☕ Your Ecommerce Coffee Break (Issue 202)

👋 Happy Tuesday! Here’s your latest ecom news roundup: Growth slows, retail goes physical, apps eat traffic, TikTok and AI shake platforms, and ads hit ChatGPT.

In Today’s Edition:

📰 Top Headlines: News, Marketplaces, and Platform updates
🎧 On the Pod: 2026 Privacy Laws Alert: Avoid Getting Sued
🗨️ Claus’s Hot Take: WooCommerce or Shopify?

Grab your coffee—skim in 60 sec or read in 3 minutes.

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📰 WHAT’S HAPPENING

📈 General Ecommerce News

• Ecommerce Growth: Slowest Rate Since 2022 [read more]

• DTC Brands Back Physical Retail in 2026 [read more]

• Google-powered future of retail is here [read more]

• Traffic shifts from sites to apps and marketplaces globally [read more]

🛒 Platforms & Marketplaces

• Amazon talks pricing with suppliers after tariff shifts [read more]

• TikTok Shop’s Rise Disrupts Retail Brands [read more]

• Shopify connects any merchant to every AI conversation [read more]

• Google Merchant Center's 24-hour update promise fails [read more]

📱Social Media & Advertising

• OpenAI is starting to test ChatGPT ads in the U.S. [read more]

• Threads has overtaken X in daily users [read more]

• Pinterest Adds Shoppable TV With Roku Partnership [read more]

• Meta: Improved Reels Recommendations [read more]

🎙️ ECOMMERCE COFFEE BREAK PODCAST

2026 Privacy Laws Alert: Avoid Getting Sued – What Brands Must Do TODAY

In this episode, we explore the rising threat of privacy lawsuits hitting e-commerce and CPG brands.

Richart Ruddie, Founder of Captain Compliance, explains how new legal technologies are helping attorneys target smaller businesses for tracking pixel violations.

He shares how brands can protect themselves by automating compliance, fixing broken consent banners, and staying ahead of rapidly changing state and federal laws to avoid massive legal fees.

🎧 Listen on: [Website] [Apple Podcasts] [Spotify] [YouTube]

Don’t forget to rate the ECB Podcast on Apple (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

🗨️ CLAUS’S HOT TAKE

WooCommerce or Shopify?

Short answer: Most DTC brands should start on Shopify. Some should choose WooCommerce. Choosing wrong slows growth.

The takeaway: Speed beats control for most stores.

Shopify wins when:

• You want to launch fast.

• You want fewer tech headaches.

• You plan to scale.

• You care about uptime on big sale days.

Why?

• Managed hosting.

• Stable speed.

• Higher checkout conversion.

• Apps do the heavy lifting.

WooCommerce wins when:

• You need deep custom builds.

• You have dev help.

• Content and SEO are core.

• You want full data control.

• You want lower long-term cost.

Why it matters: Your platform shapes cost, speed, and growth. Switching later is painful and expensive.

My rule: 
👉 Start on Shopify.
👉 Choose Woo only if customization or budget forces it.

Click here for a deep dive. 

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