Nike’s made no secret that selling DTC is the strategy for the future. But a different shoe brand might be able to help fill the gaps Nike leaves behind as that process continues.

Hoka, owned by Deckers, has seen meteoric growth post-pandemic, as runners, hikers, and weight lifters have gravitated to its more comfortable design.

• In Q3, Hoka was Decker’s strongest brand with net sales spiking 90.8% to $352.1 million on a YoY basis.
• Deckers president and CEO Dave Powers said in a statement that Hoka is one of its “healthiest” brands and is “well-positioned” in its market.

Now that Hoka’s DTC business is going strong, the company is looking to grow and scale its wholesale and retail partnerships. Some of those companies, like Foot Locker, have stated their intentions to make more shelf space for the brand, as Nike focused on its DTC strategy.

New besties: In fact, Foot Locker took notice of Hoka and proposed a partnership before the pandemic, but Steve Doolan, general manager of Hoka US, said the brand wasn’t ready for a major retail partnership at the time.

“While we certainly had a following, four, five, six years ago, within a running community, I would tell you that we still did not have a very significant awareness within just a broad cross section of consumers,” Doolan told us. “I think we’re right in saying going into Foot Locker too early would have been premature.”

But things have changed.

Fast forward to July of last year, and Hoka officially made its way into a Foot Locker store for the first time, Doolan said. He described the partnership so far as a “real success,” and the feeling seems to be mutual.

Keep reading here.—KM

And so are all your brick-and-mortar shoppers. If you’re looking for direction on how to get the most out of your foot traffic using retail media networks, look no further.

Placer.ai has been tapping into location intelligence on brick-and-mortar retail consumers—and they put their knowledge into this white paper to answer questions like:

• Is foot-traffic data relevant for online-only retail media networks?
• How can location intelligence provide visibility into hyperlocal consumer preferences?
• Why should retailers look at weekly and hourly visitation patterns to price ads?

Don’t get lost in the wrong info. Check out this white paper to map out what data you need, what that data means, and how that data can help you unlock the full potential of retail media networks.

Leave it to Tushy, the bidet brand, to persuade prospective purchasers to get off the pot.

A current promotion to Capital One credit cardholders offers them a 7% rebate as a credit to their accounts if they use the card to pay.

Such promotions—either with instant discounts or with rewards like rebates—are common, with credit card companies offering up to 100—or more—at a time.

Tushy, which promises consumers “more bang for your butt,” runs credit-card promotions regularly.

“Tushy partners with loyalty rewards programs for multiple offers throughout the year,” Miki Agrawal, founder and chief creative officer of Tushy, told us in an email.

Tushy is a good place to start when it comes to getting to the bottom of something, and in this case, that something is credit-card rewards offers. How do they come together? What’s the real value for retailers? And why are credit card companies so gung ho?

Calling card: Hemal Nagarsheth, a partner in the financial services practice of global strategy and management consulting firm Kearney, told Retail Brew credit-card reward offers aren’t a hard sell for credit card companies because of how symbiotic the promotions can be.

“It’s supposed to be a win-win-win,” Nagarsheth said. “Consumers win because they get a discount. The merchant wins because now they were able to get a newer customer.”

But the biggest winner may be the credit card companies themselves.

Keep reading here.—AAN

Retail executives think increased spending on technology will help them reach both operations and sustainability goals, a new report from IBM and the Consumer Goods Forum says.

According to the April 12 report, which included responses from more than 1,800 industry executives in 23+ countries, three in five retail organizations are “purposefully aligning sustainability and operations goals.”

And while 61% say targets for sustainability and operations are already mostly aligned, the majority of respondents feel their organizations need to change how they measure and monitor progress, in part because of “siloed” operations.

To do that, retailers are looking to data-driven technology, the report says. On average, surveyed executives said they plan to increase spending on technology by 34% in the next three years, in areas including automation, analytics, and AI, among others.

Keep reading here.—MA

Today’s top retail reads.

Cold cuts: Inside the downward spiral of America’s once-favorite sandwich chain—told through court documents, charitable filings, and financial disclosures—which involved Subway’s billionaire owners lining their own pockets and those of their foundations. (Forbes)

Beauty sells: Youthforia founder and CEO Fiona Co Chan opens up about her stint on Shark Tank and the brand’s recently closed seed round. (Beauty Independent)

Buddy system: How retailers and beauty brands find each other, and how this symbiotic partnership can flourish. (Business of Fashion)

A roundup of our favorite retail multimedia content from across platforms this week—from TikTok to Twitter. We’re keeping you hip, and you’re welcome.

RT: Web3 investor Li Jin got to try out the first public project from Blackbird Labs, a blockchain-based loyalty program created by the founder of Eater and Resy. Williamsburg diner Gertie is using Blackbird’s tech to power a new “friends and family” rewards program. (@ljin18 on Twitter)

Double tap: Discarded items from your favorite fast fashion brands may be in a heap of clothes in the Chilean desert. (@natgeo on Instagram)

Make your day: HBO’s Succession is bringing “quiet luxury” into the public eye. Former luxury buyer Ivanka Dekoning explains exactly what quiet luxury is all about, and its unique place in the retail world. (@ivanka.dekoning on TikTok)

Tune in: Guy Raz interviews Halo Top founder Justin Woolverton about the massive success of the low-calorie ice cream recipe he developed in his Cuisinart. (How I Built This with Guy Raz on Spotify)

Link up: Trove rounds up the biggest resale news in its newsletter The Resale Edit. In this week’s edition: ThredUp’s latest report, American Eagle’s brand resale program, plus Poshmark’s live shopping pilot. (Trove on LinkedIn)

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

• How AI-powered automation is transforming warehouse work
• It’s not just secondhand clothes Gen Z and other consumers want
• How the 2023 Farm Bill could impact the food industry