Newegg Puts Checkout Inside Google's AI Mode, Shein and Temu's Germany Sales Plunge 35.5%
4 min read · October 13, 2026 · Covering October 12 · 10 stories from 6 sources
Yesterday in ecommerce: Newegg switched on checkout inside Google's AI Mode, while Shein, Temu and AliExpress sales in Germany plunged 35.5% as a new import fee bit into their prices. 10 stories, about 4 minutes.
01AI & Agents
Newegg lets shoppers check out inside Google's AI Mode
Newegg switched on Google's Universal Commerce Protocol, letting shoppers buy its products inside Google Search, AI Mode and Gemini, paying with Google Pay without leaving the conversation. Newegg stays the merchant of record and feeds Google its catalog data. Google says Newegg joins Wayfair, Walmart and Macy's on the protocol, built with retailers including Etsy, Shopify and Target. Newegg's CIO said the company "moved early to make our catalog shoppable inside AI experiences."
For your store:If you're on Shopify or another UCP-ready platform, ask your dev team how soon your catalog can be made shoppable inside AI search.
Shein, Temu and AliExpress sales in Germany plunge 35.5%
A bevh survey found combined Q3 sales from Shein, Temu and AliExpress in Germany fell 35.5% year over year to 566 million euros, cutting their market share from 5.3% to 3.1%. bevh CEO Alien Mulyk linked the drop to a new flat 3 euro per-category import fee and customs duties on non-EU parcels that took effect in July, though she cautioned "tariffs alone are not enough" to revive local retailers.
For your store:If you compete with Chinese marketplaces on price in the EU, win share back with faster delivery and clear, duty-inclusive pricing.
A ransomware gang claims it stole MoneyGram's data
A ransomware gang says it stole data from payments network MoneyGram and will publish it unless the company negotiates, according to Cybernews. MoneyGram has not confirmed any breach or responded to requests for comment. The FBI's latest IC3 report counted 3,611 ransomware complaints last year, for $32.32 million in losses, part of a broader $20.9 billion lost to cybercrime overall, up 26% from the year before.
For your store:Ask every payment partner how they'd notify you if your customers' data were exposed; don't assume someone else's breach can't touch your store.
Tariffs have added 2.9 points to US consumer goods prices
New York Fed researchers found tariffs pushed consumer goods prices up 2.9 percentage points between early 2025 and February 2026, reversing what would otherwise have been a price decline. The effect builds slowly: import prices move almost immediately, but it takes about a year for higher costs to fully reach shelves. Separately, University of Michigan data shows consumers now expect 4.7% inflation over the next year, the highest reading since May.
For your store:If you import goods, model landed costs a year out, not just today's tariff rate, since the full price pressure hits with a lag.
Ikea expands its resale marketplace to the UK, Ireland and Germany
Ikea is bringing its peer-to-peer resale marketplace to three new markets, taking its total to nine, and plans a buyback pilot in Portugal and Spain by December, where sellers can take an accepted offer to a store or list it for another shopper instead. Through August, the marketplace had drawn 15 million visits and 95,700 listings, and Ikea says 25.5% of marketplace users became new or reactivated IKEA Family members.
For your store:A resale or trade-in program can bring in customers who'd otherwise buy secondhand elsewhere; even a simple version is worth testing.
AI-inflated product expectations are pushing UK shoppers to return more
A MACH Alliance survey of over 1,000 UK consumers found 45% say unrealistic expectations set by AI, higher at 53% among Gen Z, make them more likely to return a product, and 51% say AI increases buyer's remorse. 68% agree AI-generated imagery often looks too perfect to match the real item. AI now shapes 42% of digital spend through search and 41% of purchases through agents directly, the group found.
For your store:If you use AI-generated product visuals, pair them with real photos and honest fit notes; the gap between the two is now a measurable returns driver.
Spirit Halloween will turn 39 stores into Spirit Christmas this year
Spirit Halloween's parent, Spencer Gifts, is converting 39 of its stores into Spirit Christmas pop-ups across 15 states this season, up from 30 last year, in the concept's third season since testing began in 2024. The company says the quick changeover lets it reuse high-visibility retail space right after Halloween. Deloitte expects households to spend $285 on Halloween this year, while PwC projects $708 in average holiday gift spending.
For your store:A seasonal pop-up inside your own space, even a small one, can stretch high-traffic months instead of leaving shelf space idle between holidays.
Mystery shoppers found UK cross-border refunds take a median 16 days
ShopReturns researchers placed 31 real cross-border orders with UK retailers and found refunds took a median of 16 days, from 4 to 62, with eight cases over a month. None of the orders offered a genuinely free return; most deducted courier costs or billed customers for return shipping. Returns sent back to the UK recovered 76% of spend within 10 days, while returns rerouted through the Netherlands averaged 41 days and recovered only 34%.
For your store:Map where your return parcels end up, not just where you say they go; a hidden extra leg can erase a third of the refund.
Edible Brands' app relaunch drove a 200% jump in traffic
Edible Brands redesigned its mobile app and loyalty program in late April, adding four membership tiers, birthday reminders and shareable gift lists, and carrying over existing members' points automatically. Through August, app traffic is up 200%, downloads reached 160,000 with 25,000 new accounts, and conversion sits above 3%. A third of customers who'd bought digitally since 2024 have come back through the app. Chief digital officer Erica Randerson called the early results "a success."
For your store:Carrying loyalty points over automatically removes the biggest reason customers skip a new app; don't make them start from zero.
Universal Standard's size-inclusive collab sells mostly in larger sizes
Universal Standard's capsule with designer Abisola Omole, priced $150 to $225 in sizes 00 to 40, sold nearly 90% of its first-week units in size 14 or larger, with sizes 18 to 24 alone making up 54%. The brand frames this as a counter to fashion's retreat from size inclusion, which some attribute to GLP-1 drugs; PwC found 21% of US households now include a GLP-1 user, up from 9% in January 2025.
For your store:Before cutting plus-size inventory on a GLP-1 assumption, check your own sales mix; the demand for larger sizes may still be there.
The Daily Checkout is a daily summary written by KonvertiQ. Every story links to its original source, where you will find full reporting and context. Covered today: ChannelX, Digital Commerce 360, Ecommerce News Europe, Glossy, PYMNTS, Retail Dive.