Shoppers spent a record $12.4 billion this Cyber Monday: The lure of heavy discounts convinced cost-conscious consumers to open their wallets.

Mobile apps are vital for commerce. In fact, among US smartphone users, 65.8% will use retail apps in 2024, putting the category behind only maps/navigation apps (72.8%) and weather apps (71.1%) in terms of adoption, according to our July 2023 forecasts.

While consumer outlook is more positive than when inflation reached a 40-year high last year, the impact that shoppers face—higher retail prices, interest rate hikes, and depleted savings—may push cautious spending patterns into 2024. The key to having customers coming back in the new year is investing in unique value propositions, according to our analysts.

Walmart’s grocery, ecommerce business powered it through another solid quarter: The retailer’s emphasis on value and convenience are helping it win market share, even as shoppers exhibit more signs of price sensitivity.

Gen Z is redefining family, community, and what’s expected from the shopping journey. Brands will need to meet these driven, digital natives where they are with dynamic media experiences to capture and retain loyalty.

This year was challenging for retailers as inflation kept prices high and consumers cut back on spending. But there were a few bright spots, as some in-store shopping rebounded and retail media boomed. Here’s some advice for retailers on how to use in-store experiences and retail media to their advantage.

With the ascent of Chinese ecommerce disruptors and the ongoing rivalry between Amazon and Walmart, the upcoming holiday season is expected to bring some big shifts. Some of those shifts include the lessening of Cyber Five’s importance and retailers losing focus on profitability, said our analysts Jeremy Goldman and Zak Stambor on a recent episode of the “Behind the Numbers” podcast.

Ecommerce sales will return to double-digit growth this holiday season amid a backdrop of healthy consumer spending.

Over one-third (38%) of US adults have decreased their impulse spending this year, up from 14% in 2022, per a study commissioned by Slickdeals and conducted by OnePoll. As we enter the holiday season, there are still a few ways retailers can encourage impulse purchases, from experimenting with shoppable media and putting seasonal products front and center to anticipating the last-minute needs of customers picking up orders in-store.

The new year is just around the corner, and it’s a great time for retailers to take stock of what worked and what didn’t in 2023 and stay informed on what consumers will expect in 2024.

Prime Big Deal Days exceeded Amazon’s expectations: While shoppers focused on cheaper essentials, the retailer showcased its supply chain capabilities.

Amazon Fresh, despite failing to gain traction with its brick-and-mortar endeavors, is trying to assert itself in the grocery space. Its customer base, though much smaller than competitors like Walmart and Target, is attractive to consumer packaged goods (CPG) advertisers because those shoppers are open to trying new products.

Digitally native D2C brands embrace traditional retail strategies: More are inking partnerships with retailers like Amazon and Walmart to expand their reaches and offset soaring acquisition costs.

With the start of Q4, the holiday season is officially here. That means holiday returns will be piling up soon.

Toys R Us looks to fill a hole in the retail landscape: It plans to rapidly expand its physical presence by opening up to two dozen flagship stores.

What are 2023’s top retail media networks for CPG brands? From Amazon to Kroger, we share a selection from our in-depth report evaluating ad buyers’ perceptions of leading platforms.

Walmart has the largest audience of any digital grocery platform. But our survey found that Amazon Fresh customers were more active and willing to try new products.

Temu overtook Target in US unique website visitors in January, but Walmart and Amazon remain on top (by a wide margin, in Amazon’s case), per Comscore Inc.