The marketplace of Shein continues to expand its seller network in Europe: in Germany alone, more than 600 sales partners are now active. This marks a shift from a pure private-label model towards a more open marketplace with a growing merchant base. At the same time, in France, the government also failed in its second attempt to temporarily suspend the marketplace following...
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Zalando expects adjusted EBIT of €660-740 million in 2026, up from €591 million in 2025. This would represent 12-25% growth. The company is also optimistic about trading volume: GMV is expected to grow by 12-17%, building on €17.6 billion in 2025. Zalando cites the increasing use of AI in areas such as product imagery and virtual try-ons as a key driver,...
Just five months after entering Agentic Commerce with its Instant Checkout, OpenAI is already pulling the plug. It appears that while users research products via ChatGPT, they do not use the bot to complete purchases. However, OpenAI may be giving up too quickly: changing established user behaviour requires persistence - and, of course, the necessary investments.
Roblox has overtaken TikTok as the fastest-growing commerce channel among Generation Z. The platform is increasingly evolving into a relevant sales environment for both digital and physical products. Community-driven interaction and virtual experiences are becoming direct revenue drivers.
After 17 years, Amazon has dethroned retail chain Walmart: With around $717 billion in annual revenue, Amazon is now the highest-revenue company in the United States. However, Amazon’s growth today stems less from retail and more from its comprehensive ecosystem of platform, logistics, cloud business, and advertising.
In 2025, TikTok Shop grew at a rapid pace. According to estimates, its GMV doubled year over year to reach $64 billion. After its home market China, the largest markets are the United States ($15 billion), Indonesia ($13 billion), and Thailand ($11.5 billion). In Europe, only the UK is currently significant, with a GMV of $2.4 billion.
Germany’s competition authority has prohibited Amazon from influencing how third-party sellers set prices on Amazon.de through internal platform controls. Amazon may no longer enforce price caps via algorithms, nor apply indirect price parity by penalising visibility.
Amazon is reportedly in talks with OpenAI about an investment of up to $50 billion. OpenAI is seeking a total of around $100 billion in fresh capital. SoftBank also said to be among the potential investors. OpenAI has also set the price for its new ads on ChatGPT at $60 per 1,000 impressions. That's about three times as much as Meta.
OpenAI is making its “ChatGPT Instant Checkout” a paid service and charging a 4% sales commission - initially from Shopify merchants. The reason for this is the high pressure to monetize due to the high investments. At the same time, OpenAI is changing the retail landscape: those who don't pay lose convenience and thus sales - a clear signal that agentic...
Google has introduced a new open standard called the Universal Commerce Protocol (UPC). Its goal is to accelerate the AI-platform shift in commerce by standardizing processes such as product search and checkout via AI bots. Platforms and retailers including Walmart, Etsy, Shopify, Shopee, Carrefour, Target, Macy’s, and Wayfair were involved in its development, as they seek to secure their position within the customer journey.