As July begins, summer shopping continues with vacations and parties on the agenda. But has the retail news that broke in Q2 affected our habits? Will it affect the winter holidays, as well? A few trends have piggybacked after announcements earlier in the year, but here’s what’s new in payments, sustainability and shipping.
Paper or Plastic
For those that still like to pay with paper, fear not; Amazon announced their Amazon Go stores would start accepting cash. This was in response to growing backlash, as critics say it’s discriminatory against those who don’t have bank accounts. Amazon’s vice president for physical stores told Business Insider that adding more payment methods allows more customers to shop in the store. This decision feels reminiscent to when they backed out of HQ2 plans as a result of pushback from the community.
The Sustainability Bandwagon
This quarter, more brands and retailers came forward with their efforts to implement sustainable practices. PVH’s “Forward Fashion” corporate responsibility strategy is to increase transparency and sustainable practices. They’ve set a hefty goal to eliminate carbon emissions, reduce landfill waste and eradicate single-use plastics by 2030. In addition, H&M announced in April that it launched product transparency across all garments on its website.
These announcements are great examples of consumers’ growing interest in corporate responsibility. However, the bandwagon-like effect can cause a problem. Unilever’s CEO warns about “woke-washing“, or marketing campaigns that promise to improve the world but fail to take real action.
One-Day Shipping
In what USA Today described as a “drop-the-mic move,” Amazon announced its plan to upgrade Prime members to one-day delivery. Then, Walmart and Target responded with similar announcements. According to Business Insider, Walmart and Target have a “huge advantage” over Amazon because of their thousands of stores. This provides quick and efficient access to most of the U.S. population. Target has even been able to cut costs by 40% through store fulfillment. Recently, Amanda wrote a blog on the implications of “free” shipping, and now we can add one-day shipping to the mix. As retailers look to cut costs, they should also make an effort to reduce waste as they execute one-day shipping.
The breaking news that occurred in April, May and June of this year will no doubt impact our summer and beyond. There’s no going back now that we can buy sandals made out of recycled plastic, or birthday gifts online just days in advance.
Austin
