Rival marketplaces are stepping up efforts to chip away at Amazon’s dominance by offering sellers lower fees, operational support, and omnichannel opportunities. AliExpress is cutting shipping costs in Europe and Latin America, Temu is aggressively promoting in the US, Shein is leveraging its manufacturing network through Xcelerator, and Walmart is blending in-store displays with AI-driven marketplace tools. Meanwhile, Amazon remains the giant, expanding logistics and seller services like Multi-Channel Fulfillment and Buy with Prime. While Amazon’s marketplace share still leads, projections show a gradual slip, signaling more power and leverage shifting toward sellers.
Molson Coors has named 24-year veteran Rahul Goyal as its next CEO, tapping a leader with deep experience across IT, finance, and strategy, as well as a track record of diversifying beyond beer through partnerships with Coca-Cola and acquisitions in the non-alcohol space. Goyal takes the helm at a turbulent time, with alcohol consumption in the U.S. at historic lows and health concerns driving more consumers away from drinking. Political and economic pressures further complicate the outlook, leaving Molson Coors with seasoned leadership but an uncertain path forward in a challenging market.
Connected TV (CTV) attention metrics (AUs) declined between 2024 and 2025, but remain strong overall, according to our industry KPI data provided by Adelaide. Even with slight declines in effectiveness, Adelaide’s findings prove that CTV is relatively unmatched in capturing audience interest, cementing its position as a key touchpoint for brands looking to connect with broad audiences.
Saks Global is in talks to sell a 49% stake in luxury department store Bergdorf Goodman for about $1 billion, per The Wall Street Journal. Selling nearly half of Bergdorf Goodman to an outside investor could ease Saks Global’s liquidity pressures, but it doesn’t address the bigger challenge: The retailer lacks a compelling strategy for growth. The company has not articulated how it will differentiate its department store banners so that they do not compete directly, which is the case in about a dozen markets.
Shoppers are using AI tools at a high rate but are split on brands’ use of AI-generated content and whether companies are delivering on customer experience promises. Half (52%) of consumers are excited by the idea of having an AI agent shop on their behalf, per VML. Nearly two-thirds (63%) say AI-powered personalization helps them discover new products, but 45% think brands are still failing to tailor recommendations effectively. Brands can keep shoppers engaged by demonstrating AI’s value in tangible ways—like smarter recommendations and smoother checkout—rather than relying on broad claims of AI integration.
While dynamic pricing has been around for decades, Delta Airlines has recently come under fire for announcing that it would increase its use of generative AI for flight pricing from 3% to 20% of domestic flights by year-end.
Early Warning Services, the company behind Zelle and Paze, submitted a five-point plan to US financial regulators to combat fraud. While a multi-sector approach could be a good idea in theory, it may also deflect from each financial player’s responsibility to secure every transaction. If FIs want customers to trust that their money is safe with them, they can’t blame their partners for fraudulent transactions that customers use their mobile banking apps to make. But clearly, the traditional siloed approach to combating fraud isn’t working against sophisticated criminal rings that operate across multiple platforms.
Despite economic uncertainty, 77% of consumers plan to spend the same or more this holiday season, but their shopping timelines and behaviors are shifting. Klaviyo’s 2025 BFCM Forecast shows why brands must rethink peak-season campaigns with omnichannel and AI-driven personalization.
10.7% of consumers with student loans were 90+ days delinquent in the last six months in April 2025, per a FICO report. Issuers should take note that 54% Gen Zers are already using credit products to navigate stress from student loan repayment, per FICO. If economic conditions worsen, credit card delinquencies could also begin to rise in tandem with student loan delinquencies.
Affirm partnered with ServiceTitan, bringing buy now, pay later (BNPL) financing to the trades, per a press release. Affirm is building out a strategy to capture mid-large tickets, where the need for flexible financing is most acute. Future partnerships with other essential goods or services providers—or even things like dental work—would also connect well with Affirm’s user bases.
