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This week saw a flurry of news making headlines in the retail & e-commerce industries – from the new digital store of Ulta Beauty to the big legal issues of 2023, here's what you need to know:

• The Washington Post will launch a new channel called Amazon Freevee FAST.
• Ulta Beauty is undergoing a "phased refresh" of its digital store.
• Introducing Shopify Bill Pay.
• An e-commerce expert has identified significant legal issues to monitor in 2023.

Top Retail and E-commerce Stories

Beauty Upgrade: Check Out Ulta's Digital Store Update

Photo Credit: Sopa Images | Getty Images | Retail Brew

Beauty boost! Ulta Beauty's website is getting a much-needed update. Ulta has undergone a phased refresh which has brought about a modern look and feel on its site and app. The refresh includes a better browsing experience aimed at improving the discovery of products among its 35,000 SKUs and 500 brands. To ensure customer confidence, Jeffrey Hamm, Ulta’s VP of digital experience and operations, explained that it's essential that the search process is multifaceted and goes beyond keyboards.

Learn more about this beauty upgrade here...

Beat the Clock: Shopify Introduces Shopify Bill Pay

Photo Credit: Shopify

Shopify is changing the e-commerce game with its new Shopify Bill Pay! This payment platform was developed to be an easy and efficient way to pay for goods and services, allowing merchants to pay on the spot with just a few clicks.

Shopify Bill Pay offers several features that can benefit merchants such as:

• With the Shopify admin dashboard, B2B payment can be scheduled, paid, and managed effortlessly.
• Select the option to pay with credit even if the vendor does not accept it. A
• A bill pay dashboard is available where you can filter, sort, and schedule payments for both the present and the future.
• The expense uploading process supports both emails and image uploads

Check out the full details of Shopify Bill Pay here...

Your 2023 Legal Playbook: What You Need to Know in the E-comm Space

Discover what's on the horizon for e-commerce legal issues this year. According to lawyer Robert Freund, retailers should monitor legal cases involving subscriptions, chatbots, and potentially deceptive pricing.

Chatbots are being challenged in California under a wiretapping law. According to Freund, fake sale class action lawsuits are a recurring problem for retailers and are also referred to as deceptive or false pricing. Retailers may face legal action when they falsely represent an offer's value, such as advertising a 50% discount on a product that was never sold at the originally inflated price.

For more details, read this article here...

The Amazon Corner

Goodbye to Buffering?: Get Your News in a Flash with the Washington Post & Amazon Freevee FAST

Photo Credit: ERIC BARADAT | AFP via Getty Images

It's prime time! The Washington Post is launching a new channel called Washington Post Television which will be free and supported by ads. The channel will provide breaking news, interviews, and reporting. It will also include content from Washington Post Live, which features discussions with business leaders, entertainment personalities, and authors.

Keep reading here...

A Little More

• Wayfair introduces new digital design technology.
• Amazon's revenue from its cloud services and advertising sales increased while its online business suffered a decline.
• Will digital resale platforms be able to compete with traditional resale stores?

QUICK TIP

Try this. Give your online store a personality to stand out from the competition. Use design elements such as colors, fonts, and images that reflect your brand's personality.

FUN FACT

There were losses of $41 billion due to e-commerce fraud in the year 2022.

LISTEN UP

On this 83rd episode of The E-Comm Show, our host, and BlueTuskr CEO Andrew Maff is with Ryan Satre of 3M a Fortune 500, global powerhouse that has leveraged science, innovation, and technology to produce dependable products for houses, businesses, schools, hospitals, and more. Ryan Satre, the Senior Manager of E-Commerce and Digital Business at 3M, shares his experience on how to optimize the buyer experience by leveraging purchase pathways, deep market understanding, and identifying and activating useful integrations.

Watch the full episode below, or visit TheEcommShow.com for more.