August 13, 2026

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Hello, it’s Thursday, and we have a heads-up for retailers. A new LendingTree report found that roughly a third of Americans surveyed admitted to having shoplifted, with food and nonalcoholic beverages the most commonly swiped items, followed by apparel. That’s a marked increase from 2024, and 90% of those surveyed pointed the finger at inflation and the economy.

In today’s edition:

—Jeena Sharma, Erin Cabrey, Layla Ilchi

STORES

Can you ear me now?

Claire’s

For about five decades, getting your ears pierced for the first time has meant a trip to the mall to Claire’s. Now, after more than 131 million piercings, the accessories retailer is giving the experience a Gen Alpha makeover.

Claire’s is rolling out a “reimagined” piercing experience across its ~900 stores in the US and Canada starting this month—one of the brand’s most significant operational investments in decades. The overhaul includes updated clinical standards and employee training, redesigned piercing areas, interactive “inspiration bars,” after care, and a variety of opportunities for young customers to document it all for social media.

Keep reading here.—JS

Sponsored By Anrok

The footwear brand that dodged a tax scare

IDA Sports sells shoes on Shopify, on Amazon, and through wholesale partners. Growth felt great, until their finance team noticed something not so great: They’d crossed sales tax thresholds in multiple states with neither registrations nor filings in place.

They needed more than a checkout calculator. Nexus monitoring, registrations, filings, expert guidance? Yes to all of it.

Anrok had an answer. Fast onboarding, easy Shopify integration, and people who know taxes inside out.

The result was: IDF hit compliance in 10 states. Monthly tax work dropped from roughly two days to just a few hours. “You don’t need to be a tax expert. That’s the whole point.”—Michael Joyner, financial director at IDA Sports.

Read how IDA Sports solved Shopify sales tax compliance with Anrok.

CONSUMER BEHAVIOR & TRENDS

Face time

Person in denim jacket tests perfume fragrance bottle in beauty retail store

Iuliia Burmistrova/Getty Images

Consumers were shopping across price points at beauty retailers in the first half of the year, according to new Circana data.

Prestige and mass beauty retail sales both grew 7% in the first six months of the 2026, with prestige sales totalling $17.1 billion and mass $39.2 billion, Circana reported, as both sectors saw strong unit demand. The two segments’ dynamics have shifted over the past year—in Q1 2025, mass outpaced prestige for the first time in several years.

Larissa Jensen, global beauty industry advisor at Circana, said in a statement that the industry is benefiting from “consumers’ willingness to shop across price tiers, selectively investing in products that deliver the strongest emotional and functional value.”

Keep reading here.—EC

MARKETING

Fence of pride

Caraa

While many brands are locking into the World Cup, women’s accessories brand Caraa is looking forward to the 2028 Summer Olympics as part of its growth strategy.

Co-founder and CEO Aaron Luo, a lifelong fencer, is banking on a passion project to spur growth for the over 10-year-old brand, which has revealed a partnership with USA Fencing in the lead-up to the Los Angeles Summer Games. The partnership kicked off with a capsule collection incorporating fencing motifs and styles for Caraa’s premium bags, and 100% of the proceeds will be donated to the USA Fencing Foundation.

Keep reading here on Revenue Brew.—LI

Sponsored By Fastbreak AI

Rush for the sideline. Fastbreak Connect can turn 10,000+ youth sports events into one targetable, measurable channel for your brand. To learn how, check out Fastbreak’s latest playbook. It explains why youth sports is the sponsorship channel most brands haven’t capitalized on yet and breaks down how to reach it. Get it here.

swapping skus

Today’s top retail reads.

Watch out: Gen Z is now into vintage watches, but can traditional watch retailers tap into that interest? (Business of Fashion)

Metallic-a: Why Pandora, the world’s largest jeweler, is sticking to platinum despite a dip in silver prices. (CNBC)

Baby come back: Inside the Taylor Farms food recalls. (the New York Times)

Tax scare dodged: IDA Sports grew fast on Shopify. But then, taxes got murky. Anrok handled nexus, filings, and expert support, cutting two days of monthly work into a few hours. IDA is now compliant in 10 states.*

^{*A message from our sponsor.}

Quiz

What do you know?

Amelia Kinsinger

The week’s biggest Retail Brew stories, now in quiz form. Test yourself on the latest headlines in e-commerce, shopping trends, retail marketing, and more in a quick, competitive challenge built for retail pros. Challenge your coworkers and see how your score stacks up!

Ace the quiz

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Written by Jeena Sharma, Erin Cabrey, and Layla Ilchi

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