In today’s InternetRetailing newsletter, we’re reporting as Amazon says its Prime Day broke records, and that it is now the largest corporate buyer of renewable energy in the world. That came as the retailer sold in one more market than a year earlier, at 20. Since then, it has expanded its Prime membership to two more countries. During its second quarter, the retailer used its own technology in a growing number of locations and applications, including the ‘just walk out’ technology that enables checkout-free grocery buying and is now in a full size grocery store for the first time, and the Alexa voice assistant, now in both Ford cars and Samsung fridges, among many other devices.
We hear from Phil Halliday, managing director of HMV, in a month that saw the retailer mark its 100th anniversary. He tells how shoppers are buying from it after a century in business – and after a year of Covid-19.
And we report as Pets at Home reports on rising sales both online and in store in a year that saw UK pet ownership rise.
Dr Martens saw sales patterns start to return to normal in the first quarter of its year as stores have reopened from Covid-19 restrictions. Not only are shoppers returning in-store to buy, but they are also buying more online than they did a year before.
Meanwhile, one-time multichannel retailer Mothercare is now transformed into a brand that trades via franchises. The company this week reported its results after a year of Covid-19 and says that it’s now looking to growth opportunities including new markets – and online marketplaces.
The RetailX Europe Growth 3000 is now available to download, and is packed with RetailX research insights into how up-and-coming retailers across Europe – the 3,000 retailers that follow the RetailX Top1000 Europe – now trade after a year marked by challenges including, most notably, Covid-19.
In today’s guest comment, Joey Moore of Optimizely has advice on staying ahead of the competition in the subscription economy.
