Consumer Trends

  • Exterior of Dollar General store in York, Pennsylvania
    Image attribution tooltip
    Sam Silverstein/Retail Dive
    Image attribution tooltip

    Dollar General revenue grows, but tariffs begin impacting prices

    The retailer, which noted shrink improvements helped Q2 gross profit, reported growth with consumers across income brackets.

    By • Aug. 28, 2025
  • A quotation mark on a blue background.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Kendall Davis/Retail Dive
    Image attribution tooltip
    Podcast

    The Backroom: Bankruptcy court is in session

    Debtwire’s global head of legal, Sarah Foss, and Retail Dive Senior Reporter Daphne Howland discuss retailer bankruptcies – in 2025 and beyond.

    By Retail Dive Staff • Aug. 28, 2025
  • A woman puts clothing into an RFID self-checkout kiosk Explore the Trendline➔
    Image attribution tooltip
    Thai Liang Lim via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip
    Trendline

    How retailers are thinking about in-store experience

    Complementary shop-in-shops, age-appropriate experiences and integrated technology are just a few ways retailers are reworking stores to suit shoppers.

    By Retail Dive staff
  • Cosmetic and beauty products
    Image attribution tooltip
    Prostock-Studio via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Mass beauty outpaces prestige in the first half of 2025

    Fragrance was the fastest-growing category in the mass channel, with dollar sales up 17%.

    By Howard Ruben • Aug. 27, 2025
  • A customer holds a box in her hands in an aisle of toys at a big box retailer.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Scott Olson via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Consumer confidence dips on anxiety about jobs, income

    The average 12-month expectation for inflation jumped to 6.2% this month from 5.7% in July, the Conference Board found in a consumer survey.

    By Jim Tyson • Aug. 27, 2025
  • Consumer making an online purchase
    Image attribution tooltip
    ArtistGNDphotography via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip
    Sponsored by DHL

    Rethinking eCommerce returns as a value driver

    Transform eCommerce returns from costly headaches into profit opportunities with strategic supply chain solutions that enhance customer experience while protecting your bottom line.

    By Lars R. Dzedek, Global Head of Returns and Circularity at DHL Supply Chain • Aug. 25, 2025
  • A Home Depot storefront in Oxon Hill, Maryland on June 22, 2024.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Neal McNeil via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Home Depot sales up nearly 5% in Q2, reaffirms full-year outlook

    The home improvement retailer notched a 1% comp sales gain, below analysts’ estimates, as consumers take on fewer large discretionary projects.

    By • Aug. 19, 2025
  • A Hoka storefront in Los Angeles
    Image attribution tooltip
    Cara Salpini/Retail Dive
    Image attribution tooltip

    Active footwear a bright spot in the first half of the year

    Nevertheless, a Circana report found U.S. footwear sales fell 1% from January to June, with the fashion and outdoor categories leading the declines.

    By • Aug. 19, 2025
  • Ulta shop-in-shop at Target
    Image attribution tooltip
    Courtesy of Target
    Image attribution tooltip

    Target and Ulta’s ‘conscious uncoupling’

    A shop-in-shop deal ends as both companies get back to retail basics. Analysts weigh in on the move while Bank of America downgraded Target.

    By • Aug. 18, 2025
  • A Walmart storefront showcases its refreshed brand identity, with a new typeface and the spark logo set apart as a standalone asset.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Permission granted by Walmart
    Image attribution tooltip
    Column

    The Weekly Closeout: Walmart settles $5.6M lawsuit, Target drops Halloween assortment

    The consumer protection lawsuit alleged the mass retailer overcharged customers, while products from Target's spooky collection start at $1.

    By Retail Dive Staff • Aug. 15, 2025
  • A person holds multiple shopping bags and a coffee cup.
    Image attribution tooltip
    FreshSplash via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Over half of holiday shoppers plan to use AI to compare prices, search for products

    Consumers are shopping earlier and leveraging AI tools to find the best deals amid a holiday season clouded with economic uncertainty, per a new report.

    By Tatiana Walk-Morris • Aug. 14, 2025
  • Sydney Sweeney poses for American Eagle
    Image attribution tooltip
    Courtesy of American Eagle
    Image attribution tooltip
    Deep Dive

    How to win back-to-school marketing as American Eagle’s big bet blows up

    Though spending forecasts are bleak, value-focused messaging and smart social media plays could help brands transcend the turbulence. 

    By Jessica Hammers • Aug. 13, 2025
  • The Lego Brand logo is seen at the store.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Leon Neal via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    After 3 years of consistency, toy prices are on the rise

    The industry is showing strength, as consumers are anticipating even higher prices, according to a Circana report.

