On this week's Modern Retail Rundown: President Biden signed a bill that requires TikTok to either sell itself or face a U.S. ban. Next, the team discusses Saks' newly announced retail media network — and why it's a growing trend among retailers. Lastly, we dive into a new Amazon grocery subscription service that caters to low-income families.

Every brand talks about paths to profitability, but few actually reach it. Customizable beauty brand Prose is one company that has bucked the trend and reached meaningful profitability. The company has made nearly $500 million since launching in 2018 and estimates it will bring in $160 million this year. What's more, this year the company is on track to be profitable, after hitting profitability last May as well for the entire third quarter of 2023. At the Modern Retail Commerce Summit, held...

Digiday Media's WorkLife is proud to present season three of The Return, a podcast about the modern workforce, with this season focused on middle management. Last season, we heard what it’s like for Gen Z to enter the workforce for the first time in a post-pandemic world. We highlighted themes like why values are so important to Gen Zers, whether or not they are loyal to their employers, how they use TikTok for career advice, what it means to be a young professional who is a boss to older...

This week on the Modern Retail Rundown: After less than a year of relaunching its virtual workout app, Peloton quietly got rid of the free membership tier because it wasn't converting users into paying customers. Meanwhile, Lego's adult customer base continues to grow as adults buy up its newer intricate and more expensive sets. Finally, after doing away with its Just Walk Out technology at its own grocery stores, Amazon plans to sell it to other retailers.

Violife is trying to become the Oatly of plant-based cheese. The brand, which launched in 2013, is part of the Greek plant-based food company Arivia. But it didn't hit U.S. shelves until 2015. Since then, Violife has taken off. It is now the number one plant-based cheese in the world -- and it continues to roll out new products to continue its growth streak. According to Violife's global president and chief growth officer Olga Osminkina-Jones, the current strategy is to make plant-based...

On this week’s Modern Retail Rundown: PepsiCo-owned Gatorade is adding more hydration SKUs that resemble Liquid I.V. and Prime. Meanwhile, department store retailers face yet another hurdle: A new law that limits payment late fees can hurt credit card revenue for retailers like Macy's and Kohl's. Lastly, Bark just announced Bark Air, a new airline program that offers pets and their owners a more comfortable flying experience.

Every beauty startup these days describes itself as a clean beauty brand, but skin-care brand Kopari was ahead of the curve. "It's definitely table stakes now," said CEO Susan Kim. But, it wasn't always that way. "The way I think about clean is that back in 2015, it was a differentiator," Kim said. And that's what helped Kopari -- which makes products including cleansers, moisturizers, sunscreen and deodorant -- grow into the profitable brand it is today, with revenue growing 45% in 2023. Kim...

On this week's Modern Retail Rundown: Ulta's latest performance shows that beauty sales may finally be decelerating. Retailers like Express, Peloton and Saks have reportedly been late on paying their vendors -- indicating cash flow issues. Finally, there was drama in the food startup space as Momofuku gets litigious with competitors.

It's been a tough few years for roll-up companies, but Pattern Brands seems to have bucked the trend. The company -- which began as design agency Gin Lane and evolved into a portfolio of DTC brands including Open Spaces, Onsen and Gir -- raised a $25 million Series B in 2022 -- and has been slowly building out its portfolio ever since. While other roll-up players like Thrasio and Win Brands Group have faced major headwinds, Pattern has continued chugging along. Its co-founder and chief...

This week: H&M inches toward profitability under its new CEO, with the company planning to focus on cost-cutting and competing for price-conscious fast-fashion customers. Next, we also look at a Bloomberg story analyzing why being picked as Wirecutter's top wok ended up overwhelming the small shop that carries the product. Lastly, Dollar Tree announced plans to raise prices on select items to lure its growing high-income customer base.

Sunday wants to be the DTC brand that powers everyone's backyard. The company first launched in 2019 with lawn care products, but has since expanded to pest control and garden products. While it's available in major retailers like Costco, Walmart, Lowe's and Target, Sunday's business is still 75% direct-to-consumer. "To be the outdoor home platform that we want to be, we really need to be able to be across these categories," founder and CEO Coulter Lewis said on the Modern Retail Podcast. He...

This week’s Modern Retail Rundown includes a check-in on Nordstrom, with news of the founding family allegedly looking to take the department store private. We also delve into Unilever's ice cream division -- which includes the Ben & Jerry's and Magnum brands -- which may be spun off into a separate company. Lastly, we discuss reports of Shein pivoting into supply chain services.

