But what will actually drive shoppers to physical stores this coming holiday season?… Continue Reading
Retail giant Toys “R” Us filed for voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the US and Canada this week, and the news furthered the popular narrative of a “retail apocalypse” in the US. The bankruptcy proceedings do not affect the… Continue Reading
This week, Apple launched not one long-anticipated new iPhone—but two—whose specifications fell generally in line with rumors and industry watchers’ expectations. There is such a large number of partners and suppliers involved in the creation of any new generation of… Continue Reading
This summer saw the opening of what is only the second major off-price chain in Europe. Hudson’s Bay Company brought its Saks Off 5th off-price format to Europe in June, with the opening of its inaugural store in Düsseldorf. It… Continue Reading
This week, the FGRT team attended the August Magic trade show, held every year in Las Vegas, Nevada. The show is produced by UBM, a UK-based event organizer that puts on more than 300 events per year. Magic is held… Continue Reading