We asked our reporters, who play so well with others, to choose a favorite story from 2024 by a Retail Brew colleague.

The latest addition to the Retail Brew team, Vidhi Choudhary, got a running start earlier this year taking on the e-commerce and retail media beats.

Since then, she’s tackled everything from back-to-school spending trends to the rollout of Amazon Haul. But in my favorite story from her this year, she explores how a seemingly small change in the length of the holiday season had ripple effects across the industry. With fewer overall days between Thanksgiving and Christmas, Vidhi reported, shipping companies were forced to innovate to ensure their deliveries arrived on time.

Here’s an excerpt:

The shorter holiday season could impact everything from marketing strategies to discounting for retailers. However, on-time deliveries are in many ways the North Star metric for companies to gauge success. Logistics experts told us retailers will rely more on technology, look for ways to ship on Sundays, and push to deliver goods ahead of the peak season.

Some workarounds highlighted in the piece include shipping products on Sundays and asking customers with subscription boxes if they are okay receiving their monthly order early.

Read the original story: Shipping companies are looking for workarounds to combat fewer days for delivery this holiday season—AV

Earlier this month, Vidhi also wrote about Amazon Haul and its impact, or lack thereof, on holiday shopping this year:

Packages from Amazon’s discounted store, Haul, have started arriving for early adopters.

Derek Lossing, founder and senior industry advisor at Cirrus Global, told Retail Brew that his first Amazon Haul package arrived at his Seattle home on Nov. 25, 11 days after he placed the order. The brown paper package came from China and was delivered via USPS.

…Lossing is among a growing list of shoppers who will use Amazon Haul to buy inexpensive goods online. With Haul, Amazon is saying that online shopping for slightly unusual, low-cost products sourced from China is here to stay.

Read the whole story here.—VC

These were our most-read stories about retail marketing in 2024:

• With Kamala Harris dominating headlines, her favorite sneakers are having a moment
• How Crocs and Claire’s became ‘cool’ again
• Inside the creative process and strategy behind the Pepsi Smart Can
• A four-decade compendium of retail brands’ April Fools’ pranks
• How Mars is modernizing its marketing strategy
• Mass beauty brands are going premium as the gap between channels narrows
• New immersive shopping experience lets you shop at a secret NYC mansion inspired by Bruce Wayne
• It’s Summerween, and retailers are jumping on the bandwagon
• At NRF, execs from H&M, McDonald’s, and Spotify decode what digital strategies work best for Gen Z
• Lowe’s new CMO on shifting customer loyalties and big challenges