    By Tatiana Walk-Morris • Aug. 11, 2025
  • Image of various products
    Image attribution tooltip
    Permission granted by PA Consulting
    Image attribution tooltip
    Sponsored by PA Consulting

    The Brand Impact Index 2025: How today’s leading brands shape a better future

    We asked consumers what keeps them loyal. Our research shares the secrets from the top performing brands and how they keep up with changing consumer demand. 

    By Jorge Aguilar • Aug. 11, 2025
  • The name "claire's" in lowercase block letters adorns the gray, corrugated-metal side as well as the slatted-wood front of a storefront overhang.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Daphne Howland/Retail Dive
    Image attribution tooltip

    Why Claire’s is closing 700 US stores, mulling liquidation

    If a buyer doesn’t come forward, and some analysts doubt any will, the retailer is prepared to wind down its operations in North America.

    By • Aug. 7, 2025
  • Mountaineer Aron Ralston recreates his harrowing real-life experience trapped between a boulder in an ad for Columbia Sportswear.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Permission granted by Columbia Sportswear
    Image attribution tooltip

    Columbia slams ‘pristine’ outdoors marketing with new brand platform

    Part of a broader strategy to attract younger consumers, “Engineered for Whatever” leverages dark humor and grit to show off the brand’s gear.

    By Peter Adams • Aug. 6, 2025
  • Three customers shop at a Target store.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Courtesy of Target
    Image attribution tooltip

    Retail buyers are reacting to tariffs with AI and early orders

    A Deloitte report found the industry is using the tech to navigate a shifting trade environment — and making holiday buys two months earlier than last year.

    By • Aug. 6, 2025
  • Sign for Kittery Maine
    Image attribution tooltip
    "Sign for Kittery Maine" by Mr.TinMD is licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0
    Image attribution tooltip

    Traffic to Simon malls is down along the US border, despite the weak dollar

    Otherwise, visits to the REIT’s malls are up slightly compared to last year, CEO David Simon told analysts.

    By • Aug. 5, 2025
  • A store with pink neon signs featuring a Labubu toy monster on the front.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Robert Way via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Labubus, Gen Z and the collection obsession

    The adorable tiny monster that’s taken over social media feeds speaks to a larger phenomenon of the need for trending trinkets.

    By • Aug. 4, 2025
  • A large, lit-up sportswear store at night.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Courtesy of Adidas
    Image attribution tooltip

    Adidas poised to grab market share this year as Nike falters

    Shein, Uniqlo, Skechers and New Balance are also projected to broaden their share of the apparel space, according to GlobalData analysis.

    By • Aug. 1, 2025
  • A woman in pink and white clothes lounges at a table covered in pink desserts and fruit.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Courtesy of Victoria's Secret
    Image attribution tooltip

    Victoria’s Secret’s Pink goes after Gen Z with LoveShackFancy collab

    The move builds on a larger effort to attract young shoppers by dedicating more in-store space to Pink and broadening that banner’s apparel assortment.

    By Tatiana Walk-Morris • July 31, 2025
  • A quotation mark on a blue background.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Kendall Davis/Retail Dive
    Image attribution tooltip
    Podcast

    The Backroom: What’s next for Target?

    Join Retail Dive reporters Daphne Howland and Dani James for a discussion about the mass retailer’s unique history, the ups and downs of its differentiation, and where it may be headed.

    By Retail Dive Staff • July 31, 2025
  • Samuel L. Jackson for Adidas Originals
    Image attribution tooltip
    Courtesy of Adidas
    Image attribution tooltip

    Adidas braces for $230M tariff hit in the back half of the year

    Nevertheless, the sportswear giant maintained its outlook and said it has yet to see consumer demand weaken.

    By • July 30, 2025
  • Person sits on a couch shopping on an iPad next to a Christmas tree.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Anchiy via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Shoppers to go into credit card debt, use BNPL to afford the holidays

    U.S. consumers aren’t shifting away from spending, but they are strategically approaching how to afford purchases, according to a new report. 

    By Tatiana Walk-Morris • July 29, 2025
  • People walking toward a Macy's store.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Daphne Howland/Retail Dive
    Image attribution tooltip

    Macy’s brings back ‘Black Friday in July’ sale

    In addition to deals on clothing, accessories and beauty products, the department store is also dropping a curated selection of holiday items.

    By Howard Ruben • July 25, 2025
  • Mattel recently opened the first Uno Social Club in Las Vegas at the Palms Casino Resort.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Courtesy of Mattel
    Image attribution tooltip

    Mattel to keep roughly half of US toys below $20

    Even as net sales fell 6% in Q2, the company’s CEO doesn’t see consumers as any more price sensitive compared to a year ago.

    By • July 25, 2025