While online grocery shopping surged during the height of the pandemic, consumers this year aren’t clicking with it like they once did. The channel has lost momentum as why and what consumers are buying online has shifted, particularly as financial pressures weigh on their purchasing decisions.

The US online grocery segment brought in $7.2 billion in total sales in July, down 7% year over year, per a monthly Brick Meets Click/Mercatus Grocery Shopping Survey. This stretches across pickup, delivery, and ship-to-home at online retailers across all segments, including traditional grocers like Kroger and Publix, mass players like Walmart and Target, as well as DTC sellers like Amazon, Hello Fresh, and Thrive Market.

• While the total number of households shopping for groceries online rose 5%, order frequency dropped 10%. The total number of online orders sank almost 6%, largely attributed to a 13% dip in delivery orders. Average order value (AOV) was also down 1.5%, with the biggest drop coming from pickup.

SymphonyAI Retail CPG also recently reported, in an analysis of 58 million consumer baskets, that 52% of e-commerce grocery shoppers have left online grocery in the past year across the US and Europe.

Impacted by factors like inflation and the loss of the SNAP emergency allotments, “there’s increasing pressure on the purchasing power of households in the US,” Brick Meets Click partner David Bishop told Retail Brew. That drop in AOV could indicate shoppers downgrading to value brands or delaying purchases until a sale comes along, as well as a renewed use of online grocery for more convenience-oriented occasions.

But not all grocery retailers are seeing such a dramatic drop—and not all consumers are heading straight from their computers and phones back to the same IRL stores.

Keep reading here.—EC

Does your partnership management platform need a makeover? Are you looking to build your brand’s influence through…influencers? Get ready for a serious glow-up story.

Here are the broad strokes: impact.com burst onto the scene when they helped Sephora grow their revenue and secure the best affiliate and influencer partners. And they compiled all the details in this illuminating case study.

See for yourself. In this case study, you’ll learn how Sephora:

• generated $7.4m in revenue from 293 partners
• saw 3x revenue growth after partnering with impact.com
• gained a 101% increase in influencer and affiliate growth

See how impact.com can help you manage time better, recruit tip-top partners, build a more diversified partner mix, and streamline your workflows.

Put your best face forward with impact.com.

The American dream isn’t just for Americans. Last week, it arrived in South Korea with Supreme, the New York-based streetwear label that opened its first brick-and-mortar store in Seoul last week, and had customers lining up for days before the launch.

It’s the retailer’s largest flagship store in Asia, and its 16th store in the world.

Located in the South Korean capital’s Gangnam district and designed in partnership with London-based studio Brinkworth, the outlet features artwork such as a huge mural with characters painted by artist Rita Ackermann.

International ambitions: Although several European fashion retailers, including Gucci and Louis Vuitton, have established a presence in Seoul, Supreme boosts the number of high-end American retailers with operations in the country.

Keep reading here.—JS

On Wednesdays, we wear pink spotlight Retail Brew’s readers. Want to be featured in an upcoming edition? Click here to introduce yourself.

Hannah Lewis is CMO at Fermented Food Holdings, parent company of fermented food brands like Bubbies and Wildbrine.

How would you describe your job to someone who doesn’t work in retail? I am a steward of our portfolio of brands, tasked with sharing the legacy of a brand like Bubbies with consumers and connecting people over food that sparks conversation and connection.

One thing we can’t guess about your job from your LinkedIn profile? I can say the alphabet backwards.

What’s your favorite project you’ve worked on? I love the process of creating. Whether it is new innovation, new packaging, or a new brand completely, the art of building something that holds value for our consumers brings me joy. Creating the first new items from Bubbies kitchen—our new sweet chip flavors—has been a really awesome journey over the past year.

Which emerging retail trend are you most excited about this year, and why? Fermentation! I love that consumers are turning to food as medicine and understanding that what we eat can have a beneficial impact on how we live.

Keep reading here.—EC

Today’s top retail reads.

Big fish: How Kroger became the country’s leading sushi retailer, with 40 million pieces sold annually. (the Wall Street Journal)

Mind the shop: From locked-up shelves to understaffed checkout, the concept of “retail therapy” has faded as shopping IRL has become less enjoyable, largely a result of poor working conditions for employees. (Vox)

Spilled milk: New ads from Oatly and the California Milk Processor Board are intensifying the clash between Big Dairy and plant-based milk alternatives. (Adweek)

All hands on tech: What do John Deere, Tesla, and DirectTV have in common? They all utilize outer space technology to their advantage. Get the scoop.

Increase your influence: Sephora needed help building partnerships and streamlining workflows. So they turned to impact.com—and experienced 3x revenue growth. Check out the full case study for all the detail$.*

^{*A message from our sponsor.}