1. Untuckit expands physical store footprint

Digital Native brand Untuckit is reportedly expanding its footprint in Simon Malls. Simon announced the opening of seven more Untuckit stores in key centers throughout the US. The brand debuted its first set of stores at Simon in 2018 and currently has more than 50 physical retail locations across the US and Canada.

2. Casper joins the Unicorn list

‍Digital Native mattress brand Casper joins two other startups - Glossier and Rent the Runway - in the Unicorns list. The company reached a post-money valuation of $1.1 billion after raising $100 million in its latest funding round yesterday. Co-founder Philip Krim was quoted as saying, "Today's financing accelerates Casper's vision to become the world's largest end-to-end sleep company. Our growth will continue to be catalyzed by state-of-the-art sleep products, best-in-class customer experiences, and world-class leadership."

3. Dominos Pizza gets ordering into cars

Dominos Pizza is working with Xevo Inc., provider of the Xevo Market automotive commerce solution, to preload the latest version of the Domino’s Anyware digital ordering platform into cars. Customers will be able to order Domino’s purchases with a few taps on their vehicle’s touchscreen. In-car pizza ordering isn’t a new phenomenon. Both Dominos and Pizza Hut piloted voice-activated ordering from cars a few years ago.

4. Barney’s cutting back on expensive flagship store

‍Barney’s is reportedly in talks to give up as many as five of the nine floors it occupies on Madison Avenue in an effort to reduce its $30 million annual rent. Lord & Taylor shuttered its flagship store on Fifth Avenue at the beginning of the year, followed by closures by Henri Bendel and Tommy Hilfiger’s. With this move, Barney’s becomes the latest in a long line of retailers reassessing their store formats in Manhattan addresses due to skyrocketing rents and changing shopping habits.

5. LVMH gets into blockchain to detect fakes

‍LVMH has reportedly hired a full team of blockchain experts to work on a project, alongside ConsenSys and Microsoft Azure. The blockchain, code-named AURA, is designed to “provide proof of authenticity of luxury items, and trace their origins from raw materials to point of sale and beyond to used-goods markets. The next phase of the platform will reportedly explore the protection of creative intellectual property, exclusive offers, and events for each brands’ customers, as well as anti-ad fraud.”