Last February e-commerce company Shopify Inc. replaced the “Ottawa, Canada” dateline that began its press releases and earnings reports with a strange new one: “Internet, Everywhere.” The geographical shift came at the insistence of Shopify’s founder and chief executive officer, Tobi Lütke, who tends to view such matters through the prism of cold, hard logic. In May 2020, only a few months into the pandemic, he’d made the early, seemingly rash decision to...
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Bridge is helping indie stores compete against the big-box stores and big-money players.
Bridge will help more than 700 indie stores service 7,000 registries this year. Collectively, we’re moving millions of dollars in sales from big players to small stores and their communities.
Proof of this is when we see a bride registered at five stores and 40% of them are Bridge Store clients. The bride lists these registry choices:
Operating a website is expensive--not only because programmers are expensive, but because margins are smaller.
For 10 years, Bridge has encouraged stores to beef up spending in preparation for the e-commerce boom. It's easier to spend a little each year over many years than spend money in a panic. Money spent in haste often results in waste. As a reference, when traditional retailers tried to catch Amazon, they often failed in their scramble. Please recall Macy's buying the ...
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Arnold Schwarzenegger, Future Bridge Spokesperson?
Today's Wall St. Journal shares that Target stores saw a 20% increase in revenue--more than the chain had seen in the last 11 years combined. How did it do it? Target converted many of its physical stores into 'mini-warehouses,' where they can ship goods or have customers do curbside pick up.
What does this mean for indie stores? Stores will have to become more efficient in receiving online orders, which make up 40% of retail these ...
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Reports suggest that 50% of purchases start on Amazon.com, and Amazon wants to keep it this way. Yet, businesses and merchants increasingly want to sell their products via their own DTC (direct to consumer) site, retailers' websites, Facebook, Instagram, and more. Due to this, Shopify, which powers many DTC and retailer websites, is a growing thorn in Amazon's dominance of retail. Shopify reportedly helps power more than 30% of online U.S. retail sales.
RetailDive shares that shoppers want a store with both a great website and a convenient location--something that retail leader Amazon may not offer.
Article highlights:
40% of stores now offer BOPIS.
Even with stores now being open (after the mandatory Covid-19 closures), e-commerce growth is still up 40% over 2019.
80% of consumers told FTI Consulting that they're going to shop more online this year compared to last, ...But many of those customers will be going to their
This week, Amazon launched its online pharmacy targeting the 3.8 billion prescriptions filled in the U.S. each year. Shares of major pharmacy chains dropped about 10% on the news. Amazon honed this weapon in its Seattle lab and is eagerly unleashing it on retail chains and mom-and-pop pharmacies.
Something struck me while reading this news: Does Amazon remind you of Covid-19? The similarities:
Amazons kills many businesses in industries it touches. Pharmacies are now worried
The health of our communities and even ourselves may depend on whether indie stores like Powell's succeeds.
Powell's Books, one of the nation's largest and best-known book retailers, has stopped selling on Amazon after 20+ years, shares RetailDive. The store cited how bad Amazon is long-term for itself and communities. The store realized it was sharpening its executioner’s sword, as Scott Galloway has said ruefully.
I found this quote from the owner insightful:...
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Walmart is building an advertising platform and seeks to acquire entities like TikTok that have lots of eyeballs. It can advertise its own products as well as those from its third-party sellers.
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March 2, 2020
March 2, 2020
Walmart follows Shopify and other players in to third-party fulfillment, shares RetailDive.
Notably, Walmart’s e-commerce is losing money. It’s not profitable.
I have some indie stores tell me that they’re only making small...
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January 13, 2020
January 13, 2020
Wells Fargo wants to become a technology company, shares today's WSJ, which mirrors the trend of many businesses in many industries. They are strengthening their technology--or risking being left behind. A similar trend is occurring in retail. But some retailers don't get it. Walmart infamously invested in Bonobos pants instead of a tech company, only to sell Bonobos recently at a loss.
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December 22, 2019
December 22, 2019
In the ‘age of Amazon,’ is your store a liability or asset? Walmart is banking on stores being the physical nexus points of the web.
Did your e-commerce business lose money last year, and you fret over this? Most indie store owners do, but losing money on e-commence is the name of the game as catching up to Amazon’s 25-year head start will take years and lots of losses. Proof: Walmart’s e-commerce operations lost $2b last year, shares the WSJ. Most indie stores will not be able to pursue this ...
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Are websites a waste? I'll thank they are and I'll explain. But first, it's important to note that websites are different from platforms. A website is something for which your business is solely responsible. A platform is a digital service to which you subscribe that you are not solely responsible. You may add content and pictures, etc. but you do not manage the technical aspects. You likely use platforms including Facebook, Instagram, Amazon, and Airbnb.
Retailers can be separated in to two groups: those whose are making smart choices like Walmart and Best Buy, and those who are not like Macy’s and Nordstrom. Macy’s stock is down 44% this year.
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Does Bridge help store owners live longer? For example, do we help Brooks Terry live longer? Store owner Susan Hoechner? The answer is yes, and I'll explain.
Bridge helps Susan and Brooks save months of time via the Smart Products service. This can be viewed as time saved--or more importantly: as an extension of their lives. As a reference, Scott Galloway, an NYU professor and media savant, recently made this insight regarding life-extending services:
"Walmart Delivery Unlimited: At $98/year,...
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October 25, 2019
October 25, 2019
From which store would you shop, the one offering free 2-day shipping or the one charging $105 for standard delivery?
The first one, of course. Which leads us to the rules your store needs to follow:
Rule #1: Do NOT seek to break even on shipping Rule #2: Seek to LOSE money on shipping!
Most retailers share with me their fear about losing money on shipping. What ends up happening? They end up losing: the entire sale. What about that $1,000 Herend order? The store is less likely to get it because it'...
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October 22, 2019
October 22, 2019
What's on your store's holiday list? How about charging featured brands $500,000?
Bloomberg shares how Amazon and Walmart use a 'pay to play' scheme to charge brands:
What sets Amazon apart from other retailers is how much it charges for space on its toy page over the holidays. A narrow strip across the top of the web page costs $500,000 per month in November and December, up ...
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