Nordstrom, Inc. reported second quarter net earnings of $122 million and earnings before interest and taxes of $190 million. For the second quarter ended August 3, 2024, net sales increased 3.4 percent versus the same period in fiscal 2023, and total Company comparable sales increased 1.9 percent.

Adobe released its online shopping predictions for the upcoming holiday season. Based on Adobe Analytics, Adobe expects that online sales will be $107.4 billion, an increase of 13.8 percent, while in-store retail is expected to grow ten percent.* Cyber Monday is expected to become the largest online shopping day in history, generating $6.6 billion in sales, 16.5 percent growth compared to last year. Sales on Thanksgiving Day are expected to increase 15 percent YoY to $2.8 billion. One out of every six dollars this holiday season will be spent between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday, leading to $19.7 billion in sales. The most anticipated gifts include Hasbro NERF guns, Nintendo Switch, Apple Air Pods and Sony PlayStation® VR. While large retailers (more than $100 million in annual revenue) will see higher order values and desktop conversion rates than smaller retailers (less than $10 million in annual revenue), the latter are expected to have the mobile advantage with a higher average conversion rate of 1.9 percent by attracting more shoppers with an intent to buy. Adobe Analytics data also forecasts that shoppers will gravitate towards purchasing more lower-priced items online as opposed to big ticket items. While toys and apparel saw a 39 percent and 20 percent unit growth respectively last holiday season, jewelry sales came in low, with a three percent decline in unit growth. These trends are expected to continue this season. Click Read More below for additional information.

Bereft of reporters who want to do the job, Vermont’s White River Valley Herald is using ChatGPT to cover local meetings. Editor and Publisher Tim Calabro asked ChatGPT to create a summary of a local selectboard meeting, according the Vermont site Seven Days, and compared the result against a transcript of the event. His verdict: “It wasn’t awful.”