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Walmart will offer next-day delivery in select cities for some marketplace orders, the company said. The service will be available to customers in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, and Houston, with plans to eventually expand to more areas. t鈥檚 no accident that Walmart is making a play for urban customers at the same time that Amazon is going after rural households. Both retailers see opportunities to win over the other鈥檚 core customer base by offering a compelling combination of convenience and low prices.

The trend: Brands are ramping up legal action over perceived infringements of their intellectual property. Our take: With brand loyalty ebbing as price concerns take priority, more companies are leaning on the law to keep rivals from undercutting their business. But there are limits: Ecommerce marketplaces like Amazon, Walmart, Temu, and Shein are crammed to the gills with dupes that are incredibly difficult to crack down on. While companies should protect their IP wherever possible, they also need to make clear to shoppers why their products are better than knockoff versions鈥攁nd why they鈥檙e worth full price.

David鈥檚 Bridal is the latest retailer to rely on a third-party marketplace to shore up sales: Like Walmart and Best Buy, it adopts an 鈥渁sset-light鈥� model to expand inventory鈥攁nd ad sales鈥攚hile minimizing expenses.

Walmart looks to make it easier for advertisers to buy its display ads: Walmart Connect鈥檚 new API should help it attract more ad dollars from smaller brands and marketplace sellers.

Walmart Marketplace is thriving: Black Friday and Cyber Monday were the two best-selling days on the platform, and those strong results are providing a boost to Walmart Fulfillment Services.

Walmart enhanced its online marketplace with new capabilities and seller solutions, the retailer announced at its annual Walmart Marketplace Seller Summit this week. Updates include the addition of premium beauty products, expanded fulfillment services, and revamped seller solutions.

Two of the other fastest-growing US marketplaces are operated by Walmart and Temu鈥攅ach claiming a substantial share of ecommerce growth, but primarily from China-based sellers of commoditized goods rather than brands. Relatively few consumers buy through D2C channels.

The report: OpenAI is reportedly developing a checkout feature that would allow users to complete purchases directly within ChatGPT, according to The Financial Times. Merchants would pay OpenAI a commission on any resulting sales. Our take: At the risk of sounding hyperbolic, checkout integration could fundamentally transform the ecommerce landscape. Even before news of the feature began circulating, brands were exploring AI optimization, or 鈥淎IO鈥�, to rank in AI-generated product recommendations. Now, with purchases just a click away, ChatGPT could emerge as a viable commerce engine鈥攅specially if it undercuts incumbent 尘补谤办别迟辫濒补肠别蝉鈥� take rates. And it likely won鈥檛 be alone for long. Rivals like Perplexity and Anthropic are almost certain to build similar transactional layers, creating a new crop of marketplace-like platforms for sellers in short order.

The Q2 performances of Amazon, Walmart, and Target illustrate the retailers鈥� diverging fortunes as shoppers reassess their spending priorities. While uncertainty is funneling more dollars toward Amazon and Walmart, customers are steering clear of Target鈥攄ue both to a lackluster assortment and frustration over its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) flip-flopping. Walmart and Amazon are pulling ahead as their relentless focus on value鈥攊n the form of speed, selection, and convenience鈥攎ake them the first stop for shoppers buying everything from essentials like groceries to discretionary items like beauty and apparel. That leaves Target鈥檚 new CEO, Michael Fiddelke, with the unenviable task of having to turn the retailer around just as tariffs threaten its bottom line and undermine its core discretionary business.

Marketplaces continue to drive growth for overall US ecommerce. First-party retail ecommerce sales will lag the average through 2029, while D2C sales will occupy the middle ground. Amazon will account for nearly 70% of US online marketplace sales.

More鈥攁nd longer鈥攕ales events are helping to burnish Amazon鈥檚 reputation for deals, although its decision to double Prime Day鈥檚 length opened the door for retailers like Walmart to bolster their share of the July sales season. Our take: Amazon鈥檚 strong quarter and Q3 sales guidance help dispel some fears about the health of the consumer.

The luxury industry has a counterfeit problem. Counterfeits pose a serious challenge for brands and the growing number of secondhand platforms that specialize in luxury resale. The more convincing these superfakes get, the harder it will be for companies like LVMH to justify their high price points鈥攁nd harder still for platforms like Vestiaire and The RealReal to keep fake goods off their marketplaces.

Despite the current duopoly between Mercado Libre and Amazon in Mexico鈥檚 ecommerce market, roughly 60% of online sales remain up for grabs for local, regional, and global retailers.

Although no single player rivals Mercado Libre鈥檚 hold on Latin America鈥檚 ecommerce market, nearly 70% of online sales are still fair game for the long tail of retailers.

Ecommerce heavyweights: Amazon and Walmart are well positioned to consolidate gains amid tariff upheaval. The retailers鈥� scale and negotiating power will allow them to shift sourcing more easily than smaller rivals. They can absorb or offset at least some of the tariff impacts with cost reductions elsewhere, allowing them to retain consumers with highly competitive pricing.

Boots鈥� home market has pursued widespread distribution in the US through Walmart, Target, Ulta Beauty, and Amazon, and expanded its brand marketing by partnering with American actress Elizabeth Banks since 2023 to launch new products and build awareness in the US.

The vital role of marketplaces. Marketplaces play a crucial role in Every Man Jack's ecommerce strategy, offering benefits beyond sales. "Marketplaces are vital to this brand's growth. First and foremost, they provide the most consistency in terms of return within marketing, which is essential to planning," said Hasselberg.

Mercado Libre, which combines data from its digital marketplace and fintech arm, Mercado Pago, to build richer audience profiles and enable more precise ad targeting across its ecosystem. Rappi and DiDi go even further, operating across retail, banking, and travel.

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.

In our exclusive survey with ESW, data from shoppers in 18 countries reveals new twists in the path to purchase, the rising momentum of marketplaces, and the resilience of age-old fundamentals.

Latin America鈥檚 digital revolution is marching full steam ahead, with consumers spending more than a third of their day online. As social commerce and retail media propel the region鈥檚 digital economy to new heights, the runway for growth remains long.鈥�

Walmart is rapidly growing its online marketplace with third-party sellers from China and offering shipping services. Sustained growth demands creative reinvention. With roots in China鈥檚 highly competitive market, Shein, Temu, and TikTok are moving quickly to stay ahead. They are diversifying, forging partnerships, and evolving their business models. Predictions. TikTok Shop is here to stay.