Retail News news
What retailers are doing: pricing, stores, memberships and shopping trends.
Retail Dive
Lululemon adds former product chief to boardTara Poseley, who led product at the athletics retailer from 2013 to 2015, is joining the board as part of the company’s agreement with founder Chip Wilson. Lululemon is bringing back its former product chief, Tara Poseley, as a board member. The industry veteran, who served as chief product officer at Lululemon from 2013 to 2015, joined the board Monday , according to a company press release. The appointment of Poseley is part of Lululemon’s settlement agreement with founder Chip Wilson earlier this year, after a long and public battle about leadership at the athletics brand.Retail Dive
Etsy updates AI use policies to emphasize craftsmanshipWhile it’s implementing more AI, the online marketplace now requires at least one authentic, non-AI generated image in most seller listings. E-commerce marketplace Etsy is cracking down on AI use in product listings. Etsy now mandates that most listings include at least one unedited photo of the product against a real background, according to a company blog post Thursday outlining its updated policies. Functional guides — such as patterns, recipes and instructions — can no longer be AI-generated and must showcase real results made by using the guide.Retail Dive
Macy’s revamps Santaland, brings back Holiday SquareThe department store is leaning into the festive season at its Herald Square flagship in New York with a variety of activations. Macy’s is pulling out all the stops this year as it celebrates milestone anniversaries and recent revenue growth across its portfolio . Part of the store’s marketing strategy is a new campaign called “There’s Magic Inside.” The publicity campaign features gift recommendations, shopping guides and a series of commercials featuring actors Melissa Joan Hart and Adam Devine.Retail Dive
Bath & Body Works introduces new store conceptThe Feel Good concept is now open in Charlotte, North Carolina, and features easy navigation and enhanced testing experiences. The new Feel Good concept from Bath & Body Works is designed to encourage discovery and help shoppers engage with products in new ways. Consumer feedback shaped the store format. Easy navigation, clear information about product ingredients and benefits and an enhanced testing experience were all included to make Feel Good a “more contemporary expression of the Bath & Body Works brand,” according to the company.Retail Dive
The Weekly Closeout: Torrid CFO exits and Belk secures financingPaula Dempsey will leave the apparel retailer next month. The department store, meanwhile, will use some of its new funds for seasonal inventory. It’s been another week with far more retail news than there is time in the day. Below, we break down some things you may have missed during the week, and what we’re still thinking about. From the world’s largest cowboy hat to rising childcare costs, here’s our closeout for the week. Torrid Chief Financial Officer Paula Dempsey will exit to pursue a new opportunity, the apparel retailer announced Monday.Retail Dive
Beyond Yoga aims to have ‘many’ stores. They’ll probably be yellow.CEO Nancy Green says the brand color is reflective of a broader focus on joy — and making progress over perfection. Beyond Yoga CEO Nancy Green has an easy answer when asked why the brand didn’t go for a permanent location for its recently opened New York store . “Oh we will,” she said of the pop-up location, which debuted in September and will stay open through January. “It's a great way to explore and to learn and sort of test out the area.Retail Dive
David’s Bridal to spin off Pearl into stand-alone, publicly traded companyDavid’s Bridal CEO Kelly Cook is expected to become the chief executive of Pearl, which will own the wedding retailer’s intellectual property and brand. The separation of the retail operations of David’s Bridal from the AI-focused wedding planning and media platform Pearl will accelerate both entities, according to the company. The deal, which values Pearl at $350 million, anticipates $75 million in private investment in public equity funding, which includes a $25 million anchor investment from CION Investment Corporation, David’s Bridal’s largest shareholder. David’s Bridal will be a “material ongoing shareholder in Pearl,” according to the company.Retail Dive
Walmart welcomes external AI agents — with some guardrailsThe mass retailer is focused on transparency and customer control with a new AI agent profile feature and updated agent terms. Walmart’s latest agentic AI efforts solidify its approach to further develop relationships with external AI systems, in addition to building out its own AI agent. The company was one of the first major retailers to integrate purchasing with OpenAI’s ChatGPT and joined forces with Google’s Gemini earlier this year. Additionally, Walmart has continued to tout the success of its Sparky AI assistant since launching in 2025.Retail Dive
EBay cuts 1K jobs, downsizing for the second time this yearThe layoffs, affecting about 9% of the marketplace giant’s global workforce, will impact all regions where it operates. EBay has downsized its global workforce for the second time this year, a spokesperson confirmed Wednesday. The marketplace is slashing its global staff by 9%, with cuts impacting all regions where it operates. That affects more than 1,000 people and comes after cutting 800 roles in February . EBay has offered only a vague rationale for this latest round of downsizing, saying that it will help further its goals.Retail Dive
Tractor Supply taps former Home Depot exec as chief digital, technology officerFahim Siddiqui will oversee digital operations and work to bolster long-term growth by improving the retailer’s customer experience. Siddiqui brings more than 30 years of business and technology experience to his new position as Tractor Supply reworks its digital strategy. Before managing The Home Depot’s enterprise technology, cybersecurity and other digital functions, he held senior roles at companies such as Staples, Vidyo and Intralinks, per the press release. “Technology plays an important role in how we serve our customers and support our Team Members,” Lawton said in a press release.Retail Dive
