Kohl’s

Layoffs hit more than 7,100 workers tied to freight industry in US, Canada

Mass layoffs continue across freight-related companies in the U.S. and Canada. 

There were 7,173 job cuts recently announced by companies in California, Texas, Georgia, Maryland, Tennessee, Massachusetts, Wisconsin and Quebec.

It is the fifth wave of layoffs across the nation’s supply chain industry since early October, with a total of 16,919 workers losing their jobs, according to firms filing Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act notices.

Over the past eight weeks, companies...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/layoffs-hit-more-than-7100-workers-tied-to-freight-industry-in-us-canada

Should department stores spin off e-commerce from brick-and-mortar?

Investors are urging retailers to spin off e-commerce operations from brick-and-mortar –– but should they?

Going against the wishes of investors is always risky. Doing so and failing can tank investors’ faith in a company and cut off crucial funding, but sometimes, it can be the difference between growth and stagnation.

Macy’s (NYSE: M) is making that gamble. Last week, the evergreen department store, which has managed to stay in business for over a century and a half, elected not to spin off its e-commerce operation from its core brick-and-mortar business, despite pressure from one of its new...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/should-department-stores-spin-off-e-commerce-from-brick-and-mortar

Free stuff: Returnless refunds can define the customer journey

This holiday season is expected to be even better than the blockbuster 2020 season, with new research from Deloitte predicting holiday retail sales will increase between 7% and 9% over 2020. E-commerce is expected to grow between 11% and 15% this year, reaching at least $210 billion and as much as $218 billion. Total retail sales are forecast to be $1.28 trillion to $1.3 trillion.

“We anticipate strong consumer spending for the upcoming holiday season. As vaccination rates rise and consumers are...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/free-stuff-returnless-refunds-can-define-the-customer-journey

Shipping speed, transparency continue to trip up e-commerce brands

The retail customer journey has been changed forever. No longer is going to a physical store and browsing the aisles the only method of shopping. More browsing than ever is taking place online, more sales than ever are occurring in digital spaces and more pressure on retailers is driving change – and new challenges – that continue to alter the shopping experience.

Understanding these changes are key to creating successful customer journeys. More importantly, though, is understanding what the...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/shipping-speed-transparency-continue-to-trip-up-e-commerce-brands