This Week in Retail: eTail Boston, July retail sales, CPI

One of the biggest industry events of the year, eTail East, is coming to Boston this week, and Retail Brew is headed there to report back on the trends, best practices, and talking points circulating among the retail executives in attendance. Major companies such as Wayfair, Lowe’s, Kohl’s, BJ’s, and CVS are sending representatives, and sessions on the agenda will address topics such as AI and agentic commerce; retail media; and macro-trends such as inflation and changing customer behavior.

Here’s what else is going on in retail this week:

In industry gatherings: At the same time as eTail Boston, San Diego is hosting FreshForward this week. The event was developed with Deloitte, and this year is focused on labor challenges, consumer demand for nutritious food options, and how fresh food departments can help shoppers meet their meal needs. Major grocery chains such as Kroger, Albertsons, and Publix are participating. In addition, the Association of Retail and Consumer Professionals (ARC) is hosting its

Mastering the Unified Shopper Experience summit on Wednesday and Thursday. The “1.5-day summit” will address how to approach “category reviews” and provide a “unique lens for understanding the critical interplay between brick-and-mortar and online shopping environments.“

In data releases: There are two significant data releases dropping this week, starting with the July consumer price index on Tuesday and monthly retail sales on Friday. For background, the CPI for June showed inflation ticking up to 2.7% annually, and retail sales for that month were up 0.6% from the prior month, a higher-than-expected bump given the headwinds facing the US economy. Again, these reports could provide insight into how prices and consumers are responding to Trump’s tariff policy.