Reading List - Week of July 25

This week in the world of eCommerce and technology, Shoes.com (Canadian SHOEme.ca) launched its first brick-and-mortar location in Toronto. Another week, another acquisition as Oracle buys NetSuite for an estimated $9.3 billion dollars.

Peek.com, an online database for travelers looking to book activities and more, strikes a partnership with Yelp after raising $10 million. Amazon adds to their launchpad department by adding a showcase featuring products strictly from crowdfunding website Kickstarter. DHL will spend $317 million on opening up 8 new distribution centers, update existing ones and improve its U.S and cross-border eCommerce services.

Shoes.com Launches Brick and Mortar Initiative

Source: Retail Insider

Shoes.com (ShoeMe.ca in Canada) an eCommerce footwear retailer opened it’s first physical location last Friday, July 22 in Toronto, Ontario and is the first of two stores to open in Canada this year. The company states the reason for opening a physical location, in addition to their online store, is to provide in-store shoppers with “brand ambassadors” (otherwise known as sales associates) that can help them find shoes in-store. They may also help in-store shoppers find products online at SHOEme.ca from their in-store order stations. The second brick-and-mortar location will be in Vancouver and is set to open Fall 2016.

For full details on the launch go to Retail Insider

Oracle Buys NetSuite in Deal Valued at $9.3 Billion

Source: Bloomberg Technology

Oracle Corp. is boosting it’s cloud-services strategy amongst stiff competition from the likes of SAP SE, Salesforce.com and Microsoft Corp. buy purchasing NetSuite Inc. for around $9.3 billion. Oracle, which sells software to large corporations, is looking to make the shift into cloud-based products which made up only 8 percent of totals sales during Oracle’s fiscal fourth-quarter. Acquiring NetSuite, which provides software that helps companies manage their financials, as well as small acquisitions in recent quarters, is a step in the right direction. In May, Oracle purchased Opower Inc. for $532 million and Textura Corp. for $663 million in the same week.

For more information on the future of Oracle go to Bloomberg Technology

Peek.com raises $10 million, strikes partnership to bring tour and activity booking to Yelp

Source: TechCrunch

Peek.com has raised $10 million in equity funding to become what the CEO calls "OpenTable for the $100 billion activities market." Peek.com lets tourists, and locals, find and book activities such as tours, tastings and lessons, online or via mobile. Peek.com also features customer reviews, same day booking and activity/tour availability. But it’s not just a directory site for travelers. Peek.com provides online tools such as "Peek Pro" to help tour operators manage their business online and through mobile. With the $10 million in equity, the future looks bright for Peek.com, as they continue to bring the best tour operators onto their platform, and forge partnerships within the travel industry to deliver exceptional travel experiences to their customers.

To learn more about how Peek.com works go to TechCrunch

Amazon Has Launched a New Showcase for Kickstarter Products

Source: Fortune

Amazon has added a subsection to their Launchpad department–the department makes it easy for startups to sell their products–that will showcase crowdfunded products from Kickstarter. This will come as great news for companies having successfully raised funds on Kickstarter but that may be finding it difficult to acquire new customers once the initial buzz around the product has wound down. While Amazon has been showcasing products from Kickstarter for a while now, it has never been to this degree. Amazon Vice President also stated that working with Kickstarter provides them great insights into the type of products their customers care about.

For the full story on how Amazon plans to showcase Kickstarter products go to Fortune

DHL will add US eCommerce distribution centers

Source: Internet Retailer

DHL, the Germany-based parcel delivery company will spend $317 million on making updates to current warehouses and build eight new fulfillment centers. It’s also reported that during the next couple of years the DHL group will spend $137 million to improve its U.S and cross-border eCommerce services. Charles Brewer, CEO of DHL eCommerce says “It is expected that 1 billion people will shop online and across borders by 2020 with the U.S. being the most popular origin for 25% of consumers worldwide.” DHL plans to capitalize on this global demand and increase its eCommerce imprint in the U.S.

To read more about DHL and their expansion go to Internet Retailer