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The news: Walmart is testing dark stores in Dallas and Bentonville, Arkansas, as part of its broader effort to speed up deliveries, per Bloomberg. Our take: Amazon鈥檚 latest pledge to offer one- or same-day delivery in 4,000 smaller cities and rural areas by year鈥檚 end is the latest salvo in its relentless quest to raise the bar on convenience. For Walmart, keeping pace isn鈥檛 optional鈥攊t鈥檚 essential. Fortunately, Walmart has the scale and infrastructure to compete. Fast delivery isn鈥檛 just about logistics; it鈥檚 a powerful driver of customer loyalty. When shoppers know they can get essentials like toothpaste at their doorstep within hours, they鈥檙e more likely to click the buy button rather than venture out to a store.

The insight: The gap between Target and its mass merchant competitors Amazon and Walmart is widening. While Amazon and Walmart are consolidating their grip on consumer spending after investments in value and convenience, Target鈥檚 largely discretionary assortment and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) controversies are sharply curbing its appeal. Our take: Shoppers are prioritizing necessities over discretionary goods and favoring retailers that offer value and convenience.

The insight: Walmart sees a (near) future where customers will shop directly from their smart TVs鈥攑referably one powered by Vizio, which the retailer purchased for $2.3 billion last year. Our take: Shoppers are gradually becoming more comfortable with the concept of shoppable TV. Whether those occasional behaviors become habit will depend on platforms鈥� ability to offer ads that are personalized and relevant. That puts Walmart at an advantage, given its troves of first-party data鈥攁lthough it faces tough competition from the likes of Amazon and Roku.

The trend: Walmart and Amazon are determined to take drone delivery mainstream. Our take: It鈥檚 easy to understand the sci-fi appeal of drone delivery鈥攂ut whether it鈥檚 feasible remains a question that retailers are still struggling to answer.

The trend: Walmart has begun rolling out 鈥淪ummer Frights鈥� Halloween displays in about 1,000 stores across the US, featuring quirky early-season items like watermelon jack-o鈥�-lanterns and ghost plushies in Hawaiian shirts. Our take: Walmart is smart to embrace offbeat retail moments like Summerween. While consumers are cutting back on discretionary spending, they continue to splurge on seasonal celebrations like Halloween and the holidays. Halloween alone has become a major retail event, with spending hitting $11.6 billion last year鈥攁 31.8% increase from pre-pandemic 2019. Summerween pulls some of that spending forward and gives budget-conscious shoppers a playful reason to open their wallets鈥攅ven if they鈥檙e feeling spooked by the economy.

The news: The Trump administration recently met with leading retailers, including Amazon and Walmart, to explore ways in which more US consumers can get their prescription medications directly from pharma manufacturers, according to a Bloomberg report. Our take: It鈥檚 unrealistic to expect pharma鈥檚 middlemen to be cut out anytime soon, as they are so deeply rooted in the US healthcare infrastructure.

On today鈥檚 podcast episode, we discuss the ingredients of Walmart鈥檚 current recipe for success and the technology that鈥檚 most likely to propel them into the future. Listen to the conversation with our Senior Analyst Sara Lebow as she hosts Vice President of Content Suzy Davidkhanian and Analyst Rachel Wolff.

Though beauty has remained a relatively resilient category amid rising prices, tariffs could put a damper on that as they take hold. 29% of US adults say they鈥檒l likely cut back on beauty/personal care spending if tariffs raise prices, according to February 2025 data from CivicScience. That鈥檚 why retailers like Walmart, Amazon, and Target are boosting their beauty offerings to drive sales and increase customer loyalty. Here鈥檚 how.

Walmart will raise prices soon to offset 鈥渢oo high鈥� tariffs: Even with the reduction in China duties, the cost is too much for the retailer and its suppliers to absorb.

