Despite the word “recession” hanging in the air, US retailers had an okay Q4 in 2022. But some recurring themes persisted: Shoppers pulled back on discretionary spending, opted against home renovations, and generally avoided high prices. Here’s a look at how those trends affected earnings.

Tighter economic climate forces companies to focus on profitability: The paradigm shift away from long-term bets has driven changes everywhere from Amazon to Wayfair to Sweetgreen.

People aren’t moving as much as they used to: That poses a challenge to home improvement retailers like Lowe’s and Home Depot, as well as retailers that sell home-related items.

DoorDash’s latest ad moves are designed with CPGs in mind: The delivery platform launched several new tools to make it easier for brands to build, manage, and measure campaigns.

Lowe’s teams up with Yahoo to enhance retail media network: The partnership lets advertisers run off-site omnichannel campaigns and improves measurement and attribution.

Last week, lumber prices fell as much as 4%, moving closer to pre-pandemic numbers, per Business Insider. This could be a sign of easing inflation, but it could also bring about a housing market slowdown. While we wait to see how the market shakes out, let’s take a look at where home improvement sits after a solid second quarter.

A changing grocery delivery landscape forces Instacart to diversify: The delivery company launches a suite of retailer-focused tech solutions as rivals encroach on its turf.

Retailers invest in last-mile fulfillment as shoppers clamor for convenience: Growing ecommerce business has led companies to revamp their brick-and-mortar footprints and adopt autonomous delivery methods.

The tight housing market is good news for retailers: The Home Depot and Lowe’s can benefit from consumers fixing up and renovating their homes—if they can navigate supply chain issues.

Brands eagerly jump on the retail media network bandwagon: As access to customer data becomes a priority for brands, retailers see an opportunity to diversify their revenue streams.

Walmart’s GoLocal delivery service will need smaller customers to be sustainable: The Home Depot is a good start, but it’s big enough that it’s likely to take delivery in-house in the near future.

US click-and-collect sales more than doubled in 2020 and will sustain double-digit growth rates over the next four years, according to our latest forecast. We estimate that US shoppers spent $72.46 billion via click and collect last year, accounting for 9.1% of all ecommerce sales. This year, those figures will increase to $83.47 billion and 9.9%, respectively.

US click-and-collect sales more than doubled in 2020, driven by the coronavirus pandemic, and will sustain double-digit growth rates over the next four years. Over 150 million people will make a purchase via click and collect at least once in 2021.

Marketing as a practice can span big-picture customer experience efforts, as well as email list minutiae, but certain topics get more thought than others. What is currently top of mind among retail marketing executives? Privacy and security, according to a June 2018 Nanigans survey of US CMOs.

Both companies announced shrinking brand portfolios this week, but the factors that necessitated these closures weren't exactly the same. Sears Holdings has been struggling for some time, while Lowe's continues to lag behind The Home Depot.

Amazon Prime Day has become bigger and bolder since its 2015 inception. The shopping event has also taken on a life of its own, prompting other retailers to offer competing sales even if they never make mention of Prime Day specifically. According to RetailMeNot, the number of retailers offering Prime Day deals on its platform rose from 27 in 2016 to 119 in 2017, and 54% planned to hold sales during this year's event.