Market & Tech
How retailers and commerce platforms develop technology, sales and customer relationships.
India's Avenue Supermarts ended the second quarter of fiscal 2027 with ₹196.44 billion in consolidated revenue and ₹7.43 billion in net profit. Mature-store growth accelerated and 15 locations opened, but costs and the pricing strategy narrowed profitability.
On October 8, Zenkraft made a Storefront Next app for delivery estimates, tracking and returns available in Salesforce’s registry. The launch reduces bespoke storefront integration, but the vendor disclosed no pricing, deployment count or measured impact.
On 9 October, Amazon said the inferences shown in Amazon About You are based only on activity within its services. A customer can exclude an individual detail from personalization, but that does not erase purchases, searches, or other underlying data; Amazon disclosed no sales or retention impact metrics.
For the year ended 31 August, group revenue rose 16.6% and business profit increased 30.4%. North America and Europe together generated more UNIQLO sales than Greater China for the first time, but the FY2027 targets remain management forecasts.
On October 8, Crossmint opened a self-service developer toolkit that stores a card, authorizes a purchase for a specific amount and merchant, and guides an AI agent through checkout. The company claims merchant reach without dedicated integration, but discloses no pricing, order success rate or independent results.
On 9 October, THG Commerce said Criteo Sponsored Products now appear beside organic recommendations in AI Shopping Assistant. It reports click-through rate more than five times the average and conversion more than twice the average, but discloses no absolute values, period, sample, control or profit.
Sweetwater has completed the structural frame of a $36.7 million distribution-centre expansion. Warehouse space will grow by almost one-third, but the company has not disclosed how the investment will change delivery speed, fulfilment cost or inventory turns.
For the 26 weeks to 29 August, sales excluding VAT and fuel rose 2.0%, while adjusted operating profit increased 6.5% to £1.783 billion. Tesco narrowed its full-year profit outlook to £3.15–£3.30 billion and raised its buyback to £950 million.
On October 8, Newegg said checkout for eligible products went live inside Gemini and Google Search AI Mode for U.S. shoppers. Payment uses Google Pay, while Newegg remains merchant of record; the company did not disclose product count, order volume or conversion impact.
On 8 October, Asda and Rokt released results from offers on the payment and order-confirmation pages. Rokt revenue at George more than doubled, while grocery Rokt revenue rose 72% year on year for 22 August–21 September; the companies say conversion did not fall. Absolute revenue, profit, sample size, control design and uncertainty intervals were not disclosed.
A new industry column has revived the debate over online sales versus installation shops. The available evidence points not to rejection of ecommerce but to a high entry cost: nine MESA members sell online, while Crutchfield’s strong digital experience rests on physical vehicle research.
The Canadian investors will acquire the UK pharmacy and beauty chain, Boots Opticians and No7 Beauty Company. Fairfax is expected to own 50% of the equity while Wittington retains operating control; closing is expected in the first quarter of 2027.
On October 6, Meta and Sierra announced the development of Personal Agent Protocol, intended to let a personal AI agent identify itself to a merchant, receive limited authority and continue a task through a website, API or company agent. Version 0.1 is promised later in October; the reference implementation and payments remain future work.
On 7 October, Circana and Best Buy Ads released new marketing mix model findings: the network was credited with 79% higher ROAS than other media, almost 10% of measured brand equity and sales at competing retailers. The analysis covered two years, four categories and $2.3 billion in media spend, but absolute ROAS, brand composition, model specification and uncertainty intervals were not published.
The all-cash agreement would add large office and event orders to Uber Eats. The deal has not closed: regulatory approvals and other customary conditions still stand in the way.
On October 6, FedEx Dataworks and Stripe announced a strategic collaboration: shipment, inventory and fulfillment data is set to inform Stripe Capital financing analysis, while FedEx plans to add more than 50 payment methods. The first joint solution is only planned for early 2027; no terms or results are available yet.
