Hello Omni Talk Fans! I hope everyone had a fantastic Labor Day weekend. Believe it or not, I attended my first-ever Renaissance Festival, and may never be the same again.
In today’s Retail Daily Minute:
- Ulta Beauty faces a social media backlash over its use of Flock’s license plate reader technology, with the retailer and vendor both staying quiet even as Flock’s own chatbot confirms the partnership.
- Costco quietly shuts down its Costco Next marketplace without any public announcement, leaving members to piece it together on Reddit.
- Amazon rolls out a wave of new Alexa for Shopping features, pushing its AI assistant further into autonomous browsing, comparing, and buying.
Plus, our latest Spotlight Series podcast with executives from Southern Glazer’s and Dematic on how one should decide whether to build new or to upgrade an existing warehouse, and a movie quote from a film that is a repeat from last week, but given the Flock headline today, I just couldn’t resist.
👇 Listen now
Today’s Top Headlines
1. Ulta Hit With Online Backlash Over Flock License Plate Readers
Ulta Beauty faced online backlash after activist group UltraViolet’s viral campaign highlighted its use of Flock automated license plate readers. A source says the cameras run at under 1% of Ulta’s roughly 1,500 stores and lack facial recognition. Flock, cited for organized retail crime use, faces rising public criticism. (Read More)
2. Costco Shuts Down Its Costco Next Marketplace Without Notice
Costco quietly shut down Costco Next, its curated online marketplace, at the end of August without notifying members. The program, running since 2017, offered discounts of up to 40% from roughly 80 third-party vendors. Costco has not explained the move and now directs return and warranty questions to individual vendors. (Read More)
3. Amazon Packs New AI Buying Features Into Alexa for Shopping
Amazon detailed new Alexa for Shopping features, including “Update Me When” release alerts, Scheduled Actions for recurring tasks, questions in the main search bar, and side-by-side comparisons from search results. The agentic assistant also offers price history, price-triggered auto-buys, and AI overviews for US shoppers. (Read More)
4. Kroger Names Mark Ibbotson as Chief Store Operations Officer
Kroger has named Mark Ibbotson Executive Vice President and Chief Store Operations Officer, effective September 14. A former Walmart EVP of Central Operations and Realty and ex-Asda COO, Ibbotson brings decades of large-scale retail and omnichannel experience. CEO Greg Foran cited his record simplifying complex operations. (Read More)
5. Temu Owner PDD Bets on Local Fulfillment as EU Adds Parcel Fee
Temu owner PDD Holdings is reworking supply chain and fulfillment to blunt the EU’s new customs duty of 3 euros on items worth 150 euros or less, in place since July 1. Co-CEO Lei Chen said the shift will hurt efficiency and costs, and that PDD will keep onboarding local merchants closer to customers, as it did in the US. (Read More)
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Be careful out there,
— Chris and the entire Omni Talk team
Omni Talk® is the retail blog for retailers, written by retailers. Chris Walton founded Omni Talk® in 2017 and have quickly turned it into one of the fastest growing blogs in retail.