Digital fitness is on a run, literally, as training at home becomes the new normal. Peloton’s Q4 earnings showed a 172% YoY jump in revenue, and its connected subscribers were up 113% YoY, Apple announced Fitness Plus, its new virtual fitness product, and Zwift, an indoor training app, reached unicorn status after a USD 450 million funding round.
Read MoreThe world of streetwear was previously based on authenticity and reputation, but since its unprecedented growth in popularity, the scene has grown used to see new players entering the market. Earlier this month, Massachusetts-based footwear and streetwear retailer Concepts quietly confirmed “a relationship” with Amazon’s Zappos subsidiary. “We have been engaged with our friends at Zappos and finalized a relationship that will help Concepts achieve our mission to elevate the customer experience within the boutique industry,” said Tarek Hassan, CEO of Concepts International, in a statement.
Read MoreThe world’s online shopping giants are following smaller web retailers into what might appear to be the merchandising past. Amazon, Alibaba and most recently JD.com, are operating brick-and-mortar stores, joining companies such as the formerly web-only Warby Parker and Outdoor Voices and reoccurring pop-up events by the likes of Gymshark and Aday. Even Tencent, the Chinese games and social media giant, is doing deals in retail.
Read MoreSpeaking of the death of retail and the end of physical shopping experiences, in late November Alibaba was investing announced that it invested nearly $3 billion for a 36% stake in China hypermart operator Sun Art Retail. It looked like the Chinese e-commerce titan was copying a page from Amazon’s strategy plan, after Jeff Bezos’ company stunned U.S. supermarket operators by acquiring high-end grocer Whole Foods for more than $13 billion.
Read MoreAfter decades of selling products and collecting data about what people are buying, and when they are buying it, Amazon has started cutting out the middle-man by selling self-produced items. Through its AmazonBasics house brand, it sells various types of small items, from iPhone chargers to batteries, and foam rollers to washcloths. It is the sort of stuff that customers might not be too brand loyal over. Whilst Amazon-branded products are obviously recognisable, the company has started to sell products, using a different sub-brands that do not make it clear that they are Amazon-made products.
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