FROM THE DESK OF DEBORAH WEINSWIG

Looking Back at the Many Silver Linings of 2021 This letter highlights the many positive events and occurrences throughout 2021, with a focus on the US. We look forward to continuing to help retail players navigate a highly dynamic environment with our global coverage of retail and consumers in 2022. CES and the NRF Big Show took place (virtually). Although hosting the two events virtually eliminated the possibility of serendipitously running into old colleagues and friends, webcasting the events made access much easier. CES (formerly the Consumer Electronics Show), one of the world’s largest trade shows, is otherwise an exhausting scheduling marathon involving a lot of travel from one venue to another, and standing in line to attend the most popular sessions. Attending the event virtually allowed us to catch presentations from the comfort of our own homes and offices, and being able to access replays was a huge benefit. The National Retail Federation (NRF) Big Show offered the same virtual benefits, although one of the major appeals of the show is running into an acquaintance in the hallway, in addition to the benefit of the in-person attendance of the major players in retail during the conference days. Vaccinations started and have ramped up. Beginning with high-risk groups, vaccinations became available throughout the course of the year, including booster shots, for everyone willing to be vaccinated, dramatically reducing the risk of illness and increasing confidence to return to public spaces such as restaurants, entertainment venues and physical stores. Travel resumed (somewhat). In 2021, consumers began to test the waters and release some pent-up demand for travel, taking summer vacations beyond driving distance. Consumers largely resumed trips to visit family for Thanksgiving and the December holidays, which brings accompanying gift purchases and other travel spending, although business travel remains dampened with continuing delays in returning to offices. Retail sales have remained off the charts. US consumers, gradually becoming more comfortable with leaving their homes throughout the year, nevertheless continued their fervent shopping behavior from 2020. According to Coresight Research’s US Retail Sales Databank, retail sales were up 14.8% year over year for in November 2021, a remarkable figure—particularly when lapping the strong results from the prior year. Robust demand continues to help retailers recover from forced closures and shifts in demand in 2020. In-person conferences and events have resumed. We were thrilled to return to in-person events this year and attended RetailX (now Retail Innovation Conference and Expo—RICE) in Chicago and Groceryshop in Las Vegas. We sensed that other attendees were happy and relieved to be able to attend in-person events as well. Coresight Research also presented at an event on micro-factories at the Gerber Innovation Center in New York City in July. At present, we are making plans and looking forward to attending CES in Las Vegas and the NRF Big Show in New York City in January 2022. Very much looking forward to 2022. We are optimistic that 2022 will turn out to be the “transition year” that we previously expected 2021 to be—in which we are able to travel and visit more public places without concern and the need to take extra safety precautions. At the time of this letter’s writing, US retail sales remain extremely robust but are unlikely to sustain this pace forever. Yet we continue to be surprised at the enthusiasm and wherewithal of US consumers to continue to shop, which is likely to continue into the new year.

US RETAIL AND TECH HEADLINES

Amazon To Expand Its Technology Hubs in Austin and Phoenix (December 21) Company press release

• Amazon plans to expand its technology hubs in Austin and Phoenix—adding square footage and new employees to its existing centers. The move comes as part of the company’s multi-city expansion plan.
• The company plans to create more than 2,000 corporate and technology-related jobs in Austin, Texas, as well as 550 in Phoenix, Arizona, over the next few years. As part of the expansion strategy, Amazon has signed a lease for a location spanning 330,000 square feet at The Domain in Austin and a 63,000-square-foot expansion at its existing offices at 100 S. Mill Avenue in Tempe, Phoenix.

