Top 4 Global Retail Ecommerce Articles for the Week of November 28

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For those who are new here, every week(ish) I'll share various topics that I think are important for the modern leader in Retail Ecommerce.

Every Monday, I'll try to share the articles that stood out to me that are worth a few minutes of your time to read.

Article 1:?Black Friday sales rise 12% YoY

Cyber5 dominates the news this week as it provides a window into the health of the larger holiday shopping season. This piece from Insider Intelligence rounds up data from MasterCard SpendingPulse and Adobe that reveals shoppers continued to spend on Black Friday, both in-store and online. In particular, shoppers are still spending more on discretionary goods year over year despite the rising cost of household essentials. Inflation, however, holds another lesson as well: For some discretionary categories, the rise in revenue did not match inflation, meaning that unit volumes declined.

Can the nominal sales boost last? I’ve spoken on LinkedIn before about the sharp rise in credit card debt and the use of Buy-Now-Pay-Later (BNPL). If consumers continue to acquire more debt, then the current rates of spending might be unsustainable.

Article 2:?It’s an omnichannel holiday: online stays strong as shoppers return to stores

A second narrative emerging within Black Friday results is that online shopping is not nearly as weak as some supposed it to be. As strong as initial in-store traffic appears to be, online sales as reported by Shopify and MasterCard were even stronger. The misconception that online sales were suffering in the leadup to Black Friday may be the result of Amazon’s weak stock performance, which has much more to do with cost and profitability across business units than it does with ecommerce growth, which remains strongly positive. Across retail, online sales growth was only ever lower than in-store sales growth in early 2022.

The future of retail is omnichannel. Stores and online shopping are not at war with each other. This false conflict is perpetuated by poorly structured retail and brand organizations looking to assign credit and resources between competing internal divisions. Consumers shop however they want with no strict barriers in their minds, moving freely between physical and digital platforms. Engaging them wherever they are is the key to success. Brands need access to data across retailer accounts and the ability to analyze it and take action on it comprehensively.

Article 3:?Cost-of-living crisis casts shadow over Europe’s Black Friday

Black Friday has become an important retail event in Europe. This year, it faced some harsh headwinds. Europe’s cost-of-living crisis, accelerated by high energy prices from sanctions on Russia that are not felt nearly as acutely in the US, could cause shoppers to pull back. The UK in particular also faces other political and economic factors that pose challenges. Even flat growth means significant declines in real terms when combined with double-digit inflation.

Zooming out, Black Friday participation is spread unevenly across Europe. 70% of French consumers planned to participate in the sales event, but only 24% of Spanish consumers planned to do so. I think these percentages will move higher over time as global ecommerce becomes more integrated.

Article 4:?TikTok turns to third parties to boost lagging ecommerce

My last story is from PYMNTS and it’s about how TikTok has brought on tech startups with experience optimizing digital platforms to help its newly founded ecommerce business in the US. Reportedly, sales have not met brands’ expectations, and they have responded by pulling back investment in the platform. At the same time, shoppers seem concerned over unexpected shipping delays and the risk of buying counterfeit products. Not a great start.

The social shopping industry is something I like to track through stories like these as it grows in importance in the US. Social shopping, and especially live stream shopping, has proven to be popular in China and elsewhere in Asia though success doesn’t always transfer across borders. The industry has had no shortage of missteps but seems primed to grow and be increasingly important to retail ecommerce overall. I don’t know if TikTok will get it right, but someone will.