How we shop for the holidays is different this year

Dec 16, 2020
People are shopping online more, buying gifts for fewer people — and in some cases, changing up what they usually give.
Laurie Dieffembacq/AFP via Getty Images

Retailers have to figure out how to handle all our online returns

Dec 14, 2020
One challenge for those managing "reverse logistics"? Not enough room to store everything we want to send back, one study says.
Packages are processed at a U.S. Postal Service distribution center in Oakland, California.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

As more and more people download video games, what's the future for retailers?

Dec 8, 2020
Video game retailer GameStop reports third quarter earnings, but its business model may be getting old.
An 11-year-old boy plays Fortnite, on April 23, 2020, in South Pasadena, California.
Neilson Barnard/Getty Images

Holiday surge in e-commerce could cause delivery crunch

Nov 27, 2020
It won't be as bad as early in the pandemic, but shoppers should plan ahead.
A postal worker loads packages into a mail truck outside a USPS center in Los Angeles, California, in August.
Kyle Grillot/AFP via Getty Images

Online shopping uptick expected to continue for holidays

Nov 26, 2020
But the uncertainty of this holiday season could give small, local businesses an edge if they offer last-minute shopping options.
Michael Loccisano/Getty Images for Housing Works

Cardboard boxes in high demand this holiday season

Nov 16, 2020
Online sales are expected to surge this year because of the pandemic. And that means retailers need a lot more boxes.
A postal worker monitors packages at a processing and distribution center in April in Oakland, California.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

U.S. was top seller to China during Singles Day

Nov 12, 2020
But overall retail sales in China for the year are still down significantly due to the pandemic.
Workers sort packages for delivery at a warehouse of China Post Group in Hengyang, in central China's Hunan province on Nov. 12, 2020, a day after the end of the Singles Day shopping festival.
STR/AFP via Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

Customers want it now, and some apps are catering to those desires

Oct 21, 2020
Customers want their stuff on the same day they buy it. Instacart can make that happen for some smaller retailers.
An Instacart shopper selects an item at a Wegmans grocery store in Woodbridge, New Jersey, in August.
Michael Loccisano/Getty Images

COVID-19 holiday creep is already here

Oct 12, 2020
Holiday shopping is early and mostly online this year, experts say. Avoiding supply-chain delays is part of the reason.
Consumers return to retail shopping at the a mall in Glendale, Arizona, in June. Holiday shopping will be mostly online this year due to the pandemic.
Christian Petersen/Getty Images

As imports boom, warehouses fill up, and businesses face a storage shortage

Oct 1, 2020
The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach handled record amounts of imports in August. Meanwhile, warehouse rents increased by 10% from this time last year.
Warehouse space is shrinking as the holidays approach.
Virginie Goubier/AFP via Getty Images