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The big takeaway: If any platform can make social commerce happen, it鈥檚 likely to be TikTok, given its proven ability to mint trends and drive sales鈥攏ot to mention the sterling example sister app Douyin has set in China.

TikTok is using creator payouts to boost Shop adoption: The platform is offering some influencers cash incentives for reaching sales or livestream goals.

Steep discounts drove record Black Friday online sales: Ecommerce sales surged on the day after Thanksgiving, while brick-and-mortar sales grew just 1.1% YoY.

Dick鈥檚 Sporting Goods raised its full-year guidance after reporting its comparable sales rose 5.3% in FY Q1, well ahead of the 2.4% growth analysts expected, as both transactions and average order value ticked up. Net sales of Deckers Brands鈥� Hoka jumped 34.0% to $533.0 million, and Crocs鈥� revenues rose 14.6% (15.6% on a constant-currency basis) to $744.0 million.

We expect home improvement and large appliance sales will grow just 2% this year, while furniture and home furnishing sales will increase by 3.4%.

That said, early data from Earnest Analytics showed a double-digit decline in computer and tablet sales YoY from mid-July to mid-August. We project computer and consumer electronics sales will pick up to hit a new US ecommerce high this holiday season, reaching $46.13 billion.

Home Depot鈥檚 sales have fallen for six straight quarters: That鈥檚 largely a reflection of a dismal housing market that CNN calls the 鈥渢he worst time ever to buy a home.鈥�

The company mapped out a plan last year to boost sales to $9.5 billion by 2026 by adjusting its store mix, diversifying its brand mix, and investing in (and expanding) its loyalty programs. However, its disappointing results drove it to push its sales target timeline out to 2028.

Both KFC and Pizza Hut had same-store sales declines, while Taco Bell same-store sales rose just 1%. McDonald鈥檚 fell short of analysts鈥� bottom-line expectations for the first time in two years. Comparable sales growth was slower than analysts expected in each of the company鈥檚 geographic segments.

US click-and-collect sales growth will slow slightly over the course of the next few years, per our forecast, as adoption levels off after an acceleration in 2020. Still, sales will increase by double-digit percentages both this year and next and reach $131.66 billion by 2026.

Looking ahead: With consumers exhibiting more conservative purchasing behavior, retailers should lean on a variety of tactics鈥攊ncluding but not limited to promotions鈥攖o drive sales. Consider rolling back (or pausing) return fees and extending return windows.

The success of that strategy is fueling the retailer鈥檚 optimism for the year ahead: It now expects net sales to be up slightly in FY2024, an increase from its prior forecast for flat sales.

Grocery delivery sales in January were 0.5% lower YoY due to declines in order volumes and frequency, causing delivery鈥檚 share of online grocery sales to fall by 82 basis points, according to a survey fielded by Brick Meets Click and Mercatus. The big takeaway: Instacart鈥檚 latest restructuring makes it clear that growing its ad business is a priority鈥攁nd for good reason.

Dupe culture powered e.l.f. Beauty to a 76% YoY sales increase last quarter: Gen Z鈥檚 favorite drugstore brand is reaping the rewards as consumers look for budget-friendly ways to stay on top of beauty trends.

Albertsons hit its marks in Q1: The company is leaning into private labels, growing its loyalty program, and boosting its digital sales.

Macy's and Best Buy are seeing a drop in sales of nonessential goods: Economic uncertainty, inflation force consumers to focusing on necessities like groceries.

Shoppers are increasingly planning their purchases around promotional events, causing sales to drop in the weeks before and after. Walmart executives noted that there were several factors, such as unseasonable weather, that may have contributed to softer sales.

US fashion online resale platform sales will increase 15.8% this year, totaling $14.14 billion, according to our forecast. Sales will continue to grow by double-digit rates through 2026, when they will reach $23.92 billion.

US cosmetic and beauty sales are expected to grow over 10% this year鈥攎ore than three times the 2.9% rate of the overall retail market, according to our forecast. It鈥檚 a sign of the 鈥渓ipstick effect,鈥� said our analyst Sky Canaves on our 鈥淏ehind the Numbers: Reimagining Retail鈥� podcast.

We expect back-to-school sales to rise 2.9%: While that鈥檚 a far cry from rates over the past two years, it is markedly higher than in 2019.

Disney and Kroger team up to enhance targeting, measurement capabilities: The partnership gives CPG advertisers the ability to better connect ad exposures to sales or their KPI of choice. (This article was written with the assistance of ChatGPT.)

Sam鈥檚 Club rolls out closed-loop attribution: Connecting the dots between ads and cross-channel sales should help advertisers be far more efficient with their retail media ad spending.

This year, we forecast retail sales of cosmetic and beauty products will reach $86.42 billion, a 7.6% increase from 2022. This increase will be driven in large part by in-store sales and luxury beauty categories. But going forward, technology may play a large role in driving online sales.