📦 The Order : Weekly Roundup - Alexa+ & Shop Circle
Issue #204
Happy Sunday,
Here’s a quick roundup of last week’s news:
Chart of the Week:
US consumer spending posts first drop in almost two years [Reuters]:
Announcement of the Week: Alexa+
Amazon announced an Alexa revamp. Andrew Bell digs into its interplay with Rufus and what it means for listings (TL;DR: Rufus optimization means Alexa optimization).
Along those lines, check out you see Scott Rafer’s post on ‘The Death of Discovery (aka Reintermediation: Marketplace Edition” — or what it takes to survive product discover when AI models (like Gemini, Rufus, or the new Alexa) are orchestrating choices:
Movers & Shakers 🙌
Shop Circle raises $60M to encircle e-commerce with an app suite [Techcrunch]
IPO Readiness? “Commercetools, a pioneer in 'headless commerce', lays off dozens of staff “ [TechCrunch]
Strategy ♟
Introducing Alexa+, the next generation of Alexa [Amazon]
Key data announcement: Search Query Performance Data now available via API [Linkedin]
Amazon eyes global expansion for its Temu, Shein competitor [CNBC]
Software Aggregators Thrive While Amazon Aggregators Falter [Marketplace Pulse]
How creator-affiliate platform ShopMy is carving out a bigger share of the social shopping pie [Modern Retail]
eTail West Briefing: Fabletics’ big bet on video, J.Crew’s AI review summaries and more Day 2 highlights [Modern Retail]
Job Opportunities 👩💻
Double Wood Supplements: Amazon eCom manager for $100M+ supplements brand [LinkedIn]
Events Spotlight - Join us in Las Vegas ! 🎭
Join Smartscout & Autopilot in Las Vegas on Mar 26 7pm around Prosper/MDS/Shoptalk — get your tickets here (code AUTOPILOT gets you $50 off!)
Events 🎤
Prosper Show, Mar 25-27 in Las Vegas
Shoptalk, Mar 25-27 in Las Vegas
Make this week count 🙌
Christian