SUSTAINABILITY

Testing your metal

John Borg, founder and CEO of Eco Imprints and Steelys Drinkware, has been selling reusable straws for more than a decade, as one of the first wholesale suppliers. The early years were slow. In 2008, Borg had just a handful of restaurant clients and regulars. But one viral sea turtle would change everything. 

“That video became a turning point that resonated with people,” he told Retail Brew. Straws would go on to become a rallying cry for sustainability and a symbol of corporate “activism.”

Remember when? The year is 2018. Your Facebook newsfeed serves up a devastating video of a sea turtle with a plastic straw puncturing its nose. The internet voices are telling you to cut your straws into small pieces before recycling them. (You’re confused by this roundabout solution, but sure.) Celebrities join the #StopSucking campaign against single-use straws. People start touting the benefits of metal sippers, cities pass plastic bans, and Starbucks rolls out new “sippy cup” tops. 

But with all the fundamental changes needed to make the food and beverage industry truly sustainable, why straws? 

“It was something that caught people's attention, and from a retailer or restaurant point of view, it was easy to make that change,” Kearney Consumer Institute Lead Katie Thomas told Retail Brew. 

• Giants like Disney, American Airlines, Hilton, Hyatt, and Marriott International quickly promised to ban (or “limit”) plastic straws.
• Meanwhile, a portion of Starbucks’s $1 billion Sustainability Bond went to replacing plastic straws with “greener” (but still plastic) cups. 
• Borg’s company sold more than a million steel straws by 2019.

“Straws are, in the grand scheme of plastic pollution, a drop in the bucket,” Borg admitted. “But it’s low-hanging fruit.” An estimated 8.8 million tons of plastic spill into the oceans every year. Straw bans have hardly made a dent.

Slipped up: Yet, just as fast as our paper straws turned soggy, the “movement” became a fad. By 2019, metal straws were deemed a “fatal” hazard (plus: hard to clean, inconvenient, and inconsequential). Thomas put it bluntly: “What you're seeing now is the death of metal straws.”

“The reason these things don't stick is precisely because...consumers don't want to have a less functional product,” she said. “There's a threshold.”

• That’s one reusable lesson for the new crop of sustainable straw startups.  

Click here to read more about the reusables vying for space in your cup.—JG

PAYMENTS

Split it out

The new stomping ground for buy now, pay later? Stores. 

Splitit is extending its installment payments to IRL retail for the first time.

• Splitit InStore (say that three times fast) has already signed up 200+ merchants, including La-Z-Boy and Fabergé. Plus, the platform added Apple Pay and Google Pay.
• Afterpay stepped into stores last fall.

The promise: to help retailers usher in the return to in-store shopping, and help consumers buy more things, more frequently, with more ease. 

“The number one benefit we provide brands is converting more browsers to buyers,” CEO Brad Paterson told Retail Brew. 

• Splitit taps into a customer’s existing line of credit vs. issuing a new one, which is the standard for traditional BNPL platforms. And the company says it charges retailers for the service—not shoppers. 

Why jeweled eggs and recliners? Luxury products and higher-priced goods “[don’t] typically suit your normal tap-and-go purchase,” Paterson said. “It’s a considered purchase.” In other words, you probably won’t splash out on a $10,000 diamond egg online, but an in-store retail associate might talk you into it.

The unknown: Splitit’s other InStore brand partners include LaserAway, Gem Shopping Network, and KEF. But, out of the people who can afford laser hair removal, rare jewels, and high-tech speaker setups, how many of them realistically need to “pay later”?—JG, KM

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BEAUTY

Freshening up

After a year of makeup-free isolation, beauty is back—and Glossier is ready.

The beauty brand landed an $80 million Series E funding round, which gives the company a $1.8 billion valuation, according to The Business of Fashion. The company first became a unicorn in March 2019.

• Lone Pine Capital led the round; existing investors including Forerunner Ventures and Sequoia Capital also participated.

About that about-face...Glossier’s fresh capital will fuel its brick and mortar comeback. After deciding to permanently close all its locations during the pandemic, the company changed its mind—we all miss shopping in person, right?—and last month announced its global return to stores.

• Glossier will begin to reopen its doors in August. 
• “Customers want to move fluidly between immersive and personalized e-commerce and retail experiences,” CEO and founder Emily Weiss said in a statement.

Glossier is betting on tailored retail spaces, like a new 4,500-square-foot mushroom-themed store in Seattle, plus stores in Los Angeles and London. Still, e-comm makes up 80% of Glossier’s revenue, per BoF.

How do you do, fellow kids? Maybelline ranked first among Gen Z’s favorite makeup brands, while Dove led the skincare category, according to a report this week. Glossier didn’t make either list this year (though it did in 2019), so we’re going to assume some of the $$ will go to winning over Zoomers.—JG

WHAT ELSE IS BREWING…

• Bloomingdale’s announced a petite new concept store dubbed Bloomie’s. 
• Dollar General, looking to move into healthcare, has hired a chief medical officer.
• Lululemon unveiled a new yoga mat made out of mushrooms. 
• GrubHub’s new partnership will deploy robots across college campuses. 
• Supermarkets, worried about rising prices, are buying up inventory as fast as they can.
• Tailored Brands will outfit 650+ Men's Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank stores with AI fit technology. 

SPONSORED BY RIGHTPOINT

You’re missing out on these two e-comm customers. According to this helpful report from Rightpoint, there are two kinds of online shoppers: Seekers and Stockers. The former *seeks* new things and loves on-site innovation, while the latter *stocks* up on items and prefers bulk purchasing. Get more insights from Rightpoint’s report on our increasingly digital world here. 

SWAPPING SKUS

Today’s top retail reads. 

#TikTokMadeMeBuyIt: Viral products are blowing up and dying out faster than ever. (Vox)

In with the new: Carol B. Tomé took over as CEO of UPS last June to guide the company through the pandemic. Shareholders are happy with rising share prices, but her efforts aren't sitting right with longtime drivers. (Insider)

Make your wager: This analysis shows which companies, from Amazon to Starbucks, paid their workers the most—and the least—during the pandemic. (WSJ)

COMMUNITY

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

Sybil Wilmot-Smith joined Popshop Live as its head of commerce last March, and we can think of a few reasons why the timing worked out (the virtual meetings must be next level, for one). Here, she gives us a glimpse into her day-to-day responsibilities. 

How would you describe your job to someone who doesn't work in retail? I support our sellers throughout their journey on the platform, from onboarding and developing their brand, to growing their community and building relationships. I also help grow Popshop Live’s offerings through launching new categories and building partnerships with our sellers.

One thing we can’t guess about your job from your LinkedIn profile: I am deeply involved with our sellers—from regular check-ins and managing our online seller resources to on-site live support.

What's your favorite project you've worked on? Our vintage category launch. Vintage is a thoughtful, sustainable lifestyle choice and this project represents how the next generation is changing consumer habits for the betterment of our environment.

Hands down, the best fast food restaurant chain is...I’m in LA, so it has to be In-N-Out.

ICYMI

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

• Amid antitrust probes, Amazon requests recusal of FTC chair
• Warby Parker’s Dave Gilboa on workforce transformation
• The race for post-pandemic retail space heats up