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The news: Keurig Dr Pepper will acquire JDE Peet鈥檚 for 鈧�15.7 billion ($18.4 billion) to revive its struggling coffee arm before splitting into two public companies. The deal will create a coffee powerhouse by merging KDP with JDE Peet鈥檚 global brands that include Peet鈥檚, L鈥橭R, Jacobs, and Douwe Egberts.

Ten years after its establishment, Amazon Business is expanding its seller network and product selection to serve an 8 million global organization customer base, which has grown 33% from 6 million in 2023. Many of the capabilities that individual shoppers enjoy on Amazon鈥檚 B2C platform鈥攂road selection, cost savings, and advanced technology鈥攁re being applied to its B2B marketplace to help organizations work smarter and more efficiently. As Amazon Business continues to innovate, it is poised to compete for more sales from companies seeking to save time and resources.

Est茅e Lauder posted a wider quarterly loss as sales slumped and warned that tariffs could reduce earnings by about $100 million over the next year. Est茅e Lauder is taking necessary steps to turn around its business鈥攆ocusing on product innovation, cutting costs, and broadening its customer reach鈥攂ut it will be tough given intense competition in the beauty market. With key rival L鈥橭real gaining US momentum and newer brands emerging, Est茅e Lauder must accelerate product innovation, reduce reliance on discounting, rebuild momentum in China, and take other steps to win new customers, or risk ceding more ground in the longer term.

Consumer goods giants Kraft Heinz and Unilever are moving to stimulate demand in a challenging sales climate by increasing marketing spending on their most popular products. Both companies are betting on marketing to spur demand and improve brand equity in a slower-growth climate. But the question is whether stepped-up marketing will be enough to overcome rising consumer caution, particularly in categories like snacks and personal care, where purchases are more discretionary in a tariff-driven environment. Increased investments in promotions could pressure margins in coming quarters.

The news: Mastercard and Visa reported strong revenue growth in their most recent quarters. Visa鈥檚 net revenues rose 14% YoY in its fiscal year Q3 (ended June 30, 2025). Mastercard鈥檚 net revenues for the period rose 17% YoY. Our take: Both Visa and Mastercard understand that they need to innovate to keep their infrastructure competitive in light of the explosion of alternative payment rails鈥攎ost recently stablecoin initiatives, made possible by the recent passage of the Genius Act.

In this report, CMOs share how they鈥檙e transforming influencer strategies to deliver business impact鈥攁nd what solution providers can do to help.

The news: Affirm will be available as a payment option for in-store shoppers on Stripe Terminal for US and Canadian merchants, per a press release. Our take: Snagging a Stripe Terminal integration is a big win for Affirm. This can help expand its lead in the US, where it holds $35.69 billion in payment value鈥攁 $4 billion dollar lead over Klarna.

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The news: Capital One鈥檚 net revenues increased 25% QoQ to $12.5 billion鈥攐ne of the many dramatic changes after its merger with Discover.Our take: The scale of Capital One鈥檚 merger is eyewatering. As the issuer looking to maximize its yields, it can both offer more attractive credit and debit products within a regulatory environment that is friendly to ambitious growth.

The growth in retail media ad spending in these three countries will outpace all other formats for years to come. It鈥檚 thus gaining an important place at the ad budgeting table.

The news: Audioboom agreed to acquire Adelicious, potentially creating the UK鈥檚 largest homegrown podcast network with 125 million monthly downloads, per Podnews. The deal will cement Audioboom鈥檚 expansion and amplify its global reach through Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and other major platforms. Our take: As podcasting shifts from a fragmented space to a few dominant networks, smaller creators risk losing ad revenue and visibility. Advertisers that balance buys across major platforms and independent shows will stretch their budgets further鈥攁nd stay closer to engaged, loyal audiences.

The news: Lloyds has launched an internal genAI -powered knowledge hub, Athena, to help customer-facing employees sift through banking and customer information faster鈥攅mpowering more personalized and helpful experiences, per PYMNTS. Our take: We鈥檝e recommended that banks focus on implementing genAI-powered solutions that free up their employees鈥� time so they can manage the human-centric, complex tasks for which customers turn to them. Athena does this and also has the potential to supercharge the human-centricity in customer service by empowering employees with more relevant information. The customer experience is one of the biggest drivers of customer attrition, and Athena represents a strategic step for Lloyds to enhance efficiency while preserving, and potentially elevating, the personalized and empathetic service that fosters customer loyalty and reduces churn.

Canada鈥檚 ecommerce market is catching up with global peers. A key factor: the growing digital presence of the 鈥渂ig three鈥� grocery players鈥攚hose ecommerce sales we鈥檙e forecasting for the first time.

The news: American Express鈥檚 net revenues grew 9% YoY in Q2 2025, per its earnings release. Our take: Amex鈥檚 expansion into international markets and bet on its Gen Z and millennial cardholders鈥� interest in exclusive, experiential rewards has been a winning combination. But there may be early signs that Amex鈥檚 strategy is reaching its limits as consumers grapple with financial anxieties.

Blue Yonder has acquired Optoro to expand its footprint in returns management, covering everything from in-store and warehouse processes to recommerce and resale. Returns are projected to hit $685.9 billion in 2024, nearly 13% of US retail sales, with fraud and behaviors like bracketing and wardrobing compounding losses. Optoro brings warehouse-focused workflows, while Blue Yonder has built consumer-facing tools through prior acquisitions like Doddle. Together, they now cover the entire returns cycle. By reframing returns as recoverable assets, Blue Yonder aims to help retailers cut waste, boost profitability, and position itself as a leader in returns technology.