Authentic Brands Announces Partnership Between Reebok and JD Group (December 20) Company press release

• US-based brand management company Authentic Brands Group has signed a strategic partnership with JD Group, a UK-based apparel and footwear retailer, to grow the footprint of its apparel and footwear brand Reebok across the JD Group Banners.
• Reebok’s merchandise will be available in more than 2,850 JD Group stores across Europe and North America. All stores (including both brick-and-mortar and e-commerce sites) under the JD Group banner, including DTLR, Finish Line, JD, Shoe Palace, Size, Sprinter and SportZone, will start selling Reebok products in 2022. Authentic Brands also stated that Reebok’s acquisition from Adidas is likely to close by the first quarter of 2022.

NIKE Reports Second-Quarter 2022 Results; Direct Sales Grew 9.0% (December 20) Company press release

• Apparel and footwear brand owner NIKE has reported $11.4 billion in total revenues, up 1.0% year over year, for its second quarter of 2022 (ended November 30, 2021). The company registered a net income of $1.3 billion, up 7.0% year over year during the same period. Revenue growth was primarily fueled by a 9.0% (on a reported basis) rise in revenues from NIKE direct sales and 12.0% growth in revenues from digital sales during the same period.
• Revenue growth was partially offset by declining revenues in Greater China and the Asia-Pacific and Latin America (APLA) region, due to lower levels of available inventory caused by pandemic-related factory closures.

Southeastern Grocers Partners with DoorDash (December 21) ProgressiveGrocer.com

• US-based supermarket chain Southeastern Grocers has partnered with DoorDash, an online food delivery platform, to offer same-day delivery service to shoppers in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi.
• DoorDash’s delivery program will be offered in more than 400 Southeastern stores and include thousands of grocery items, such as bakery products, dairy, meat and seafood.

Supergoop Sells Majority Stake To Investment Firm Blackstone (December 21) RetailDive.com

• Supergoop, a US-based skincare direct-to-consumer (DTC) brand, has sold a majority stake to US-based investment firm Blackstone. As part of the deal, the company’s Founder Holly Thaggard, CEO Amanda Baldwin and other members of senior management will continue to hold significant ownership in the company.
• Supergoop will leverage Blackstone’s investment to launch new products, educate consumers and expand its base internationally.

EUROPE RETAIL AND TECH HEADLINES

Alteri Investors Invests in Missguided (December 20) Company press release

• European private equity firm Alteri Investors has made a significant investment in online fast-fashion retailer Missguided, aiming to help it overcome short-term supply chain challenges and return to sustainable profitability. Under the terms of the agreement, Alteri Investors will take over Missguided’s existing debt and 50% of the company’s equity.
• The deal will see two Directors from Alteri Investors joining Missguided’s Board. An Executive Chairman with “strong retail and turnaround experience” will also be recruited and discussions are currently in progress with candidates.

Carrefour and Everli Extends Grocery Delivery Partnership To France (December 21) Company press release

• French grocery retailer Carrefour has announced plans to extend its partnership with grocery delivery company Everli to France, following successful partnerships in Italy and Poland. Carrefour will offer French consumers up to 20,000 products through the Everli platform, including a wide range of items from in-store fresh-food counters.
• Everli rolled out services in France in April and is already active in Bordeaux, Grenoble, Lille, Lyon, Montpellier, Nantes, Nice, Strasbourg, Toulouse.

ICA Gruppen Names Carl Benny Svensson as New Chief Information Officer (December 21) Company press release

• Swedish food retailer ICA Gruppen has announced that Benny Svensson has been appointed its new Chief Information Officer (CIO). He will assume his new position by August 1, 2022, and will succeed Maria Lundberg, who has served in the role since January 2018.
• Svensson has previously served as CIO and Chief Digital Officer (CDO) of IKEA. He also worked with Swedish company Alfa Laval, a provider of sustainable solutions for the energy, water and marine sectors.

InPost Hits 3,000 Parcel Locker Milestone in the UK (December 20) ChargedRetail.co.uk

• Parcel locker service provider InPost has announced the deployment of over 3,000 locker units in the UK, following the establishment of several significant partnerships in 2021, including with landlords Tesco, Transport for London and Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield. The company is now supporting over 100 major retailers, including Boohoo, JD Sports and Missguided.
• InPost stated that it installed nearly 2,000 lockers in the UK in 2021 alone, boosted by retailers and landlords seeking to strengthen their environmental performance. The company is on track to deploy one of the largest parcel locker networks in the UK, aiming to operate over 10,000 locker units by 2024.

