Amazon’s annual (bi-annual?) Prime Day has consumers excited…for the most part.

More than three-quarters (76%) of Prime Day shoppers plan to spend more or the same as they did in 2021, according to an Adobe Commerce survey of 1,115 consumers that was released today.

• For reference, the average order value last year was $47.14 during the first 32 hours of the event, per Numerator.
• In total, consumers spent $11.2 billion during Prime Day 2022, which was up 7.7% from $10.4 billion in 2020.

This year, the motivations to shop vary: 56% said they shop to save money on Prime Day, while others said they’re getting a head start on holiday shopping (32%), or back-to-school shopping (23%).

Forty-three percent of consumers plan to shop for clothing and apparel during “summer holiday sales,” which “screams back-to-school,” Tory Brunker, senior director of product marketing at Adobe, told Retail Brew.

• Other top categories included home goods and home improvement (29%) and health and beauty (26%).

“The other things on here are very necessity-based, which I think speaks to how folks are feeling about the economic situation and the types of things that they’re going to leverage and spend their money on.”

Click here to read more.—KM

Target is giving makeover montages the retail treatment, offering a look at recent updates to its store and fulfillment services after notching its 1,000th store remodel this week.

The retailer’s ongoing project, which began in 2017, included 150 stores last year, with 200 total storewide remodels scheduled for this year, plus nearly 200 remodels across same-day fulfillment.

• About half of its fulfillment remodels, which include adding extra space for order pickup, are currently underway, with ~200 stores building new drive-up canopies.

Target said last year that it planned to allocate $4 billion annually both for new stores and renovations, and it’s seeing some return on that investment: Sales have risen 2%–4% within the first year at its madeover stores.

Minding the store: The retail giant is also reallocating space for Ulta, Disney, and Apple shop-in-shops—a strategy it hopes will boost sales by drawing in new shoppers—and said it’ll add more in-store Starbucks locations (current count: 1,700).

• Target Chief Growth Officer Christina Hennington told CNBC in March that stores with Ulta shop-in-shops have seen mid-teens sales boosts in beauty, along with increased spending in related categories.

But Target’s not making too many layout changes, keeping store category placement essentially the same, so customers who’ve memorized their stores won’t have to start from scratch.

Reduce, reuse, remodel: The retailer said the updates will also make stores more climate-friendly. As part of its sustainability initiative, Target Forward, it’s aiming to use natural refrigerants at all stores by 2040. Plus, it’s adding more EV-charging stations, building on the 150 locations that currently support EV charging.

+1: A Springfield, Illinois, store is one of Target’s most recent renovation projects, local outlet the State Journal-Register reported. The project is valued at just north of $2.5 million (while the parking-lot remodels come in at $72,500) with updates including wider checkout lanes and touchless bathroom hand dryers.—EC

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

But today, we’re introducing Maeve Allsup, our newest reporter.

Maeve joins us after several years at Bloomberg Industries, where she covered everything from the gig economy and Elon Musk to the fallout from California’s new consumer-privacy laws. Now that she’s joined Retail Brew, you can find her looking out for the next tech trend shaping the future of the industry. Drop her a line in the inbox to share your thoughts and say hello.

How would you describe your job to someone who doesn’t work in retail? I look for stories and insights that are unexpected and impactful, chatting with thought leaders and industry experts and breaking down often complex issues at the heart of retail’s biggest trends and changes.

One thing we can’t guess about you from your LinkedIn profile: I love hiking, camping, and all things outdoors! Growing up in Colorado will do that to you, I guess.

What’s your favorite project you’ve worked on? While reporting for Bloomberg Industries, I broke the story about California’s lawsuit against video-game giant Activision Blizzard over a toxic workplace culture. I got to follow that news with extensive coverage of workplace harassment and discrimination in the tech world, which was interesting, important, and also very close to home given that I’m based in San Francisco.

One trend you’re most excited about: The SPF comeback! Thanks in large part to Gen Z and TikTok, it seems like 2022 is the year everyone finally starts applying sunscreen daily (even people who don’t have a Gen Z sibling reminding them to reapply every few hours like I do…).

What was your favorite summer job and why? In high school and college, I spent a few summers working as a lifeguard and teaching swimming lessons at the pool in my hometown—spending the whole day outside with an unlimited supply of ice cream from the snack bar…what could be better?

What’s your go-to coffee order? Café au lait with oat milk!

Today’s top retail reads.

Keepsake: Stuck with unprecedented levels of excess inventory, retailers may start asking customers to keep returned items—even after being refunded. “They can’t afford to take back even more of it,” said Burt Flickinger, managing director of Strategic Resource Group. (CNN)

Cash in: Gen Z’s love of “late-’90s nostalgia” has the hippest generation using cash, which, “in their minds,” makes purchases “basically ‘free.’” (Bloomberg)

Mall-stalgia: At Brooklyn’s City Point mall with architecture and design critic Alexandra Lange, whose newest book digs into the history of shopping malls and their role in American cities. (Curbed)

Candid convos with industry icons: Hosted by Brew co-founder Alex Lieberman, the Imposters podcast delves deep into the personal and mental challenges some of the biggest names in biz have faced while reaching their most resounding achievements. Listen here.

Ahhhh, work travel, we’ve missed you. We love a conference, don’t you? Free food, smart people with inspiring ideas...aspirational breakfast meetings.

Which brings us to Retail Brew’s newest debut: The Sku: A Retail Brew Summit. Here’s what’s on the agenda:

• Meeting demand and maximizing profit
• Managing your organization across channels
• Creating omni-channel engagement with customer journeys
• Sustainability: Who is doing what and how?
• Using technology to drive sales

Early-bird pricing ends soon! Register now to save your seat (and some $$). Only $499 for a limited time!

Catch up on the Retail Brew stories you may have missed.

• Tequila-seltzer brand Onda lands $12.5 million in funding
• Inequity still a pressing issue for Black beauty consumers and brands: McKinsey report
• Sweetgreen wants to challenge (and reward) its loyal customers