Cassey Ho, founder of the Blogilates fitness brand and Popflex activewear line, knows that going viral can lead to counterfeit listings. She had a feeling an uptick in copycat products would occur when Taylor Swift, a beloved inspiration for Ho, wore Popflex’s popular pirouette skort in a short-form video promoting her new song “Fortnight.” On Popflex.com, the skort sold out in under 15 minutes. Then hundreds of listings began popping up on marketplaces. But what Ho — who has 17 million followers across social platforms including TikTok, Instagram and X — didn’t expect was a new level of ..read more

Outdoors brand Merrell is focusing its marketing on three core footwear categories — hiking, trail running and lifestyle — to bring in customers and boost sales. Merrell, a decades-old brand known for its hiking boots, saw demand skyrocket at the beginning of the pandemic as people spent more time outdoors. To try and maintain this momentum, over the last few years, Merrell expanded its colorways, introduced more women’s styles and launched a web-based game. However, while Merrell managed to build revenue for multiple quarters, sales at the brand and its parent company have come down as custom ..read more

In this edition of the weekly briefing, we examine Instacart’s recent announcement of its expanding delivery partnerships with Kohl’s and Uber Eats as seen in data from Modern Retail+ Research. Interested in sharing your perspectives on the future of retail, technology and marketing? This is a member-exclusive article from Modern Retail. and subscribe to continue reading content like this ..read more

Amazon is the largest supplement retailer ahead of Walmart and Target. Now, it’s cracking down on products that aren’t independently vetted, a move insiders say could be a game-changer for the industry. As of last month, Amazon now requires dietary supplements sold in its U.S. store to be verified by a third-party testing, inspection and certification organization. Amazon has approved three laboratories that brands can work with: Eurofins, UL and NSF International. Brands can still use an accredited in-house lab to vet their products, but sellers will need to submit the findings to Eurofins, U ..read more

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts • Stitcher • Google Play • Spotify “Everyone said that millennials were never going to buy watches,” said Margot Grinberg, president of the Movado Brand and svp of e-commerce at its parent company Movado Group. The going theory was: “They don’t need them to tell time, they had a phone; watches were dead after the cell phone came out.” But that didn’t happen. In fact, timepieces have never been more popular. According to a recent survey from the Boston Consulting Group, between 2021 and 2023, 54% of Gen Z and younger millennials increased their spending on luxury watc ..read more

Like many emerging foreign brands, Australian luggage brand July expanded its business to the U.S. in 2021 aiming to take a slice of one of the largest consumer markets.  In just three years, the company managed to grow its U.S. sales by over 400%. In its first year, the U.S. accounted for 10% to 20% of its revenue, but that figure has now grown to 30% to 35%. July credited its targeted approach to paid advertising as the main driver of growth.  The U.S. has been a target market for many overseas brands due to its size and the spending power of American shoppers. But it can be tricky ..read more

As interest in gut and digestive health grows, Walmart is bringing in a number of buzzy startup brands to refresh this side of the supplements aisle. The latest of these is Hilma, which launched in January 2020 and specializes in natural digestive supplements like its bestselling gas and bloat relief. In November of 2022, Hilma was acquired by French pharmaceutical company the Biocodex Group and, since then, getting into Walmart has been a top priority. After focusing for the last few years on building brand awareness and adding new retail partners, Hilma is now looking to target shoppers at t ..read more

Resale marketplaces like The RealReal and StockX must verify and authenticate shoes, apparel and other soft goods on a daily basis. But for platforms that sell open-box or secondhand hard goods — many of which have safety risks or expiration dates — vetting products becomes a more high-stakes game. On eBay, only certain sellers with top-rated accounts and $1,000 or more in sales in the last year can sell higher-risk products like car seats, cribs and bicycle helmets, provided none are in used condition or the subject of recalls. Kaiyo, a platform for gently used furniture like bookshelves and ..read more

When Neiman Marcus Group decided to start marketing its repair and alterations services in 2021, it set a goal of getting more than 1,000,000 items repaired, altered or resold by the year 2025. But the efforts were so popular it surpassed that deadline two years ahead of schedule. Neiman Marcus Group, the parent of Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman, runs an alterations and repairs service that employs more than 350 tailors across its fleet of Neiman’s stores. In addition to altering new items, tailors can alter or repair items whether they’re from Neiman’s or not. Neiman Marcus is among a cro ..read more

Promo codes, while a necessary business practice, have proven to be a thorn in the side of direct-to-consumer brands’ margins. Many brands have historically offered special promo codes to bring in first-time customers. The thinking goes that once that customer gives their email or phone number in exchange for a discount, they become part of the brand’s marketing funnel.  This is a member-exclusive article from Modern Retail. and subscribe to continue reading content like this ..read more