After Missing 2015 E-Commerce Goal, Target Pledges To Spend $2 Billion Each Year On Improving Online Operations

Retailer Target said that, starting in 2017, it plans to spend $2 billion a year on expanding its e-commerce operations. After reporting a 34 percent increase in online sales during the last holiday season, the company said it plans to invest $1.8 billion in 2016 on capital projects, mostly on e-commerce and supply chain improvements. For full-year 2015, Target’s e-commerce grew 31 percent, failing to reach CEO Brian Cornell’s promise to Wall Street to reach 40 percent. Its e-commerce investment announcement means the company intends to never miss the target again.

"Target Lays Out Multi-Billion Dollar E-Commerce Plan", Fortune.com, March 02, 2016

Walmart's E-Commerce Investments Fail To Boost Online Retail Business

Retail giant Walmart’s e-commerce business is seeing slower growth. According to the company, its e-commerce business grew 8 percent in its latest quarter, down from 22 percent in the fourth quarter of 2015, and 30 percent from two years ago. In contrast, rival Target expanded its e-commerce business 34 percent in its latest quarter. Also, Target has been able to post consistent growth in the last few years, with its e-commerce sales growing at least 20 percent on a quarterly basis for the past year. Walmart’s investments in its e-commerce business have so far failed to boost growth. For example, its Shipping Pass service, which offers unlimited three-day shipping for $50 a year, has failed to generate consumer interest. Walmart hopes to improve its e-commerce performance through its Walmart Pay mobile wallet service.

"Walmart is getting killed in the most important category", Business Insider, March 08, 2016

Carrefour's Website Grabs Best Honors Among Supermarkets In Spain

French retailer Carrefour’s website www.carrefour.es was voted the best online store for the supermarkets and hypermarkets category in Spain. Based on input from consumers who voted for their favorite websites on www.webshopdelano.es, criteria for choosing the winners included value for money, promotions and special offers, product selection, and customer service. In 2015, Carrefour Spain’s website recorded 45.9 million page hits, with the online food store accounting for 9.7 million.

"The website carrefour.es voted "Web Shop of the Year" in Spain", Carrefour, March 08, 2016

Amazon Gets Own Air-Freight Arm

Online retailer Amazon is leasing 20 Boeing 767 freighter planes, according to Air Transport Services Group. Part of Amazon’s efforts to gain more control of the delivery process, expand delivery capacities during peak season, and lower its freight costs, the deal comes with lease durations of 5–7 years for the planes. Also, the deal includes Amazon buying a 19.9 percent stake in ATSG.

"Amazon Is Leasing 20 Boeing Planes to Create an Air Cargo Network", Fortune, March 09, 2016

Technology Enables Customers To Create Personalized Beauty Buying Experience, Studies Reveal

Consumers prefer to use technology to create their own personalized experience when shopping for beauty products. Mintel said its latest study revealed 45 percent of beauty consumers saying they want to search for product information in-store using their mobile devices, according to Mintel. Beauty channels can help drugstore chains and mass market operators to attract millennial shoppers; however, they will have to compete with specialty retailers, such as Sephora and Ulta. Data from TABS showed Sephora and Ulta have the highest cosmetics penetration growth in 2015, with 41 percent for Ulta and 25 percent for Sephora.

"What’s Next: The personalized beauty shopping experience", Drug Store News, March 02, 2016

More Digital Buyers In India Buy From Digital Stores Daily, Study Reveals

In India, 12 percent of digital buyers said they shop online or via digital channels on a daily basis in 2015, an increase of 33 percent compared with data from 2013, according to research from the Retailers Association of India and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Data also revealed 39 percent of respondents said they do digital shopping on a weekly basis, compared with 31 percent in 2013. Results of the survey revealed 16 percent of digital shoppers made in-store purchases daily, compared with 15 percent in 2013.

"How Often Do India's Digital Buyers Shop?", eMarketer, March 07, 2016

Artisan Bread Community Thrives In “On-The-Go” World

Food writer Ashlie Stevens reports a steady rise in the amount of information available about artisan bread making on the Internet. That includes Instagram posts (43,000), searchable Twitter hashtags (#justbaked, #breakingbread, and #loafingaround), and scads of YouTube videos and blogs. It’s a remarkable phenomenon that is “increasingly anomalous in a world of fast food and microwave meals.” Making artisan bread is a process that requires huge amounts of time, because it is manual labor and “non-tech assisted.” It also uses quality ingredients. It is a social phenomenon – an online artisan bread community – that in the digital age helps bread makers of all types enhance their skills and even grow businesses.

"The unexpected rise of artisan bread in the on-demand era", The Daily Dot, February 24, 2016

India's Fast-Growing E-Commerce Has Major Impact On Local, International Markets

India’s $16 billion e-commerce market is the fastest growing in the world. Although smaller than other markets, India has attracted large e-commerce companies, including U.S.-based Amazon and China’s Alibaba, which compete with domestic  firms. Also, India’s e-commerce market is likely to cause three significant changes in socio-economic conditions: it can speed up financial development; e-commerce companies can help overcome the country’s infrastructure limitations and its vast geography; and it can have a big impact on the country’s retail segment.

"India online: E-commerce in emerging markets", The Economist, March 05, 2016

Alibaba-Tencent Rivalry Now Reaches China's Energy Industry

China’s largest Internet companies, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Tencent Holdings Ltd., expanded their rivalry to include the country’s oil and gas industries. Alibaba agreed to provide China National Petroleum Corp., the local oil and gas production giant, with Internet-based services. Alibaba’s deal came after Tencent signed in August 2014 a collaboration deal with China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., which operates more than 30,000 fuel stations across the country, in areas including mobile payments and media marketing.

"Alibaba and Tencent Extend Their Web Battle to the Gas Station", Bloomberg Business, March 10, 2016

Online Grocery Business Does Not Have Long-Term Viability, Market Analysts Say

Online grocery as a business does not seem to have long-term viability, according to HSBC retail analyst David McCarthy. According to a note by McCarthy, big investments by grocery chains, such as Kroger, Whole Foods, and Walmart, in online grocery and home deliveries are a waste of their money. McCarthy said the fact that the online grocery market keeps growing at only half the growth rate of discount retailers, such as Aldi and Lidl, supports his assertion. Other market analysts are also questioning the viability of online grocery, as highlighted by a BMO Capital Markets report showing the vast majority of consumers do not like to shop for groceries online.

"Kroger and Whole Foods might be investing billions into a losing game", Business Insider, March 12, 2016