On 6 October, Cotswold Outdoor Group, Broadsign and IUF announced 149 advertising screens across 23 UK stores, connected to online inventory through Zitcha. The cited 13.3% HOKA sales lift comes from an earlier four-week Runners Need campaign; absolute sales, control-group construction, costs and profit were not disclosed.
On 5 October, the UK retailer showed its refurbished York showroom, while its main showroom page described the new guitar room and Custom Shop area as open. The move turns in-person experience into part of the sales proposition, but official pages still disagree about whether the work is fully complete.
The Indian fashion retailer accelerated sales and opened 27 locations during the quarter. But this is a preliminary operating update: profit, margin and like-for-like sales have yet to be disclosed.
On October 5, Salesforce and TikTok announced a partnership to synchronise catalogues, inventory and orders, enable in-TikTok checkout and support a conversational shopping assistant. Buy Direct and Shopping Assistant are currently limited to eligibility-based tests; the native TikTok Shop integration is scheduled for January 2027 and the phased UCP rollout for the first quarter.
On 5 October, Pinterest published aggregated US results across 45 brands: within six months, 33% of customers moved from one channel to buying both online and in store, and their reported value was 18% higher. The customer sample size, metric formula, control group, costs and profit were not disclosed.
A class action trial over extended warranties sold online and in stores began in Victoria on 5 October. JB Hi-Fi disputes the allegations. For specialist retailers, the case raises a commercial question: what additional service is the customer actually paying for?
The group CEO disclosed store refurbishment, London flagship negotiations and international-franchise plans. These are strategic statements, not delivered financial results; the official Premium Lifestyle segment is still contracting.
A hands-on test of ChatGPT’s live virtual try-on was published on October 4. Jewellery and an everyday outfit looked plausible, while a vintage dress and costume wings were altered; OpenAI itself warns that the image does not guarantee product accuracy, fit or size. This is a fresh test of the feature, not a new launch or controlled experiment.
On 2 October, the online retailer unveiled We’ve Got the Very Thing, a local campaign built around different family needs. Television, VOD, radio, YouTube, social, digital and owned channels target awareness and consideration, but Very.ie disclosed no budget, conversion, CAC, incremental sales or profit.
Investors agreed to buy 83.345 million new shares at 600 pence. The proceeds are primarily intended for the major shopping-centre acquisition, but ownership transfer still depends on a legal condition and bondholder consent.
By October 1, Gumtree had put Pay & Collect into public rollout for eligible UK For Sale listings below £250. The buyer pays on-platform, inspects the item in person and only then provides the payout code; existing listings are not enrolled automatically.
On 1 October, the IPA honoured AMV BBDO and Spark Foundry’s “The Superpower In-store”. The public case attributes £500m of incremental revenue over two years, a 1.1-point share gain and a 44% rise in long-term ROI to Beyond Techspectations, but the full method is paywalled and not publicly disclosed.
The acquisition of the Dutch brand closed on 2 October. The price was not disclosed; revenue, synergy and earnings effects remain management estimates announced when the deal was signed.
AuctionZip is included alongside Invaluable. The platforms processed more than $500 million in gross merchandise sales in their latest fiscal year, but that measure is not platform revenue.
On October 1, Barrett Distribution Centers expanded its UNIT AI partnership and announced a plan to connect inventory, fulfillment and returns across its warehouses. The agreement is confirmed, but the network is not deployed: first-wave sites, schedule and measurable outcomes remain undisclosed.
On 1 October, the retailer launched a Scottish pilot with four spending tiers from £25 to £300, linking stores, Asda.com, Asda Express and George. The design promises up to £16 in Cashpot value plus a fuel voucher, but the company has disclosed no conversion, incremental sales, retention or profit data.
By 2 October, a specialist publication had identified a new promotion launched that week. The official storefront combines hardware, software, new releases, education and instalment options, but discloses no end date, discount economics or sales effect.
