DTC Dispatch #018

LATEST NEWS

Abercrombie & Fitch launches ‘The A&F Wedding Shop’

Dubbed 'The A&F Wedding Shop,’ the center of the collection is a selection of dresses, ranging from fun and bold to elegant and formal, catering to guests and brides alike. Beyond dresses, the collection features a wide range of celebratory attire, including bikinis, pajamas, pantsuit separates, skirts, crochet-style cover-ups, and more.

The collection is now available in Abercrombie stores and online at abercrombie.com, with pieces priced between $80 and $150. Notably, the collection launches in Abercrombie's fit-inclusive size and length range.

Our take: Abercrombie & Fitch has taken Gen Z by storm and become trendy again, they are expanding their casual everyday wear into wedding attire. Not only will they have a collection for wedding attire, they also have a range of celebratory attire from swimsuits to pajamas for the big day. This will attract younger audiences, and consumers who are loyal to the brand’s everyday wear. It will be interesting to see if other fashion brands will expand into wedding wear as well.

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Gen Z wants to ‘turn off’ TikTok Shop, as beauty brands test the waters

Gen Z doesn’t like TikTok Shop. 

That’s according to an on-stage discussion between Jeremy Lowenstein, CMO of makeup brand Milani, and a group of Gen Zers known as the Z Suite, at the eTail West conference on February 27. The Z Suite, compiled by Berns Communications Group, serves as a focus group for retail, consumer and technology companies. 

“None of them want TikTok Shop,” Lowenstein said, calling out highlights from the panel session. “They wish they could turn it off on their For You page.”

During the talk, when asked about their beauty retailer of choice, the panelists chose Sephora or Amazon over TikTok Shop, stressing their dislike for the latter. 

Our take: Gen Z is bringing back ‘what’s old is new again,’ and that mindset stands when it comes to consuming and purchasing goods. They want the out-of-home and in-person experiences, rather than just solely purchasing online. Gen Zers are also extremely knowledgeable when it comes to beauty, and they want to see and try out products before they purchase them. Beauty brands need to recognize their target audiences and market to them where they are. TikTok shop has seen a lot of success in Millenials and in Gen Zers in other categories, but beauty brands may need to market elsewhere.

Target to launch its own version of Amazon Prime, starting at $49/year

During Target’s investor event on Tuesday, the retail giant announced it is launching a paid membership program, Target Circle 360, on April 7 to compete with rivals Amazon and Walmart. The subscription tier includes unlimited same-day delivery for orders over $35 and two-day shipping, along with other perks like exclusive partnerships and product offerings. The same-day delivery is provided by Target’s delivery service Shipt, which the company acquired in 2017.

Target Circle 360 acts as the paid version of its loyalty program Target Circle, which has existed since 2019. The company is relaunching the program to make it more personalized for members, such as automatic discounts and personalized deals. Additionally, it’s renaming Target RedCard credit and debit cards to Target Circle, which will now give customers an extra 5% off purchases.

In terms of pricing for the new subscription, Target is offering a promotional rate of $49 a year until May 18. It’ll then cost $99 per year. However, if you have a Target Circle card, it will still cost $49.

Our take: Target’s roll out of their paid membership is way later than its competitors, and may be due to continuing to see a decline in overall sales. Both Amazon and Walmart see success in their paid membership programs, and Target is hoping the model will work for them as well. Will Target’s new program take consumers away from Amazon and Walmart’s membership programs? Or will Targets membership program be Target loyal customers?

How retailers are using generative AI right now

When it comes to artificial intelligence, it’s hard sometimes to separate hype from reality. While there are plenty of industry leaders who believe the tech is going to be a game changer, there are others who urge caution, like Amazon Web Services CEO Adam Selipsky, who recently warned an audience of tech workers that the hype could lead to a new dotcom bubble.

It helps that the conversation isn’t strictly speculative anymore. A number of companies are rolling out AI-powered tech applications right now—and that’s no less true for retailers. The industry has been quick to adapt generative AI in particular, which is the use of algorithms to create content ranging from a customer service interaction to a product description.

Our take: There are many ways that retailers can put generative AI into practice in real time, such as in customer service, smart search, or content creation. Over the next few years, GenAI is going to be a buzz worthy topic of discussion when it comes to marketing. There is going to be guidelines and rules in place for how far GenAI can go before it is deceptive or misconstrued. We will continue to see retailers utilize the technology, but wearily.