Retail stores are asking more consumers to scan their own purchases, locking up products and installing exit barriers, just as digital channels are removing friction and adding greater convenience:. The Shifting “Friction Gap” Between Stores and E-Commerce

Coresight Research is seeing US back-to-school consumers start their shopping early this year. We think this partly reflects attempts to preempt tariff-driven price rises, as I discussed with CNBC: .

Three Data Points We’re Watching This Week: US Holiday, Back to School and Prime Day .

Data from @CoresightNews show economic optimism among China consumers fell to its lowest level in over two years in May. In this context, an aggressive price stance by IKEA is likely to support market-share gains. I shared some thoughts in this CNBC story.

RT @CoresightNews: What sets #NextGen2025 apart? .🔹 Executive-only focus .🔹 Research-backed insights .🔹 Real-world AI applications .🔹 High-….

Analyst Corner: Exploring IKEA’s City Stores Worldwide . — and what they illustrate about retail, channels and real estate

Consumers' economic sentiment in China falls to a 15-month low this week, as personal financial sentiment ticks up in the US .

Is Shein’s Fashion Model a Template for Environmental Sustainability?. From the @RetailTechShow: #Shein claims that, through its scale and accessibility, it “enables everyone to participate in fashion and the green transition.”.

Will the closure of the US's de minimis exemption for shipments from China be a killer blow to #Shein ahead of its expected IPO and cross-border peer #Temu in the US market? We don't think so, as I discussed with @wwd .

US consumers remain firmly net-pessimistic on the new #tariffs: @CoresightNews is finding a majority of consumers expect negative impacts. And our weekly surveys have been tracking meaningful declines in US and #China consumer #sentiment since January.

As I discussed with MarketWatch, @CoresightNews has tracked declines in US consumer sentiment since mid-January, with sharper-than-average declines among higher-income consumers. The recent stock-market sell-off will likely be compounding that trend.

Amid wider volatility and declining consumer sentiment, strong e-commerce growth drove a solid month for US CPG sales in February .

Three Data Points We’re Watching This Week: Inflation, Tariffs and Consumer Sentiment .

It was good to share thoughts with the Washington Post's @hannahzziegler on the conservative guidance we're seeing from US retailers this earnings season .

Analyst Corner: US Shoppers Are Worried About Higher Prices from Tariffs—Consumer Survey Insights . Almost two-thirds of US consumers are concerned that new tariffs will mean higher prices for goods, according to @CoresightNews data .

At @CoresightNews, we tracked a decline in UK retail chain store closures in 2024. But we expect that trajectory to reverse this year, as rising costs and muted demand threaten a deleveraging of fixed store costs.

A December bump in UK retail sales took average 4Q growth to a soft 1.3%. Some positive volume growth amid much-reduced inflation vs. last year. But the holiday quarter's performance is reflective of weak consumer sentiment, and with inflationary and labour market clouds looming.

Very disappointing numbers from the ONS on UK retail sales in November, as growth shuddered to a halt in the wake of the autumn Budget. Truly a weak performance in the middle of the holiday shopping season—the UK consumer’s judgement on the tax-and-spend approach?

Hollister, M&S, Primark and #Zara (pictured) were also among the most-shopped in our #BlackFriday store visits—M&S bursting at the seams with (senior) shoppers, despite opting out of Black Friday in-store.

JD Sports again proving to be a top destination for #BlackFriday shoppers with strong demand for branded sneakers evident from the checkout lines. DJ adding to the festive atmosphere.