Online shopping stories

Goddiva rolls out AI virtual try-on for VIPs, promising truer fit, fewer returns and a greener, more personalised occasionwear experience.

UK retailers are racing to fix parcel delivery failures as squeezed shoppers demand smoother service and loyalty becomes harder to win.

Scurri processes 180m shipments in 2025 as eCommerce GMV hits EUR €19.2bn and its platform annualises at over 200m parcels into 2026.

Infobip urges UK retailers to use RCS and WhatsApp to cut returns disruption as annual costs are forecast to top GBP £27 billion.

New Zealand faces a 271% jump in fake shop scams as criminals exploit routine clicks, QR scans and DIY guides to trick online shoppers.

Verde Digital has hired former PrettyLittleThing specialist Chloe Steele as SEO Manager to bolster fashion and eCommerce search expertise.

Online shopping scams in the UK jumped 416% in late 2025 as malvertising, social media fake shops and deepfake frauds surged, Gen warns.

PayPal-owned Honey is dropped by Rakuten’s ad network, cutting it off from 2,000 merchants amid claims of affiliate fraud and link theft.

SALESmanago upgrades its eCommerce platform with richer WhatsApp journeys and AI-led recommendations, targeting smarter real-time engagement.

Walmart to embed shopping in Google’s Gemini app, letting users browse and buy Walmart and Sam’s Club items directly via AI chats.

UK shoppers spent a record GBP £26.9bn online over Christmas 2025, as mobile purchases surged and AI-driven referrals leapt from 2024.

Australian online florist LVLY is shortlisted in three customer service and online retail categories at the 2026 Inside Retail awards.

Microsoft again tops global phishing brand list as attackers increasingly mimic big tech services to steal cloud and consumer credentials.

Akeneo launches an AI‑driven Winter Release to power “agentic commerce”, speeding product data from enrichment to activation for AI buyers.

Chargebacks surge after record online holiday sales, with USD $181 billion in returns putting retailers’ first-quarter profits at risk.

Google launches a Universal Commerce Protocol and Business Agent tools as it bets on AI agents to drive the next era of online shopping.

Google launches Universal Commerce Protocol to link AI shopping agents, retailers and payments in a new ‘agentic commerce’ push.

Ant backs Google’s new Universal Commerce Protocol to standardise how AI agents handle shopping, payments and post-purchase support.

SaleCycle snaps up French personalisation specialist BEYABLE to create a unified European eCommerce marketing and conversion platform.

Yext predicts AI will overhaul online discovery by 2026, as trust in AI search grows and brands race to be chosen by algorithms.