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Canada is behind other Western economies in digital payments adoption, but new technologies are finding footing against cards. Diving into usage among different demographic groups foretells how adoption will progress.

As more retailers recognize the value of leveraging their first-party data, the global retail media market will continue to expand and innovate. While the US leads the charge with $45.15 billion in spending this year, according to our forecast, other regions are showing similar patterns. In fact, Latin America is only four to five years behind the US, said our analyst Matteo Ceurvels on our 鈥淏ehind the Numbers: Around the World鈥� podcast.

Editor鈥檚 note: This article is part of a series on how the incoming Trump administration will affect key sectors of retail, marketing, tech, and finance. Keep an eye out for the full report, publishing just ahead of Inauguration Day.

42% of retail executives worldwide say the most important role of physical retail as omnichannel buying evolves is to provide an in-person component to the customer experience (CX), according to April 2023 data from Bain and Aptos.

Retail media. Over 9 in 10 US marketers who invest in creator marketing planned to promote their partnerships via retail media networks in 2025, per Q3 2024 data from LTK and Northwestern University. That trend will help drive retail media ad spending, which will rise by 20.2% YoY in 2025. Brand deals are no longer bound to social platforms.

Imports like tequila and Canadian whisky are also expected to become more expensive. Energy costs may climb if the US enacts 鈥渟econdary tariffs鈥� on Russian and Venezuelan oil鈥攄uties that would extend beyond direct imports to products from any country sourcing oil from those nations. Auto prices are likely to rise as 25% tariffs on imported vehicles and parts take effect in April and May.

On today's episode, we discuss the implications of the Federal Trade Commission thinking Amazon tricked customers into signing up for automatically renewing Prime subscriptions, whether it makes sense for companies to force livestream shopping on Americans, if speciality stores really work, the impact of Facebook and Instagram restricting news access in Canada, whether reduced inflation can save the day, what a real work-life balance looks like, and more. Tune in to the discussion with our vice president of content Suzy Davidkhanian, vice president of Briefings Stephanie Taglianetti, and analyst Evelyn Mitchell-Wolf.

On today鈥檚 episode, host Bill Fisher is joined by our analysts Paul Briggs, Matteo Ceurvels, and Carina Perkins to examine what impact global economic turbulence is having on retail and ecommerce in different markets.

Large Canadian banks saw a decline in customer satisfaction from 2022, with midsize banks performing better in a few key areas.

The operative word is uncertainty: Walmart鈥檚 cautious projection is yet another red flag for the retail sector, especially coming on the heels of similarly downbeat forecasts from the likes of Amazon and Levi Strauss.

Use this chart: Retail and marketing leaders can use this chart to benchmark their approach against peers. If you're absorbing tariff costs, consider how to preserve margin through efficiency. If you're passing them on, be transparent with customers and explore added-value messaging to maintain loyalty. Related 蘑菇AV reports:. FAQ: US-Canada Trade War (蘑菇AV subscription required).

Walmart bought a mall, Coca-Cola launched a soda, and Nike partnered with SKIMS in February, marking some of the month鈥檚 most interesting retail moves. Here are the eight most interesting retailers and brands from last month, as ranked on our 鈥淏ehind the Numbers鈥� podcast.

President Donald Trump鈥檚 executive orders on new tariffs against China, Canada, and Mexico eliminate the 鈥渄e minimis鈥� exemption, which had allowed tariff-free shipments of goods valued under $800 per recipient per day. This will create major headwinds for Shein, Temu, and other retailers shipping directly from China, even as they work to diversify their supply chains.

The trend: Despite a solid close to 2024, retail-related headlines with 鈥渨eaker-than-expected guidance鈥� are becoming the norm as companies from Amazon to Levi Strauss to Whirlpool point to challenges ahead. Why is this happening? There are five interrelated reasons that retailers are feeling glum:. The labor marketing is moderating.

For example, Affirm expanded its tie-up with Shopify in the UK and Canada, and Klarna partnered with Worldpay, JPMorgan Payments, and Adobe Commerce. Both firms have also partnered with Apple Pay and Google Pay. But individual partnerships are still important if BNPL players want to reach larger merchants like Stitch Fix.

Last year saw 51 retail bankruptcies鈥攄ouble the number in 2023. A challenging environment, compounded by rising costs from the Trump administration鈥檚 trade policies, could drive more retailers to file for bankruptcy and liquidate. Already this year, Liberate Brands鈥攖he parent of Billabong, Quiksilver, and Volcom鈥攆iled for bankruptcy and announced plans to close its 120 US and Canadian stores.

Retail, telecom, and travel and leisure declined. The company maintained its full-year guidance for 2025. Zooming out: The company鈥檚 Q1 results were driven by the loss of major clients and missing the mark with new products. WPP recently lost Coca-Cola鈥檚 US and Canada media business to Publicis Groupe, though it retained global media duties.

A spending slowdown in Canada, Clover鈥檚 largest international market, also hurt volume. What鈥檚 next? Fiserv is leaning on acquisitions to expand its operations and accelerate growth. The company made four international acquisitions in the last two months. Fiserv acquired Canada-based Payfare to grow its embedded finance capabilities and push further into serving the gig economy.

Tesco鈥檚 newest venture takes aim at Ocado: The UK grocer鈥檚 Transcend Retail Solutions division aims to help international supermarket chains develop their ecommerce operations.

The Verge also reported that some Sony Bravia OLED TVs now cost about $500 more in the US than in Canada after currency adjustment. Chinese electronics brand Anker raised prices on 127 Amazon-listed products, with an average increase of 18%, per Mashable.

Our take: The retail landscape is unusually uncertain, driven by significant unknowns surrounding the new administration and the short- and long-term implications of its policies.

On today鈥檚 episode, host Bill Fisher is joined by our analysts Paul Briggs, Matteo Ceurvels, and Carina Perkins to discuss everything retail media-related. There鈥檚 been a boom in the US, but how big is the opportunity elsewhere, and who are the early wave-makers in this space?

Dig deeper: To learn more about how tariffs will roil the retail landscape, read our Retail & Ecommerce Briefing鈥檚 analysts鈥� take.