Executive Summary

• This week’s note “From the Desk of Deborah Weinswig” is the second of two where we look back at the retail year in review. This week, we discuss 2017’s notable retail collaborations.
• Target agreed to purchase grocery delivery startup Shipt for $550 million, stepping up its challenge to Amazon by speeding the rollout of same-day shipping. The all-cash deal will let Target customers order groceries and other goods online, and then have the items sent directly to their doors from nearby Target stores.
• In November, UK retail sales grew by 4.8% year over year, well ahead of inflation and recovering from soft growth in October, according to the Office for National Statistics. Grocery retailers and electrical goods specialists enjoyed robust year-over-year growth, owing to Black Friday sales.
• Amazon likely doubled its sales to become the biggest Internet retailer in Mexico this year, helping to grow the country’s nascent e-commerce market by a third, according to a report by market research firm Euromonitor International.