Groupe Casino Announces Collaboration with Amazon Web Services (December 21) Company press release

• French retailer Groupe Casino has announced a strategic collaboration with Amazon Web Services (AWS), aiming to help both company’s sustainability goals. Groupe Casino, through its energy subsidiary GreenYellow, will provide AWS with renewable electricity, while AWS will assist the retail group and GreenYellow with cloud services for their digital transformation.
• As part of the collaboration, AWS will also work with the retail group’s data subsidiary RelevanC, developing algorithms to improve customer experience.

ASIA RETAIL AND TECH HEADLINES

Delivery Hero To Sell Foodpanda Japan (December 22) Company press release

• German food delivery company Delivery Hero has announced plans to sell its Japan unit, just over one year after it commenced operations in the country in September 2020. The company cited growing competition and labor shortages as reasons for exiting the country.
• Delivery Hero stated that it will divest its Japanese subsidiary in the first quarter of 2022 and focus on expansion in other markets and niches, particularly in quick commerce.

LaLaport To Open Its First Store in Malaysia (December 20) InsideRetail.com

• LaLaport, a Japanese lifestyle shopping mall chain, plans to open its first Southeast Asian shopping center in Bukit Bintang City Centre (BBCC) on January 20, 2021, with a tenant mix of around 400 stores from both Japanese and global brands—including several that will be making their first appearance in Malaysia, such as Nitori and Nojima.
• LaLaport BBCC is the chain’s second international location, following Mitsui Shopping Park LaLaport Shanghai Jinqiao, and will be one of LaLaport’s largest commercial complexes in the world, covering approximately 890,000 square feet of floor space.

MoMo Raises $200 Million in Funding; Total Valuation Exceeds $2 Billion (December 21) Company press release

• MoMo, Vietnam’s largest e-wallet startup, has secured $200 million from four investors led by Mizuho Bank, valuing the company at over $2 billion. Investors include Ward Ferry Management, alongside current owners Goodwater Capital LLC and Kora Management, according to the company. The company stated in January 2021 that it intends to go public by 2025.
• The investment will help Momo achieve its goal of doubling its user base to 50 million in the next two years and expand as an all-in-one smartphone application or “super app” that provides numerous services, as it has done in several countries including China and Indonesia.

Snapdeal Files for an IPO To Raise $165 Million (December 20) TimesofIndia.IndiaTimes.com

• Softbank-backed e-commerce company Snapdeal has filed preliminary documents with market regulator Securities Exchange Board of India to raise ₹12.5 billion ($165 million) through an initial public offering (IPO)—joining the rush of technology giants looking to debut on the country’s exchanges amid a record-breaking stock market rally
• Eight of the company’s 71 shareholders, including Foxconn, Sequoia Capital and SoftBank intend to sell up to 31 million secondary shares. According to the filing, Snapdeal will use the IPO proceeds to fund its organic growth initiatives, bolster logistics capabilities and expand its tech infrastructure.

Zepto Raises $100 Million in Funding; Total Valuation Reaches $570 Million (December 22) InsideRetail.asia

• Zepto, an Indian on-demand grocery delivery, has raised $100 million in Series-C funding, bringing its valuation to $570 million, just five months after it commenced operations. Zepto offers a 10-minute grocery delivery service in Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Gurgaon and Mumbai, with Pune and Kolkata soon to come.
• The funding round was led by Y Combinator’s Continuity Fund and includes Breyer Capital, Nexus, Glade Brook, and Global Founders Capital, among others. Zepto’s previous round funding came in November 2021, which raised $60 million, valuing the company at $225 million.