Quarterly revenue fell to $11.2 billion, Nike Direct declined 8% and Nike Brand Digital fell 13%. Pace is expected to deliver about $2.5 billion of cumulative savings through fiscal 2031, but requires roughly $1 billion of charges and will reduce roles.
On September 30, FastSpring enabled Cash App Pay for approved sellers and eligible U.S. buyers. The launch is confirmed, but the release and technical documentation describe recurring payments differently: automatic renewals are still listed as a future feature in the guide.
On 30 September, the retailer launched Anytime Media @ 7‑Eleven, combining more than 760 stores, My 7‑Eleven and digital channels. Its 4.6 million weekly transactions establish scale, not incremental sales, advertising profitability or customer trust.
The conditional reorganisation would give DFI full control of the Starbucks licensed business in seven Asian markets. In return, Maxim’s will buy back DFI’s group stake and pay about $340 million; closing is expected by the end of March 2027.
On September 30, DoorDash launched Dasher Returns in select U.S. cities: a courier collects an eligible purchase without a box or label and takes it back to the store for $7.99. The company expects to expand the service nationwide in November, but has not published pilot results or a guaranteed timetable.
On 30 September, Kroger launched a credit card that links website, app, store and fuel purchases with spending outside its network. The headline value reaches 5% in points, but activation, redemption, retention and incremental profit remain undisclosed.
Sales rose 7.7% in the third quarter and the full-year outlook improved. At the same time, Greggs proposes closing four manufacturing sites, potentially affecting about 740 roles.
Fourth-quarter like-for-like revenue excluding FMCG rose 9.5%. The company says clearing older collections contributed three to five percentage points and temporarily reduced gross margin by about 200 basis points.
On 28 September, Shopify enabled WebMCP tools for an active checkout: a compatible agent can read and update it, then submit the order after the buyer explicitly agrees. Merchants need no separate setup, but the standard and browser support remain early.
On 29 September, the parent group of the two platforms introduced a pair of tools for generating product copy. Feedonomics Enrichment is available now, while BigCommerce Catalog Enrichment is officially labelled Early Access; both require human review and are not meant to invent missing attributes.
On 28 September, Best Buy unveiled Best Buy CTV, multi-touch attribution and expanded incrementality testing. The system spans streaming, creator content, digital commerce and stores, but Circana’s published figures cannot yet be verified as causal impact.
The Australian retailer of electronics, hi-fi and home cinema plans to deploy digital shelf-edge technology in Australia and fully across New Zealand. Staff will gain more product and finance information through PDAs, but timing, budget and measured pilot results are undisclosed.
Aldi UK and Ireland turnover rose 5% to £19 billion in 2025, but operating profit stayed near £433 million. The discounter plans to open 40 stores in 2027 and continue work on its distribution network.
Second-quarter revenue edged up 0.9% to $11.08 billion, while adjusted net income fell 66.6%. Growth outside the United States and Europe offset weakness in the two largest regions, but not the surge in fulfilment costs.
On September 26, a technology publication documented a Buy button on selected Flipkart products in Gemini and AI Mode. Checkout opens inside Google’s interface, but only for some users, and the companies have confirmed neither the underlying technology nor a broad launch.
Lidl Ireland announced on 28 September that mobile service would be sold through Lidl Plus: eSIM can be activated digitally and physical SIMs bought in stores. The move extends the customer relationship beyond the grocery basket, but no effectiveness data have been disclosed.
On September 26, Zid and Rovo held the official launch of the online-store platform in Damascus. Merchants are offered product, order and delivery tools; the next question is how those advertised capabilities perform in real purchases.
Kasia Niemirowicz-Majtas’s appointment raises a practical question: how should a store network be judged when customers shop across channels?
The first Hong Kong Shopping Festival for Singapore and Malaysia was scheduled to end on September 27. The campaign connected marketplaces with livestreams, but the official material reviewed contains no final sales, conversion, acquisition-cost or advertising-return figures.
Costco increased fiscal 2026 net sales 10.1% to $297.2 billion. Digitally enabled comparable sales rose 19.5% in the fourth quarter, although a one-off tariff refund benefit contributed to profit growth.