In April, Walmart led the retail rankings thanks to its advanced grid-based delivery system and an elevated in-store beauty experience. Amazon followed closely with the testing of a new AI-powered 鈥淏uy For Me鈥� feature designed to simplify purchases. Meanwhile, Temu and Shein adjusted their pricing strategies due to rising import costs, risking their low-price appeal. Here are the eight most interesting retailers and brands from last month, as ranked on our 鈥淏ehind the Numbers鈥� podcast.

Walmart promises support for tariff-hit Chinese manufacturers: The retailer will help suppliers get in front of domestic shoppers as it tries to stay on Beijing鈥檚 good side.

The news: Walmart rolled out Sparky, its generative AI (genAI) assistant, to all Walmart app users this week鈥攁 preliminary step that puts it closer to achieving its agentic ambitions. Our take: By broadening Sparky鈥檚 capabilities, Walmart is trying to position itself not only as a shopping destination, but also as a place where consumers can go when they need everyday life advice or information鈥攕uch as how to fix a leaky faucet or help with event planning. Whether the retailer succeeds will depend on how well Sparky works, and whether it can convince shoppers to overcome their current skepticism of AI tools.

Grocery delivery intermediaries like DoorDash and Uber are gaining ground, offering new ways to reach high-intent shoppers. Meanwhile, retailers like Walmart and Amazon continue to lead with strong delivery infrastructure and valuable customer data.

The news: Walmart-owned Sam鈥檚 Club is raising prices on select products in response to cost pressures from the Trump administration鈥檚 tariffs, The Wall Street Journal reports. Our take: Sam鈥檚 Club is on a roll. The retailer is generating record-high membership levels and plans to accelerate growth by opening about 15 new stores each year while remodeling existing locations. But how Sam鈥檚 Club handles tariff-driven price increases could determine whether its momentum continues鈥攐r stalls. The retailer faces a delicate balancing act in deciding when to absorb rising costs and when to pass them on. The stakes are high. A misstep could either erode profit margins or drive a decline in membership renewals鈥攂oth of which are essential to its business model.

The trend: A growing parade of retailers are front-loading July promotions to capture sales before the start of Amazon鈥檚 Prime Day event, which will run from July 8 at 12:01am PDT through July 11. Our take: There's a good reason that more retailers are joining Walmart and Target in attempting to get a head start on Prime Day. Amazon typically garners an outsized share of sales during its marquee event; we expect Amazon will account for 75% of US ecommerce sales during Prime Day this year.

The trend: A perfect macroeconomic storm is causing younger consumers to cut back on spending. Our take: These pressures aren鈥檛 going away anytime soon. The Trump administration鈥檚 tariffs are leading retailers like Walmart, Best Buy, and Macy鈥檚 to raise prices鈥攑utting even more strain on young shoppers already feeling stretched. At the same time, job anxieties are growing. The white collar workforce is shrinking, and more companies are citing AI as a reason for layoffs. Put it all together, and it鈥檚 likely that younger consumers will remain cautious with their spending for some time, especially on nonessentials. Retailers that want to win over this group will need to focus on offering value such as high-quality, private label products.

The tests: In an effort to regain momentum, Target is piloting several initiatives aimed at boosting sales and protecting its margins. Our take: Target isn鈥檛 standing still amid its challenges鈥攂ut it isn鈥檛 clear if its latest moves will resonate with consumers. It鈥檚 encouraging to see Target establish an 鈥渁cceleration office鈥� to push innovation forward. But with consumer budgets under strain, finding the right formula won鈥檛 be easy鈥攅specially given the stiff competition it faces from Amazon, Walmart, and others.

The situation: Low-income Americans are feeling squeezed by high prices, declining pay, and public assistance that doesn鈥檛 go far enough. Bottom line: Declining after-tax income and tariff-driven inflation mean relief for low-income Americans is unlikely anytime soon. Their budgets will tighten, shrinking grocery baskets and curbing discretionary spending. While Walmart, Dollar General, and other value retailers are currently propped up by higher-income shoppers, that cushion could quickly disappear if those customers expect tax-cut windfalls and return to old spending habits.