Partnerships
NFL Chooses Oakley as Official Helmet Visor Provider
The eyewear brand has partnered with the NFL to provide players with tinted visors. “The NFL since 1998 has banned players from wearing tinted helmet visors, also known as shields, unless they had a medical exemption. But it loosened the rule to make way for Oakley. The brand will also be designated as the ‘preferred’ eyewear provider, meaning coaches and players will be encouraged, but not mandated, to choose Oakley sunglasses and eyeglasses if they wear them on the sidelines.”
Customer Experience
Spirit Airlines Wants Travelers to Book Flights Via Text Message
The airline is planning “to roll out next month booking services via text message, allowing travelers to buy flights and change reservations through text messaging platform WhatsApp — with almost as much ease and informality as organizing happy hour drinks.”
Puma Launces Immersive Customer Experience on Fifth Avenue
The apparel brand offers an augmented reality experience in its new flagship store. “Using something described as a ‘Skill Cube,’ once inside, the visitor is immersed in a multi-sensory environment which includes LCD screens, projections, motion sensors, and even, in the case of the footballers, synthetic turf.”
Hibbett’s Robust Omnichannel Initiatives Promise Growth
The retailer has seen shares surge while the rest of the industry has struggled. “Hibbett is benefiting from e-commerce growth and the expansion of [its] loyalty program. Notably, digital sales grew 25 percent and accounted for nearly 8.6 percent of the total sales in the fiscal second quarter. Going forward, management expects continued growth in the e-commerce business as enhancements in the mobile app as well as the ‘Buy Online, Pick Up in Store’ and ‘Reserve Online, Pickup in Store’ capabilities are delivering solid results.”
Data
Google Warns Against Blocking ‘Cookies’ Entirely, Triggering Criticism
The tech giant claims that eliminating cookies will lead to greater privacy intrusions, but some have expressed disapproval for Google’s stance. “Google’s latest comments on the technology surprised some in the industry who assumed the company was working toward phasing out cookies after remarks Google made in May. The company promised at that time to launch new tools to restrict cookies. Those tools are going forward, but a full-on cookie crackdown isn’t happening.”