Accessory brand Ridge, best known for its wallets, is getting closer and closer to a $1 billion exit. CEO Sean Frank has been saying this for years but thinks the option may come sooner rather than later. "If I want to sell for $1 billion, you need $100 million in adjusted EBITA, or we need roughly $50 million in net income," he said. "I think next year, we'll probably get to $50 million in net income." Frank joined the Modern Retail Podcast and spoke about the company's growth as well as the...

This week on the Modern Retail Rundown: The Body Shop filed for bankruptcy and announced it's closing down all U.S. operations. In a surprise move, Outdoor Voices is also closing all its stores -- with plans to remain an online-only DTC brand. This week also saw a number of C-suite shakeups across apparel and footwear, including Allbirds and Under Armour announcing new CEOs.

Rocco is a DTC mini-fridge company that wants to make people care about the big hunks of steel electronics they have in their homes. "Appliance brands don't actually have a brand," said Alyse Borkan, co-founder of Rocco. "I really saw an opportunity to do things differently than [what] the rest of the category was doing." Borkan joined this week's Modern Retail Podcast and spoke about her new brand and how she's hoping to compete with the big players like Frigidaire. Rocco launched last...

This week's Modern Retail Rundown show kicks off with a breakdown of Harry's long road to IPO, with the company reportedly filing to go public years after previous acquisition plans fell through. Meanwhile, furniture retailer Ashley announced it's acquiring Resident Home, a mattress group whose brands include DTC companies Nectar, DreamCloud, Awara and Siena. Abercrombie & Fitch, on the other hand, is projected to bring in $5 billion in annual revenue by growing its young customer base...

Sustainability has become such a big buzzword in retail, but Époque Evolution co-founder Nancy Taylor thinks there's a better word for the work that needs to be done. "I was truly passionate about trying to do things in the responsible way," she said. "So we took the word sustainable out of it and we used the word responsible." That word has guided the Époque Evolution business since it launched in 2018 as a direct-to-consumer fashion brand. Her company was acquired by the Montreal-based...

This week’s Modern Retail Rundown includes a breakdown of Thrasio's bankruptcy protection filing and the future of the Amazon aggregator's business model. Additionally, Warby Parker wants to eventually open 900 stores as the digitally-native brand has leaned on physical retail for growth. Last, we chat about Celsius Drinks' milestone of becoming a billion billion-dollar energy drink company.

In Shannon Nash's opinion, 2024 is the "year of the drone." Nash may be biased, as she's the CFO of Wing, the Alphabet-owned drone delivery company that's currently being trialed by companies like Walmart and DoorDash. But there is some data to back this up. For one, Wing announced an expanded partnership with Walmart in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. What's more, recent changes to FAA regulations will likely make it easier for the company to test out other areas. Nash joined this week's Modern...

Every week on the Modern Retail Rundown, we cover the latest headlines from the retail world. This week, the team discusses Reddit’s S-1 drop, meaning the social platform -- which launched in 2005 -- is finally going public after years of speculation. Also, a look at Beyond Meat’s new game plan to turn around weak sales, which includes launching lower fat, higher protein products faux meat burgers and scaling back China operations. Lastly, an update on Macy’s proxy fight by activist investor...

True, Taylor Swift made friendship bracelets popular thanks to her song "You're on your own, kid." But the brand Little Words Project has been making friendship bracelets long before Swifties adopted them in full force. Little Words Project launched in 2013 as a quasi-side hustle of founder Adriana Carrig. But the project soon turned into a standalone business. Fast forward to today, Little Words Project has 12 stores around the U.S., is profitable and has hit a revenue run rate of over $20...

Every week on the Modern Retail Rundown, we cover the latest headlines from the retail world. On this week’s show, we take a look at Express’ financial status in light of mounting debt and potential bankruptcy reports. Next, online returns rate continue growing among retailers – as highlighted by a story in The Cut this week -- and it's leading some brands to ban shoppers with a penchant for returning products. Finally, Walmart is reportedly interested in buying Vizio -- which could mean more...

The Goods Mart is trying to update the convenience store experience while not falling into the trappings of the so-called shoppy shops.| The store -- which first launched in 2018 and currently has three different locations in Manhattan -- features a variety of better-for-you snacks like snack bars, coffee and other beverages. The locations are very small. Some are only 400 square feet. The idea is to create a new type of quick-service store that may look updated with startup brands, but...

Every week on the Modern Retail Rundown, we cover the latest headlines from the retail world. This week Gap Inc. announced it’s bringing on designer Zac Posen as creative director to help revamp its brands, with a big focus on Old Navy. Next, a look at why Target is currently weighing a new Walmart+-like membership program to attract more loyalty, according to a Bloomberg report. Finally, Tapestry, the owner of Coach, Kate Spade and Stuart Weitzman, posted some positive results in its most...