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Lightspeed’s revenues increase even as its losses widen in fiscal first quarter for 2023 (BETAKIT)
“Our two flagship offerings, Lightspeed Retail and Lightspeed Restaurant, continued to see excellent market reception this quarter, which helped drive strong revenue growth,” said JP Chauvet, CEO of Lightspeed.
Amazon is buying iRobot for $1.7B (TECHCRUNCH)
Amazon this morning announced plans to acquire iRobot for an all-cash deal valued at $1.7 billion. The home robotics firm, best known for pioneering the robotic vacuum, was founded in 1990 by MIT Artificial Intelligence Lab members Colin Angle, Rodney Brooks and Helen Greiner. Twelve years after its founding, the company introduced the Roomba, a brand that has since become synonymous with the category, selling more than 30 million units as of 2020.
Partnership with Mailchimp competitor Klaviyo marks Shopify’s second strategic investment in recent weeks (BETAKIT)
Klaviyo has been part of the Shopify ecosystem since 2017, and Klaviyo CEO Andrew Bialecki told TechCrunch that the two companies have already been working closely together for years. With this partnership, Klaviyo will now serve as the recommended email solution partner for Shopify Plus and receive early access to new Shopify development features.
Alibaba could see first revenue decline on record but analysts expect sales recovery later this year (CNBC)
The Chinese e-commerce giant is expected to report fiscal first-quarter revenue totaling 203.23 billion yuan ($30.05 billion), down 1.2% from a year ago, according to consensus forecasts from Refinitiv.
D2C startups not immune to downturn as Article, Mejuri make staff cuts (BETAKIT)
Online furniture store Article laid off 216 employees, representing 17 percent of its team. Meanwhile, fine jewelry brand Mejuri reduced its workforce by 10 percent, which amounts to 50 people.
Allbirds lays off 8% of its global corporate workforce (RETAIL DIVE)
The layoffs followed an evaluation of “roles and processes in each department, and in each market, to ensure our operating structure is set-up for the next phase of growth. In this process, we looked for ways to streamline workflows, reduce duplicative efforts, and put past learnings and operational insights into practice,” according to a brand spokesperson.
RenoRun lays off 12 percent of staff, pauses geographic expansion amid uncertainty surrounding consumer spending (BETAKIT)
In an interview with BetaKit, RenoRun co-founder and CEO Eamonn O’Rourke attributed the startup’s decision to lay off staff to a “perfect storm” of economic factors, pointing to the broader market downturn, “incredibly unpredictable” fundraising environment, and uncertainty surrounding consumer spending amid rising inflation and a prospective recession.
What Chinese media reveals about Shein’s secretive operations (REST OF WORLD)
In fast fashion, there’s something known as the “impossible triangle.” It’s the perfect production scenario, where a company can 1) quickly onboard lots of new styles at 2) low prices, while 3) being hyper-efficient in managing massive volumes of inventory. Unlike Shein, those other upstarts didn’t quite crack the third edge of that triangle.
Uber exits Zomato investment for over $390 million (TECHCRUNCH)
The U.S. firm, which reported a net loss of $2.6 billion for the second quarter earlier this week, sold its entire Zomato holding on Indian exchanges for $392 million, the source said, requesting anonymity as the matter isn’t public.
Fable raises $8.4 million CAD Series A to fuel move beyond tableware (BETAKIT)
With its Series A funding, Fable plans to expand into the United Kingdom (UK), open new retail locations, and offer a wider selection of home goods products.
“All the little items that sit around your home, that make a house a home—we want to make those pieces,” Fable co-founder and CEO Joe Parenteau told BetaKit in an interview.
Walmart lays off corporate employees after slashing forecast (CNBC)
In a statement to CNBC, the retail giant described the layoffs as a way to “better position the company for a strong future.” About 200 jobs have been cut, a person familiar with the matter told CNBC.
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