Walmart, TJX, and other US retailers are deploying body cameras to combat shoplifting, harassment, and violence against staff. While the full scope of retail theft is debatable, every stolen item chips away at revenues. With tariffs and rising costs squeezing margins, retailers are testing every lever to protect the bottom line. Body cams may help—but only if they reduce loss without eroding customer trust. Retailers should exercise care in walking a fine line between safety and scrutiny.

Walmart raised its full-year outlook again as its strong value proposition and fast-growing ad business drive broader consumer spending. It now expects net sales growth of between 4.8% and 5.1% this year, and EPS between $2.58 and $2.63. Q3 comps rose 4.5% YoY, with higher traffic and ticket size, and gains were strongest among higher-income shoppers. US ecommerce sales jumped 28%, supported by faster delivery, rising Walmart+ signups, and 33% growth in US ad sales (excluding Vizio). Walmart is also expanding to emerging channels, including ChatGPT. Its focus on value, convenience, and tech has strengthened its position, helping it compete with Amazon and capture more holiday and online spending.

Future-proofing against—and capitalizing on—advances in consumer-facing AI will be the overarching theme for retailers in 2026.

Global ad spending has steadied after a turbulent year, setting the stage for modest acceleration in 2026. Digital is still the main engine, but traditional media’s rebound will add lift as markets stabilize.

Latin America’s digital ad market is transforming as new formats, channels, and players emerge. Understanding the market forces, challenges, and opportunities driving these shifts is key to staying competitive in this fast-evolving landscape.

Automation, new commerce models, and a fresh generation of consumers are transforming the rules of connection and creativity. Explore the 11 trends shaping the digital future.

Amazon announced a breadth of AI-powered ad options on Day 1 of its annual Unboxed event designed to simplify campaign creation and deployment. Amazon’s new resources give advertisers a uniquely full-funnel solution that’s difficult to find in the crowded digital marketing world.

OpenAI’s push into commerce took a major step forward with the launch of in-app shopping on ChatGPT, though it will take time to gain traction as a meaningful retail sales channel.

This benchmark covers how ad buyers can calibrate their digital ad spending and budget allocations against the market, and how publishers and solution providers can assess whether their ad revenues align with industry trends.

This benchmark covers how ad buyers can calibrate their retail media ad spending and budget allocations against the market, and how publishers and solution providers can assess whether their ad revenues align with industry trends.

This benchmark covers how ad buyers can calibrate their search ad spending and budget allocations against the market, and how publishers and solution providers can assess whether their ad revenues align with industry trends.

This benchmark covers how ad buyers can calibrate their social media ad spending and budget allocations against the market, and how publishers and solution providers can assess whether their ad revenues align with industry trends.

This benchmark covers how ad buyers can calibrate their total media ad spending and budget allocations against the market, and how publishers and solution providers can assess whether their ad revenues align with industry trends.

Target is overhauling its ecommerce fulfillment model by reducing the number of stores that handle online delivery orders to ease strain on operations and improve the in-store experience. After testing the approach in Chicago, it has expanded to 36 markets with more planned next year. The strategy helps cut transportation costs, reduce out-of-stocks, and raise customer satisfaction, while allowing longer next-day delivery windows. However, Target still trails Walmart and Amazon in delivery speed and coverage and faces ongoing challenges as shoppers increasingly focus on essential purchases.

From Ulta Beauty’s new marketplace to Gap’s creator platform, here’s what the eight most interesting retailers from October have been up to, as ranked on our “Behind the Numbers” podcast.

Kroger and Uber are joining forces to expand their audiences and attract more incremental spending. Kroger customers will be able to order restaurant delivery—fulfilled by Uber—from the grocer’s website and app. Starting next year, Uber Eats users will be able to order groceries from Kroger’s 2,600-plus stores. Partnering with third-party delivery platforms offers pure-play grocers such as Kroger an opportunity to level the playing field with mass competitors like Walmart and Amazon. Deals like the one between Kroger and Uber will likely become more common as retailers look to reach high-intent shoppers and delivery platforms race to keep their competitors at bay.

NBCUniversal’s Peacock reduced losses to $217 million in Q3 compared with $436 million in 2024, but struggled to boost revenues and attract new subscribers—raising questions about the platform’s advertising value. Peacock shows potential for the future as it works to build its portfolio and partnerships beyond live sports—but stagnant subscriber growth for two quarters means brands should remain cautious.

Walmart unveiled a series of AI-powered tools for its app to help customers with their holiday shopping. The new features, which include an in-store savings function and AI-generated audio summaries, are meant to make Walmart’s app more useful for in-store shoppers and to simplify discovery and purchasing for customers who prefer to transact online. Retailers should follow Walmart’s lead and use AI to make it easier for customers to surface deals and quickly find what they’re looking for, whether in-store or online.

We expect US holiday sales to rise 3.6% in the final two months of the year, a slowdown from last year’s 4.4% gain, but much stronger than our May outlook, when we anticipated just 1.2% growth. The shift stems from consumers’ surprising resilience despite tariffs, inflation, and a softening labor market. Major retailers like Walmart and Amazon have reported steady demand, with tariffs adding only modest price pressures. However, spending remains uneven across income groups as higher earners benefit from wage and wealth gains. Retailers will need to emphasize affordability and value to attract cautious middle- and lower-income shoppers this season.

Eli Lilly is offering cash-pay pricing for its weight loss drug Zepbound at Walmart. This is the first time Lilly has offered a retail pharmacy pick-up option to customers who order Zepbound through LillyDirect. Walmart will soon be the only retail pharmacy where customers paying cash for Novo’s and Lilly’s GLP-1 weight loss drugs can pick up their prescriptions. This will help the company benefit from increased foot traffic as more of Lilly’s customers enter its stores.