Amazon’s suspension of non-essential products through at least April 5 will leave the door open for other retailers that have the flexibility to focus on the categories that shoppers will not be able to find on Amazon. … READ MORE >
Consumer products
Coronavirus impact on the consumer products ecosystem
In a very short period of time, the COVID-19 outbreak has had a significant impact on economies throughout the world and across all industries and sectors. The earliest stages of the U.S. consumer supply chain are heavily dependent upon China.
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For apparel industry, optimism over China trade deal gives way to concerns over virus outbreak
When middle market fashion and apparel leaders weighed moving production from China after the onset of tariffs in the second half of 2019, a global virus outbreak probably wasn’t part of the equation. … READ MORE >
Betting that size matters: Macy’s closures on trend in retail
Retail closures are not always related to underperforming stores or the downsizing of operations. In many cases, a retailer closes a location because the real estate no longer suits the intended use of physical space now and in the future. … READ MORE >
In the digital age, knowing the customer becomes all the more important
Knowing the customer has become especially important in the digital age, when a company like Amazon has leveraged its extensive use of customer data to help it become one of the nation’s largest retailers. … READ MORE >
U.S. retail sales grew at a healthy 0.3% in October
With the critical holiday shopping season fast approaching, American consumers continued to open their wallets in October, though at a decelerating pace. The October increase of 0.3% in top-line domestic retail sales and the control estimate that feeds into the calculation of domestic gross domestic product reaffirm that the consumer remains on a solid footing. … READ MORE >
How middle market retailers can compete with free delivery
In a recent survey from the National Retail Federation, free shipping and shipping promotions ranked fourth on the list of factors that consumers said would affect their choice of retailer. … READ MORE >
No holiday break for fashion and apparel
Fresh 15% tariffs on $300 billion of Chinese goods are set to take effect next week. Despite an effort to mitigate the blow amid the impending holiday season by delaying some items on the list, the apparel industry didn’t catch a break. RSM’s Chris Shaker and Carol Lapidus break down the expected impact. … READ MORE >
US data deluge: cold cup of coffee on a sunny summer day
This morning’s data deluge provided a perfect snapshot of the U.S. economy at the current time. A robust consumer, driven by strong real compensation in the first quarter of the year, continued to prop up the American economy, even as the domestic manufacturing sector contracted by 0.5% on a year-ago basis. … READ MORE >
Think China is paying for tariffs? Guess again
So far in 2019, the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol is on pace to collect more than $72 billion in import duties as a result of U.S. tariffs. An oft-repeated claim is that China is paying the cost of the tariffs. But we have data showing exactly who is paying for the tariffs: U.S. businesses and households. … READ MORE >