Why customers are fed up with AI chatbotsFew things will cause a customer to immediately request — or demand — a live agent like a bot that misunderstands them. Few things will cause a customer to immediately request — demand, even — a live agent like a bot that misunderstands them. A CX leader implementing AI for self-service should first understand why that can happen and then take several steps to eliminate that friction. “A bot can understand every word a customer says and still completely miss the point,” Brad Cleveland, CX expert and author, told sister publication CX Dive.Retail Dive
Amazon eyes 300K holiday hiresThe e-commerce giant is increasing U.S. holiday staffing by 20% compared to the past three seasons. Amazon's increase in hiring is a standout in a season where retailers are bringing on fewer workers or staying quiet about their plans. The company hires seasonal employees all year long. But, starting on New Year’s Day, a benefit that has typically been given to regular, full-time employees will soon be available to those seasonal workers: healthcare coverage starting on their first day.Retail Dive
Adidas’ record Q3 is salt in the wound for NikePreliminary figures show revenue reaching $8.1 billion, as the sportswear giant takes “significant” share from its rival. Adidas has thrown down another impressive quarter, showering cold water on the turnaround at rival Nike . CEO Bjørn Gulden praised the company’s marketing efforts and investment in innovation for the strong quarter, touting profitable growth in soccer, running and training. “Our fantastic designers and development teams have created new apparel collections that are globally in high demand and currently fueling our lifestyle business.Retail Dive
Target unwraps high-concept holiday ads focused on gift-giving academyActor D’Arcy Carden serves as Chief Giftologist in a new campaign that will be supported by a bigger creator push around YouTube and TikTok.Retail Dive
Teen spending up 6% as they trade athletic apparel for fashionWhile footwear was down and traditional athletic brands lost share, Target and brands including On gained ground, per a survey from Piper Sandler.Retail Dive
Target touts holiday bargains as consumers stress out about their financesThe offer includes what the mass merchant calls “luxe-for-less gifting.” But with apparel and home in turnaround mode, its strongest category is toys.Retail Dive
Walmart enlists Sam’s Club in latest challenge to Amazon PrimeThe retail giant has bundled its Walmart+ and Sam’s Club Plus memberships for a savings of nearly $100, which could appeal to stressed-out consumers. This deal from Walmart comes at a time when consumers are battered by rising prices and increasingly worried about jobs — and serves as the latest challenge to Amazon. “This is a direct shot at Prime,” Brett Rose, founder and CEO at wholesale distributor United National Consumer Suppliers, said by email. “$120 vs. [Amazon Prime’s] $139, and you get a warehouse club, delivery, streaming, and gas thrown in.Retail Dive
Magic: The Gathering reaches record $600M in quarterly revenueParent company Hasbro raised its 2026 financial outlook as it reported its strongest quarter of the year. The third quarter was Hasbro’s strongest of the year, according to Gina Goetter, Hasbro’s chief financial officer and chief operating officer. Revenue, profit and cash flow came in ahead of the company’s expectations, giving Hasbro the confidence to raise its outlook. On a Q3 earnings call, Cocks rattled off a list of high-performing metrics related to one of its cornerstone properties — Magic: The Gathering. “What outperformed in Q3 for Magic? Everything,” Cocks said on the call.Retail Dive
Can Best Buy be the new gaming boss?The electronics retailer is piloting a gaming hub that brings together content, deals and preorders, and will also open a dedicated gaming hub inside a store in California. The debut of Best Buy’s gamer hub marks the company’s continued expansion beyond retail. A veteran of the company since 1999, Bonfig most recently served as chief customer, product and fulfillment officer. At the time of his appointment, analysts were largely positive about his ability to carry out the company’s expansion, specifically in retail media and marketplace.Retail Dive
UPS’ Happy Returns comes to TikTok ShopPacsun and Everlane are among the retailers tapping into the new integration ahead of the post-holiday returns rush. Given customer returns cover billions of dollars' worth of products annually, sellers and the marketplaces hosting them are pursuing returns options that aid shopper convenience and limit processing costs for merchants . For TikTok Shop, the Happy Returns collaboration will help make returns "faster, hassle free, and more trustworthy," Patrick Nommensen, TikTok Shop’s president of strategic initiatives, said in the announcement. Participating retailers can use Happy Returns whether they fulfill their TikTok Shop orders themselves or use the platform's in-house services.Retail Dive
Anthropologie’s holiday marketing seeks to balance emotion, business impactA new “On My Way” campaign captures moments of connection, like reuniting with friends and family at the airport, and is supported by creator-led social storytelling. Anthropologie debuted its holiday marketing campaign on Monday, spotlighting moments of human connection, according to details shared with sister publication Marketing Dive. The effort is supported by organic social storytelling and will be a testing ground for a partnership struck last month with delivery platform DoorDash . “On My Way” was developed in-house at the retailer, with ads shot on location at destinations including Shelter Island, New York; Mallorca, Spain; and Vienna.
