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With more American consumers shopping online than ever before, total e-commerce sales in 2024 were estimated to be $1,192.6 billion, which is 8.1% higher than in 2023.1
The retail industry plays a significant role in the economy, which means retailers can benefit from understanding the latest retail trends.
Companies that don’t engage with these retail industry trends, and recognize how consumer preferences have changed, may find it harder to stay competitive. Knowing how the retail industry is changing and what recent retail insights are saying about consumers may help improve your business.
With more American consumers shopping online than ever before, total e-commerce sales in 2024 were estimated to be $1,192.6 billion, which is 8.3% higher than in 2023.1
Mobile devices are driving a significant percentage of online retail sales – an average of 47% of e-commerce sales in 2024 were made on phones and tablets.3 The growth of online shopping is frequently happening on a small screen, with shoppers looking for convenience, time-saving transactions, and security on the move. As a result, it’s critical that retail businesses understand how mobile shopping impacts retail trends. After all, these trends play a significant role in online retail shopping behavior.
The most successful mobile e-commerce experiences tend to align with recent mobile shopping trends. It often includes providing sites that are fully optimized to accept payments online on any screen, with buttons and navigation features which are easy to see and use.
Ultimately, online buyers are looking to check out in as few steps as possible. The more prominent and clickable those Buy Now buttons and CTAs are, the better.
For some customers, the shopping experience itself has become almost as important to them as the product they’re purchasing. It’s impacting retail industry trends and making the overall shopping experience a top priority for customers.
Loyalty programs continue playing a pivotal role in retail and e-commerce businesses’ overall customer experience strategy. And it continues impacting retail industry trends. Recent studies show 58% of brands prioritize personalized products, such as loyalty or rewards programs.4
Nurturing and building customer loyalty in retail is a wise move – retaining and incentivizing existing customers through personalized retail experiences is more cost-effective than trying to win new ones. According to research by Shopify, shoppers are willing to share bits of their own personal data, such as shopping habits and preferences, if it means they can have a more personalized retail and ecommerce experience.5
Another major retail trend playing out is how today’s shoppers want to support businesses that reflect their own values and contribute to the greater good. It’s increasingly important to shoppers to see retail brands demonstrating social awareness and sharing responsibility for change in society. This is particularly important to Millennials and Generation Z, who tend to be those most engaged with social and environmental activism and sustainable retail.6
This retail trend suggests merchants should make a clear effort to increase sustainable packaging in retail, while reducing plastic usage and waste. Around 54% of shoppers surveyed in Shorr’s 2025 Sustainable Packaging Customer Report said they consciously purchased products with sustainable packaging within the last six months.6 These shoppers are looking for sustainable retail support such as minimal packaging materials, low-carbon supply chains, and products made with sustainable processes and materials. And 1 in 5 have even avoided purchasing from specific brands because the packaging used is not clearly sustainable.6
Online and in-person shoppers are also looking for brands to demonstrate their commitment to positive labor practices, diversity, equality and inclusion, charitable giving, and socially conscious corporate policies.7
Whether they’re buying online or in-person at their favorite retail store, customers expect a low friction checkout experience. A low friction checkout experience is increasingly viewed not just as an emerging trend, but as something many consumers have come to expect. Adding items to their cart, choosing shipping, creating accounts (or not!), and using their preferred payment methods should be minimal effort. This also means an optimized mobile checkout process, so customers can quickly make purchases from virtually anywhere.
Flexible payment options are growing in importance for customers too, from buy now, pay later (BNPL) to omnichannel payment options.8 By empowering consumers to choose their favorite way to pay among the numerous retail payment options, merchants can increase average cart sizes and reduce cart abandonment.
A low friction checkout experience is going to be a crucial retail trend for physical retail and in-person shopping too. Contactless payment and QR code payments can help merchants reach physical customers quickly, with no need for cash or physical cards.
AI solutions can offer an abundance of resources for retailers, ranging from customer service and experiences, to cost reductions and streamlining operations. AI in retail can touch a wide range of categories for the retailer.