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7-Eleven tie up brings Swiftly Alcohol Cashback solution to 10,500+ convenience locations

Swiftly has announced a new collaboration with 7-Eleven in the U.S. alcohol cashback market, now available at over 10,500 stores including Speedway, leveraging its proprietary retail media and shopper engagement platform. The program offers real-time, state-specific cashback on beer, wine, and spirits through mobile offers, supporting increased loyalty and sales for both retailers and brands. Read Article ›

Americans are spending less for the holidays. Retailers are scrambling to adapt

Walmart’s 2025 Thanksgiving meal basket serves 10 people for under $40, about $4 per person, making it their most affordable yet. However, it includes only 15 items—down from 29 last year—omitting pecan pie, sweet potatoes, marshmallows, and more, reflecting a trend of smaller portions to offer discounts amid inflation and tariffs. Retailers like Target and Aldi are also cutting prices, with consumers focusing on value and discounts this holiday season. Read Article ›

Asos turns to AI stylists to win back shoppers after sales slide 12%

Asos reported a 12% sales decline for the year ending August 31, 2025, attributing the drop to cutting discounts and deterring frequent returners through new return fees and bans. To recover, Asos is deploying AI stylists via its "Styled for You" feature to personalize outfit suggestions and plans to enhance customer engagement through loyalty programs. Read Article ›

Autonomous Delivery: Inside Dave's Hot Chicken Pilot

Dave’s Hot Chicken CTO Leon Davoyan shared operational insights from their autonomous delivery pilot using drones and rovers. Key fixes include automating drone payload handoff and integrating rover deliveries with the KDS system for streamlined order management. Their drone cut typical 15-minute rides to just 60 seconds, showing potential for fresh, fast fulfillment. Read Article ›

Barry Callebaut to Optimize Recipe Development With AI, Food Analytics

Barry Callebaut is partnering with AI startup NotCo to use its proprietary food data platform to optimize recipe development around taste, texture, nutrition and sustainability, speeding innovation amid climate pressure, ingredient shortages and rising cocoa costs. The initiative extends Barry Callebaut’s multi-year digitalization roadmap, alongside its Microsoft AI-and-cloud partnership and $559 million BC Next Level investment in innovation, service, sustainability and quality. Read Article ›

Beta Utensili Selects RELEX to Strengthen Demand Forecasting

Beta Utensili, a leading Italian professional tool manufacturer, has chosen RELEX Solutions’ AI-powered demand planning tool to improve forecast accuracy, inventory optimization, and supply chain agility globally. The partnership enables granular, SKU-level forecasting that addresses seasonal, promotional, and supply constraints for over 30,000 products. Read Article ›

BJ's Wholesale Club celebrates collaboration and innovation as Simbe's Tally in-store robot turns ten

Simbe celebrated the tenth anniversary of its autonomous shelf auditing robot, Tally, with BJ’s Wholesale Club participating in the milestone. Tally, recently deployed at Harmons across 17 stores, provides real-time shelf data on product availability, pricing, and placement to enhance execution, reduce stockouts, and support associates in delivering better customer experiences. Read Article ›

Black Friday 2025 Online Sales +8.6%

U.S. online Black Friday sales reached $8.6B, up 9.4% year over year by early evening, as cautious but discount-driven shoppers favored e-commerce over in-store trips amid inflation and economic uncertainty, according to Adobe Analytics from Adobe Inc. Cyber Monday is projected to hit a record $14.2B, with elevated weekend discounts sustaining momentum. Read Article ›