On September 24, 2026, Amazon began gradually giving US-store sellers a single place in Seller Central to manage eBay, Shopify, TikTok, and Walmart channels. Connections, listing imports, and order views come first; content synchronization and unified profit analytics are still rolling out.
A new industry profile dated September 26 shows how John Lewis Partnership connects onsite advertising, external media and loyalty data across two retail brands. Closed-loop attribution can observe a purchase, but it does not yet prove incremental sales.
The major online retailer of musical instruments and professional audio brought product demonstrations, manufacturer experts, artists, giveaways and one-day offers into one physical destination. The format is confirmed, but attendance, sales and any effect on the online channel have not been disclosed.
On September 24, 2026, the British online retailer reported that it had closed the deal using existing cash resources. The price was not disclosed; AO World expects to use its traffic and operating scale to grow the photography retailer.
The homewares chain's sales fell 7.1% to €412.8 million, while current EBITDA declined 41% to €27.1 million. The net loss narrowed to €64 million and free cash flow remained negative; the company is not providing financial guidance.
The online personal styling service reported $1.348 billion in revenue and a $12.6 million net loss for fiscal 2026. Active clients declined 1.4% year over year in the fourth quarter, and the outlook allows for a fall in annual revenue.
In a September 24, 2026, announcement, EBANX described an architecture being rolled out since September for Latin America and the Caribbean. The company reported a 94.4% approval rate for tokenized-wallet transactions; these are its own figures and do not prove the effect of the architecture change alone.
On September 25, 2026, Shopify expanded its developer dashboard with diagnostic tools for apps built for specific stores. The new dashboard helps identify the causes of integration failures; reductions in downtime and cost savings have not yet been publicly measured.
At its September 23 investor meeting, the chain disclosed an advertising pilot across its app, kiosks, menu boards and restaurants. The goal of turning the operation into a $1 billion business remains a forecast: measurable test results have not been published.
On September 17, Coach and Kate Spade products became available to buy directly in Google Search, including AI Mode, and the Gemini app in the US. Tapestry implemented Universal Commerce Protocol, but has not yet disclosed conversion, integration costs or the new channel’s return rate.
On 17 September, AgentCard gained support for single-use tokenised Mastercard credentials: developers can set agents' spending limits, merchant categories and permitted purchase locations. The integration is described as available, but its commercial effectiveness and rate of erroneous transactions have not yet been published.
On September 17, the companies presented an integration intended to show customer support teams signs of abuse in returns and order changes. General availability is planned for November 2026, making this a confirmed announcement of a future release rather than an already widespread launch.
On September 17, Noibu announced the availability of agents for conversion, A/B testing, accessibility, bug fixes, performance and advertising. Changes reach the live store only after human approval; the reported results come from the vendor.
The joint solution was unveiled on 15 September at NRF Europe: the cart supports product search, navigation, self-scanning, payment, loss prevention and personalised offers. The suppliers did not name a first retail customer or provide operating results.
On September 16, the company expanded its platform: AI assistants are intended to support products from demand analysis and design through images, descriptions and e-commerce materials. The launch is confirmed, but savings figures have so far been supplied by the company itself.
At GXO’s Venlo site, the Skypod system handles 40,000 to 70,000 items a day and up to 2,200 order lines an hour at peak times. The figures were published by the project participants; there is no independent performance audit.
The partnership is intended to connect structured product data with search, recommendations and grocery chains’ digital storefronts. The companies have not named a customer, deployment date or measured commercial result.
From October 15, some payments to businesses above 2,000 rupees will carry a 0.4% fee. Exemptions remain for small merchants and transfers between individuals; shoppers must not be charged the fee directly.
The Watch Them Glow campaign launched on 15 September across connected TV, digital and social channels. The new brand identity is also set to appear in stores, products and packaging, but the launch's impact has not yet been measured.
