Amazon and Walmart dominate the landscape, but the other half of US ecommerce sales is still up for grabs.

Consumers’ value focus is an expansion opportunity for Costco, BJ’s: The two plan to open dozens of stores to capitalize on demand for warehouse retailers.

Costco’s sales spiked in February: The company’s ability to offer value—and possibly its commitment to DEI—boosted sales during a difficult month for retailers.

Warehouse club membership has its privileges: Strong sales show that consumers see these stores as a smart way to save as costs rise.

Consumers are voting with their wallets: 1 in 4 has stopped shopping at their favorite stores because of politics.

"Sam's Club's in-store experience is really smooth, easy, and elegant thanks to technology," our analyst Zak Stambor said on a recent "Behind the Numbers: Reimagining Retail" podcast.

Many large banks are watering down or removing online references to DEI in a polarized environment.

In January, the most interesting retailers capitalized on New Year’s trends like resolutions, lower-alcohol consumption, and an influx of holiday returns. Poshmark and Sephora introduced new partnerships, while Amazon and Temu increased their own retail media-related offerings. Here are the eight most significant retail developments of January 2024, ranked by their potential market impact.

On today's podcast episode, we discuss the unofficial list of the most interesting retailers for the month of January. Each month, our analysts Arielle Feger, Becky Schilling, and Sara Lebow (aka The Committee) put together a very unofficial list of the top eight retailers they're watching based on which are making the most interesting moves: Who's launching new initiatives? Which partnerships are moving the needle? Which standout marketing campaigns are being created? In this month's episode, Committee members Analyst Arielle Feger and Senior Analyst Sara Lebow will defend their list against Senior Analyst Zak Stambor and Analyst Rachel Wolff, who will dispute the power rankings by attempting to move retailers up, down, on, or off the list.

Sam’s Club's efforts to streamline its shopping experience pay off: It soared past Costco to place first in this year's customer satisfaction rankings for general merchandise retailers.

Retailers get burned on DEI: Companies risk backlash whether they stand firm or capitulate to anti-DEI pressure.

US paid retail membership fee revenues will be higher than ever before in 2025, reaching $46.39 billion, according to our May 2024 forecast. That’s an increase of 10.8% YoY, with over half (51.8%) of these revenues going to Amazon.

The National Retail Federation (NRF)’s Big Show is happening in New York City this weekend, and will offer an opportunity for retail media networks (RMNs) to pitch themselves to advertisers. Even though retail media is huge—exceeding $62 billion in US ad spend this year per our forecast, most of those ad dollars will go to the biggest RMNs. The remaining players are vying over the same $8.58 billion that isn't scooped up by Amazon, Walmart, or Target.

Costco defends DEI policies amid right-wing backlash: The retailer noted the importance of diversity to its business while questioning activist investors’ motivations.

Private labels gather steam: Consumers are buying more private label products than they were a year ago—seeing them as being on par with name brands.

The FTC’s case against Southern Glazer’s could have profound implications for large retailers like Walmart and Costco: A successful suit could limit their ability to negotiate lower prices with suppliers, narrowing their advantage over smaller retailers.

High-income consumers, those earning $150,000+ annually, are charting a unique "discovery-to-purchase" journey that begins in physical stores but frequently concludes in digital channels, according to new EMARKETER research. "These consumers demonstrate more technological comfort than their peers," our analyst Paola Flores-Marquez said on the “Behind the Numbers: Reimagining Retail” podcast. "They're willing to explore multiple channels before making purchase decisions."

Walmart rolls out series of initiatives to attract customers to its stores and boost ecommerce business: The retailer is opening a cashierless Sam’s Club store, adding pet care centers, and automating more distribution centers.

In seven charts, this report tells the story of some of the most critical trends that digital leaders need to know about in 2024 and beyond.

US retail and ecommerce sales will maintain stable growth over the next five years, with pockets of opportunity emerging from new digital consumers and mobile-first online shopping trends.