Home goods company Williams Sonoma will start accepting Venmo, the app that users link to their bank account or credit card in order to send money to their friends and family, as a form of payment for items on bridal registries. Williams Sonoma hopes the new program will help the company appeal to a younger customer base that is accustomed to...
Nike Makers’ Experience, an advanced digital tool debuting in the brand's New York City flagship store, begins with a series of graphic options, generated from either Nike heritage or on-the-spot phrases, which can then be customized into patterns through shifts to size and color. Customers can make one-of-a-kind versions of the Nike Presto X...
Ikea announced the launch of "the world’s first" AR shopping app, called Ikea Place. ”We are reinventing furniture shopping. Physical and digital worlds are now meeting in a new and natural way. [Ikea Place] will elevate the [shopping] experience and inspire our many customers, and make it easier for them to find exactly the right product,”...
West Elm, a brand under the Williams-Sonoma umbrella, is launching its first hotel soon and the chain is reimagining ways to turn loyal shoppers into hotel guests—and vice versa. More than just providing temporary rooms for guests, West Elm hotel rooms will also double as showrooms for the company. A press release for the hotel states that...
A new hijab-wearing doll that recites passages from the Quran is hitting shelves in the Arab states. Designed by Samira Amarir, the Barbie-like doll is named Jenna. It's intended to teach young girls about Islamic values and provide a doll that resembles them. Ms Amarir said she was looking for a toy to help her daughter learn the Quran when...
America's CVS Pharmacy is introducing automated retail vending machines stocked with convenient, on-the-go necessities including over-the-counter health products and popular personal care products typically sold at CVS Pharmacy locations nationwide. The new vending machines are designed to help maximize convenience and meet customers where they...
Meal kit services for humans are becoming more prevalent as retailers partner with culinary brands to provide consumers more options and specialized services, such as meal kits for kid’s food. Now, new services are aimed at young dog owners, who are known to pamper their pets. One example is The Farmer’s Dog, a subscription-based startup that...
While there's many options out there for seniors who are looking to save on their phone bills, many companies market them in a rather demeaning fashion, as they assume that the demographic doesn't use data or even understand smartphones -- misconceptions that US-based T-Mobile's Unlimited 55+ plan aims to dispute. With an informative ad that...
The success of rideshare taxi companies is changing the retail landscape. In the USA, Uber and Westfield shopping centers have teamed up to offer designated waiting areas for ride-share users at all 33 of Westfield’s locations in the United States. The drop-off and pick-up locations will appear on Uber’s app, allowing users of the service to...
We’re seeing growing numbers of projects that aim towards a zero waste future, whether that’s turning used coffee grounds into reusable cups (to be filled once again with coffee) or a lamp that’s built from its own packaging, and now a grocery store in the UK is turning consumers’ attention to food packaging. The Zero Waste Shop in Totnes,...