With the growth of new sales channels such as online and mobile, retailers have started asking themselves the question: What is the best way to create a consistent shopping experience no matter where the customer is coming from?

While there are obviously a number of possible answers, one popular umbrella term for the best practices that have emerged in recent years is “unified commerce.”

The term first started showing up in Google searches back in 2008, but as recently as the National Retail Federation’s Big Show earlier this year, it remained a talking point.

As one B2B e-commerce company noted in a roundup of post-conference takeaways, “there is no longer a difference between in-store and online shopping for customers. They now expect brands to offer the same level of support, inventory, product diversity, and overall experience no matter where they decide to make a purchase.”

That is just one way of summing up the concept, but as an avalanche of blog posts and industry reports can attest, a number of key ideas and tactics are gathered under the label. Here’s a breakdown of some of them.

Keep reading here.—AV

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Many blame point-of-sale touchscreens, both the stationary and handheld kind, for tipflation, the portmanteau for tipping becoming more widespread and expected tipping percentages rising. After all, it likely never occurred to many of us to give the cashier at the convenience store a tip for the Slim Jim we just purchased…until the choose-a-tip screen asked if we’d prefer to leave 15%, 20%, or 25%.

The backlash against tipflation has raged for more than a year, and the latest salvo comes from—where else?—TikTok, where Robert Calver (@robert_calver) posted a short video on May 20. In the video, he sits in a burger shop and dips a french fry into a paper ramekin of ketchup as this text appears on the screen: “New Rule: If I order standing up, I’m not tipping.”

Keep reading here.—AAN

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Yuriy Boykiv is CEO at Front Row, which works with brands like Versed, Rare Beauty, and Glow Recipe to boost their e-commerce growth.

How would you describe your job to someone who doesn’t work in retail? As the CEO of Front Row, I serve as both a visionary leader internally, guiding the organization towards its goals while upholding our core values, and externally, as a part psychologist, understanding the intricate dynamics of consumer behavior, and part client whisperer, ensuring effective communication with our partners. These dual focuses ensure that we consistently fulfill our mission of partnering with leading brands to accelerate their commerce growth globally, utilizing our capabilities and proprietary technology in designing, marketing, and distributing their products.

One thing we can’t guess about your job from your LinkedIn profile? I love soccer (football) and Arsenal FC, which serves as a personal passion driving my dedication to teamwork and strategic thinking in business.

What’s your favorite project you’ve worked on? Aside from my prior work with the US Army on special missions recruitment campaigns, since joining Front Row at the end of 2022, I’ve found immense fulfillment in unifying global teams, working cultures, and clients to amplify excellence in execution across both what we do and how we do it.

Keep reading here.—EC

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