Retail Roundup: Discovery Retail On The Rise, And A Turning Point?

At this point, one can buy almost anything needed on Amazon.com, and many people are doing just that, as demonstrated by the e-commerce giant’s monster quarter last week. But where would you go to buy things you don’t know you want? That takes a different kind of retailer, says Andrew Blachman, chief operating officer of live-auction site Tophatter, which expects to notch its first $1 billion sales year next year and hopes to go public not long after. The philosophy of the company is simple: Become a place where people can find products they didn’t know they wanted to buy. That’s a task that’s become increasingly linked to how consumers use their mobile phones–as a source of information and short bursts of entertainment. Blachman believes that we’ll continue to see the shift of consumers doing more shopping on their phones ramp up, which means that any retailer that wants to succeed long term will have to invest in apps and the mobile experience. Read more at Barron’s.