Shein is giving fashion brands access to its apparel manufacturing network—in exchange for setting up shop on its marketplace, Bloomberg reported. Shein’s decision to monetize its manufacturing and fulfillment services is necessary as it looks for more sustainable models of growth. Its insistence on linking Xcelerator to selling on its marketplace could also be beneficial in the long run. More third-party sellers means more inventory as well as the potential for ad revenues, should Shein follow that path.
YouTube wants to be the home for both product discovery and ecommerce as it rolls out new shopping features across long-form videos and Shorts, per The Verge. Incoming additions include dynamic brand segments for swapping out sponsors, AI tagging of eligible products, and brand links in Shorts. YouTube is announcing new features—like shoppable masthead ads and text-to-video tools—at a breakneck pace, looking to capitalize on its growth across platforms. Brands should partner with both top creators and smaller influencers to boost discovery and purchases.
With return volumes projected to climb 5.9% this year—pushing up costs—retailers are piling on restrictions to stem the flow. But those roadblocks carry risk since shoppers consider easy returns as table stakes and most will walk away if the process feels like a hassle.
MrBeast’s Feastables brand is under fire after the Children’s Advertising Review Unit (CARU) flagged multiple practices that may have misled children or mishandled their data. Concerns included undisclosed promotions in videos, a misleading “blind taste test” against European chocolates, sweepstakes that encouraged bulk purchases, and collection of under-13 data via pop-ups. The case signals a broader shift: influencer-led brands are now being held to the same advertising and disclosure standards as traditional advertisers, with potential regulatory and reputational risks for creators and partners alike.
MoneyGram launched a mobile app that uses stablecoins to make cross-border payments easier and cheaper. Investment in crypto services can help MoneyGram secure loyal patrons as its rivals also offer stablecoin-backed cross border payments.
Industry KPI data from Placer.ai reveals a clear divide in retail foot traffic trends. Essentials-focused merchants and dollar stores are maintaining growth while discretionary-heavy sectors like department stores and housing-related chains fall behind. Understanding foot traffic trends is critical for brands and retailers to understand where growth—and risk—will lie in the coming months. Necessities will keep grocers and discounters in demand, while discretionary-focused chains must offer value, cut prices, and explore adjacent business lines—such as off-price formats or supply services—to keep sales coming.
American Express refreshed its consumer and business Platinum Cards, complete with $895 annual fees and an enhanced slate of travel, dining, entertainment, and shopping credits. Amex’s annual fee is creeping closer to $1,000, and the issuer is arguing its fleet of perks—on paper worth over $3,500—more than pays for the price hike. However, cardholders will need to enroll to access many of Amex’s latest offerings, a snag that’s likely to reduce members actual use rate of their perks—eroding Platinum’s value and potentially pushing away the premium consumers Amex is trying to court.
Google and PayPal ink multiyear partnership for commerce solution with a focus on agentic AI, per a press release. Google and PayPal’s surprising partnership reflects the ongoing scramble to secure the best positioning in the Wild West of AI development. All players want to have an early mover advantage; that can incentivize unlikely partnerships to avoid falling behind rapidly evolving technology.
Halloween spending will hit a record $13.1 billion this year, per the National Retail Federation (NRF). That’s up nearly 12% YoY, and well above the previous record of $12.2 billion in 2023. The healthy increase in Halloween spending reflects consumers’ growing excitement around the holiday, and retailers’ concerted efforts to cater to it. At a difficult time for retail spending, companies should take note of shoppers’ willingness to spend big on items that get them into the holiday spirit, and carry that enthusiasm forward in their assortments and messaging for the rest of the year.
Early Warning Services’ Zelle disclosed double-digit year-over-year (YoY) growth across critical segments during the first half of 2025, per a press release. With P2P’s absence in Zelle’s volume increase list, the platform holds firm hold on essential payments, but seemingly has failed to disrupt established use patterns among users who still differentiate between smaller transactions—Venmoing a friend back for coffee—and large, major payments, such as Zelle-ing a landlord monthly rent.