Welcome to The Week in Commerce Marketing — Retail, E-commerce and DTC, a weekly roundup for marketers from Quad Insights.
Target and prebiotic soda brand Poppi release limited-time apparel collection
Target and Poppi just released a limited-edition collection, featuring “casual apparel pieces for comfortable wear with an added pop of color,” Women’s Wear Daily’s Julia Teti reports. Timed to the release of the prebiotic soda brand’s new limited-edition flavor Cream Soda, Poppi x Target features over sweatsuits, T-shirts accessories and more in colors reminiscent of the Poppi brand, with some items featuring “motifs seen from several of Poppi’s popular merchandise drops throughout 2024,” Teti writes. Available at Target.com beginning Dec. 29 and in select Target stores Jan. 5, the Poppi x Target collection ranges in size from XS to 3X, with all items under $30.
See also: “Coca-Cola and PepsiCo plan competitors to Olipop and Poppi — what it means for soda marketing” (Ad Age)
Previously: “Johnnie Walker partners with Perfect Moment on limited-edition skiwear collection inspired by its new Blue Label Ice Chalet,” from the Oct. 18 edition of The Week in Consumer Packaged Goods.
More brand launches and collabs:
- “Gap launches elevated subbrand designed by Zac Posen” (Fashion Dive)
- “The Kith x Sesame Street Collection Has Nostalgic Flair” (Trend Hunter)
- “Levi’s Is Replicating Bob Dylan’s Customized 501 XX Jeans” (Hypebeast)
- ICYMI: “Snoop Dogg’s Olympic Gold Skechers Drop for Holidays” (Sports Illustrated)
Stat of the week: $293,000
That’s the cost of a 150-day cruise for two sold by Costco, which includes $13,000 in shipboard credits and a $25,000 Costco gift card, per MediaPost. The cruise launches from Fort Lauderdale and includes stops in the Galapagos Islands and Easter Island. (See more industry and marketing stats in the most recent edition of The Weekly 10 from Quad Insights.)
More commerce trends and stats:
- “TikTok Shop is outperforming Shein and Sephora among US shoppers online” (Business Insider)
- “Taylor Swift, TikTok drive luxury resale trends in 2024” (Chain Store Age)
- “Goyard, Hermès are the top brands that retain value at resale: report” (Fashion Dive)
- “Spicy Foods, Global Cuisine Seen As Key Frozen Food Drivers In 2025” (Store Brands)
- “Retail sales rose more than expected in November, fueled by auto, online” (Chain Store Age)
- “Lines can make customers rethink a shopping trip, survey finds” (CX Dive)
Real Essentials expands beyond DTC with first physical store
Real Essentials, a direct-to-consumer (DTC) brand known for bundling “products together to give customers the best possible price per piece,” opened its first brick-and-mortar store at Sawgrass Mills Mall in Sunrise, Florida, on Dec. 15, Chain Store Age’s Zachary Russell reports. Considered a top-selling Amazon brand, Real Essentials sells “pre-selected” packs of clothing for men, women and children “at low price points, with collections that span workout clothes to leisurewear,” Russell notes. With the opening of its first physical store, though, Real Essentials is allowing customers to purchase items separately or create their own bundles in–store.
Previously: “Wayfair to open flagship retail location in Chicago suburb,” from the April 26 edition of The Week in Retail.
More DTC and retail news:
- “David’s Bridal Acquires Wedding Media Brand, Launches Pearl Media to Create ‘Ultimate Inspiration Network’” (Retail TouchPoints)
- “Brookshire Brothers personalizes discounts” (Chain Store Age)
- “Best Buy to Launch Third-Party Marketplace, Again” (Retail TouchPoints)
- “True Classic Partners With Target, Selling T-Shirts in 460 Stores” (RetailWire)
- “Beautiful By Drew Barrymore Collection Expands” (Store Brands)
- “Bloomingdale’s to Serve as Fulfillment Option for Luxury Brands with DTC Sites” (Retail TouchPoints)
Amazon Fresh supports local artists through limited-time in-store art installations
Amazon Fresh has launched a new initiative called “Joy is Shared” that’s designed to celebrate “local artists, community and giving back during the holidays,” Progressive Grocer’s Marian Zboraj reports. “Joy is Shared” includes commissioned art installations, created by local artists, in Amazon Fresh locations in Virginia, Illinois, New Jersey, California, Pennsylvania and Washington state. (See an example of the murals — and a series of making-of images — from one of the commissioned artists, Cris Clapp Logan, on Instagram here.) Also part of the initiative, Amazon Fresh “has donated $25,000 to six local nonprofits in each state — $150,000 in total — that empower youth development through the arts,” Zboraj notes.
See also: “Amazon boosts recycled content, reduces inks for device packaging” (Packaging Dive)
More brand activations:
Ulta Beauty partners with Nvidia on AI-enabled hair “try-on” tool
Ulta Beauty just announced the launch of a new virtual tool that allows customers to “try on” new hairstyles and colors, Retail TouchPoints’ Adam Blair reports. Using the GLAMlab Hair Try On feature — powered by generative AI technology from Nvidia — “shoppers on the Ulta website or mobile app can take a photo, upload a headshot or use a model’s picture to experiment with potential new looks,” Blair writes. The beauty retailer plans to expand the tool in the future to include wigs — and to connect consumers to in-store styling services.
More retail innovations:
- “Perry Ellis delivers targeted online product suggestions with AI” (Chain Store Age)
Further reading
Retail and e-commerce operations:
- “Vera Wang Sold To Retail Conglomerate” (MediaPost)
- “TJX signs six-lease deal with Big V Property Group” (Chain Store Age)
- “Toys‘R’Us, Babies‘R’Us to Make Latin-America and Caribbean Debut with Flagship Store in Panama” (License Global)
- “Aritzia Triples Its Fifth Avenue Footprint” (Women’s Wear Daily)
- “Walmart making $1.3 billion investment in Chile” (Chain Store Age)
- ICYMI: “SKIMS Opens Flagship Store in New York: ‘Proud Moment’ Says Kim Kardashian” (RetailWire)