Retail Brew // Morning Brew // Update

May 12, 2026

It’s Tuesday, and Nike customers say they are owed a refund for tariff-related price increases in a proposed class-action lawsuit filed last week. “⁠Nike stands to recover the same tariff payments twice—once from consumers through higher prices and again from the federal government through tariff refunds,” according to the complaint. That might be one time too many for the outspoken sneaker heads.

In today’s edition:

—Andrew Adam Newman, Jeena Sharma

MARKETING

Schmear campaign

Carmine’s/Tompkins Square Bagels

Long before viral food mashups like the cronut and ramen burger, Americans were gaga for the fusion of two staples from Italian and Jewish cuisines: the pizza bagel. Its origin is, as Moment magazine put it, “a mess of competing claims,” with bakeries in California and Massachusetts claiming to have invented the pizza bagel in the 1970s, and yet another in Cleveland saying it did so in the 1950s.

But Carmine’s, the New York-based Italian restaurant chain that has a line of jarred tomato sauces, is focused less on the pizza bagel’s past than its future. The brand is partnering with Tompkins Square Bagels to put pizza bagels on the menu at the bagel shop’s four locations , all of which are located in Manhattan, for the month of May.

For Carmine’s, it’s about getting consumers to consider using its sauces on foods in addition to spaghetti.

“We’re really creating new reasons, and I would say new moments, to use it with family and friends,” Erin Pepper, who heads the retail and product marketing arm at Carmine’s, told Retail Brew. “We really like to think of Carmine’s as a sauce that’s more of a pantry staple. So ‘Carmine’s,’ you think pasta, but it’s not just a pasta sauce.”

Keep reading here.—AAN

Sponsored By Impact.com

The answer era

AI is transforming how customers search and how brands get found, but the sources shaping AI answers aren’t on your website. The key to being seen? Your partnership and affiliate programs.

impact.com’s The Answer Era researched how customers’ search habits have shifted to AI platforms. Let’s look at the numbers: Brand-owned websites account for only 5%–10% of AI search sources, and third-party content makes up 65%+ of AI sources for certain industries.

Over 40% of top AI-cited sources contain affiliate links or sponsored content, and traffic to US retail sites from generative AI sources increased 4,700% year over year as of July 2025.

Don’t get left behind in the AI era. Read the full report.

CONSUMER BEHAVIOR & TRENDS

Point taken

Francis Scialabba

Loyalty programs have long been a staple for many retailers, but for the value-driven shopper today, they are more important than ever.

Per new research from LoyaltyLion, 91% of respondents said that being part of a loyalty program drives them to make repeat purchases from the same e-commerce brand.

The survey, which included responses of 2,000 US consumers, also found that shoppers enrolled in retailers’ loyalty programs on a weekly (58%) and often daily (15%) basis.

According to LoyaltyLion, the average member consumer is part of more than three e-commerce loyalty programs, and that doesn’t even include supermarkets or coffee shops.

Keep reading here.—JS

E-COMMERCE

Betwixt and be tween

A girl uses her phone while in bed in her darkened room.

Elva Etienne/Getty Images

No fewer than 7 in 10 tweens (70%) have purchased products from inside video games or virtual worlds, more than the 58% who’ve purchased from brands’ e-commerce sites. So says a new report on 8- to 12-year-olds from YPulse, a market research firm focused on young consumers.

If you’re a brand without a presence in games or virtual worlds like Roblox, the message of the report is not that you might need a wake-up call so much as a defibrillator.

“The in-app economy is training an entire generation in what spending feels like, what brands feel like, and what a transaction is,” the report stated. “And most of that education is happening without most brands in the room.”

Keep reading here.—AAN

Sponsored By Klaviyo

AI support, now customized. Customers have AI support preferences, because apparently one size fits all is still on vacation. New research from 8,000 consumers reveals four mindsets and how Brands can serve each with the right mix of Automation and human help. Get the Playbook.

Boots on the ground

Morning Brew Inc.

Kara Silver, VP of Ecommerce at Tecovas, is stepping into the world of seamless omnichannel strategy. From DTC growth to blending digital and in-store experiences, Kara will share how Tecovas is walking the line between heritage retail and modern commerce—without missing a step. Join us in New York and grab your ticket now.

SWAPPING SKUS

Today’s top retail reads.

Renovation nation: Walmart, Target, and Dollar General are all investing in store improvements in a big bet on brick and mortar. (the Wall Street Journal)

Fast and furious: Fast fashion giant Shein is accusing rival Temu in a London court of committing copyright infringement on an “industrial scale,” while Temu claims Shein is “using litigation to stifle competition.” (Reuters)

Best and biggest: Best Buy is expanding its net store count for the first time in a decade. (Retail Touchpoints)

Search’s shift: Customers are turning to AI for search, but brand-owned websites account for only 5%–10% of AI search sources. impact.com’s The Answer Era explores how affiliate marketing shapes your standing in AI search.*

^{*A message from our sponsor.}

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