Retail Brew // Morning Brew // Update

June 18, 2026

Hello, remember DTC darling Allbirds? The company has rebranded as “Smartbird” just months after shuttering its US stores and selling off its assets in a surprising pivot to AI. It’s also tapped a former Amazon executive as CEO and plans to offer AI infrastructure as a managed service. It’s definitely going to leave a different kind of footprint.

In today’s edition:

—Jeena Sharma, Kristina Monllos

STORES

Shelf care

Retail Brew

Physical retail may no longer be the first place customers discover a brand, but it’s increasingly becoming the place they decide whether to stay with one.

At Retail Brew’s Clicks, Bricks, and Everything in Between event earlier this month, executives from premium diaper brand Coterie and Western-wear retailer Tecovas discussed how stores fit into the increasingly omnichannel shopping journey.

While they have taken different approaches to brick-and-mortar—Coterie through wholesale partnerships and Tecovas through its own stores—both brands believe physical retail has become a powerful growth driver.

For Coterie, physical retail has helped introduce the brand to new parents before funneling them into its subscription business, with 10%–12% of new customers acquired through retail over the last two years. Meanwhile, Tecovas customers who shop across channels generate 32% higher lifetime value.

ICYMI, here’s a recap of Retail Brew’s conversation with Kara Silver, VP of e-commerce at Tecovas, and Grace Weingard, president of Coterie.

Keep reading here.—JS

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CONSUMER BEHAVIOR & TRENDS

The great wall(et) of China

Grace Cary/Getty Images

Chinese shoppers have joined US consumers in their quest for value.

Per Bain & Company’s China Shopper Report 2026, published in collaboration with Worldpanel by Numerator, China’s fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) market is being reshaped by value-seeking shoppers, shifts in demographics, and channel evolution.

In April 2026, the FMCG sector returned to volume growth (to 1.3%) after posting a relatively modest 0.9% gain in 2025, indicating that some of the softness seen earlier in the year may have been influenced by holiday timing.

Keep reading here.—JS

MARKETING

Pillow talk

A photo of a couple in bed underneath the sheets. Another photo of two martinis on a set of bedsheets.

Morning Brew, Inc. Photos: Brooklinen

There’s a lot that goes on in the bedroom that’s not appropriate for your typical bedding advertisement. That’s probably why most ads in the category opt for imagery of clean lines, fluffed sheets, and perfectly tufted beds.

Brooklinen’s new ads, which reintroduce the company’s Luxe Sateen bedding product, are taking the opposite approach. The spots, which are running on social platforms and out-of-home in New York, feature models lounging in their underwear or appearing undressed under the sheets, sometimes embracing a partner.

It’s a continuation of the brand’s “Best in Bed” campaign, which debuted in the second quarter of 2025, and continues the double entendres that started with the tagline.

Keep reading here on Marketing Brew.—KM

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SWAPPING SKUS

Today’s top retail reads.

Deal with it: Why L’Oréal is doubling down on India with an Innovist deal. (the Wall Street Journal)

Deep space: How retail investors backed Space X’s stock boom. (the New York Times)

Re-schooling: Inside Hollister and Target’s lucrative tryst to capture a share of the ~$89 billion back-to-college business. (CNBC)

Show up: 4AllPromos delivers custom apparel, drinkware, gifts, and more—on time and on brand, every time. Because execution isn’t optional.*

^{*A message from our sponsor.}

JOBS

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