On September 15, the chain unveiled a multichannel campaign for the NFL season. Digital spending rose from less than 1% to more than 20% of the marketing budget in the first half, but the company has not disclosed those outlays’ causal contribution to sales.
In an interview published on September 15, the company explained the expansion of its chief marketing officer’s remit: the website and third-party marketplace are now managed alongside personalization, loyalty and retail media.
Stephan Sturm will leave the supervisory board no later than October 15. The company has confirmed the decision; Reuters links it to pressure from the largest shareholder, while a new chair has yet to be selected.
Blue Pool Capital led the equity round. The funds are intended to expand lending and money services in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, but completion of the deal depends on regulatory approvals.
The milestone became public on 14 September through a company post and a trade publication's report. It indicates the delivery service's workload but does not reveal profitability, order-processing costs or an independent assessment of quality.
The campaign was reported on September 14: the restaurant chain linked accumulated customer requests to the return of stuffed French toast, with advertising on television, its own digital platforms and through content creators. The launch’s impact has not yet been disclosed.
The appointment was announced on September 14: customer engagement across all channels, personalization and the Roundel retail media network come under a single remit. There are no measurable results from the new management model yet.
On September 14, the specialist publication published an exclusive code for £500 off Richer Sounds’ VIP price. The mechanism combines affiliate traffic, enrollment in the retailer’s program and a checkout discount, but its effect on sales and retention has not been disclosed.
The deal is set to bring together 235 stations. The plan to expand to 800 sites by 2031 remains a target, rather than an achieved result.
The September 11 announcement confirms expansion following the August market entry. Sales through local marketplaces are still described as a plan.
The intention was announced on September 11: the parties are considering linking an open commerce network with tools for discovering offers. No joint service launch has yet been announced.
Data released on September 11 showed traffic growth of more than 22%. This is an interim measure of attention to the product range, rather than a demonstrated increase in sales or profit.
An examination of an established practice: SpeakerCompare combines in-browser sound comparisons, advice from a consultant and testing purchases at home. The online tool launched in spring 2019; no new September launch has been announced.
Gear4music reported 7.3% sales growth over five months on September 8. We examine the result alongside earlier changes to marketing and customer service, without attributing the increase to any single tool.
Context from August 26: the online music retailer introduced a single payment integration. Expansion to other commerce platforms is the next step; performance results have yet to be published.
The America 250 campaign connected in-person events with digital communications. The company disclosed an increase in unit sales; spending and additional profit were not specified.
ROAS Protection terms change on September 17. Compensation is provided as advertising vouchers, and eligibility depends on campaign settings and results.
A study of 5,821 digital cards shows the difference between joining a program and returning to a business. Egypt accounts for most of the sample.
Stores can collect consent for follow-up messages during checkout. Data on the feature's effect on repeat purchases have not yet been published.
Combining brand and platform data changed how advertising audiences were selected. The metric's increase does not yet prove that additional sales were generated.
The US online pet retailer reported growth in profit and repeat sales.
The Indian quick-delivery service is approaching Swiggy Instamart in order volume. The figures are media estimates.
Zara's owner uses online order data to select cities and combines openings with expansion and refurbishment of existing stores.
The British group is investing more in store refurbishment as results at Waitrose and John Lewis diverge.
The second-quarter report combines weak comparable-sales growth with rising online sales and profit in the advertising division.
Total payment on the BO-005R-02 issue was approximately RUB 47.3 billion, including repayment of principal.
The agreement was announced on September 10. The partners plan to connect Accio with DHL services; no date for general availability has been given.
The September 10 change can block an app update if its configuration still includes an extension for the mechanism.
Since September 9, shoppers in the northeastern US have had access to on-demand grocery delivery and orders scheduled for a chosen time.
The assistant understands voice requests and video context; the app update was released on September 9.
In a September 11 announcement, the Indian company linked a credit limit to a payment identifier and introduced the PhiAMS banking platform.
The decision was published on September 10; the company has not yet disclosed an exact delivery launch date.