In a marketplace where speed is everything, the conversation “lumbered on” for eight years, Bill Catania, CEO of OneRail, told Retail Brew.

The last-mile delivery network and logistics platform, founded in 2018, had been pitching FedEx on the idea of partnering so the carrier service could offer same-day delivery to its 2.3 million active customers. But it wasn’t until 2025 that FedEx got serious about same-day delivery, Catania said, and that’s when things “accelerated dramatically.”

Now that vision is a reality with the launch of FedEx SameDay. Through its partnership with OneRail, FedEx is connected to a national network of 1,000 delivery partners providing two-hour and end-of-day service as well as real-time tracking, proof of delivery, and predictive ETAs to customers.

“The OneRail team offers a great opportunity to—I don’t want to say flip a switch—but effectively unlock that capability nationwide,” Jason Brenner, SVP of digital portfolio at FedEx, told Retail Brew. “This is a good opportunity for us to go to market quickly.”

So why did FedEx wait until now to roll out same-day delivery, when companies such as Amazon have been offering it for more than a decade? For OneRail, which is ultimately enabling that ability, the answer comes down to how hard it is to build a reliable nationwide network that a company like FedEx could trust to meet its standards.

Keep reading here.—AV

Rising fuel prices resulting from the US-Israeli war with Iran could spell bad news for retail sales, according to new analysis from Coresight Research.

Coresight’s latest monthly report predicts that rising gas prices resulting from the conflict will have an “upward pressure” on grocery prices, and that items with a short shelf life “will be the first to feel the impacts of the energy spike.” Consumers also will be “limiting non-essential trips to stores” to conserve gas, the report predicts.

It will surprise no one that Coresight predicts lower-income consumers will feel the most pinched, as gas and groceries demand an outsized portion of their disposable income. But even affluent consumers could tighten the purse springs as a result of stock market volatility caused by the Middle East conflict, per Coresight.

Keep reading here.—AAN

While we’re still awaiting news of Lululemon’s new chief exec amid the increasingly contentious search, many other retailers landed on C-suite decisions this month. Here are the ones to know:

• A week before reports claimed the company was mulling a merger with Estée Lauder, Puig appointed Jose Manuel Albesa, its deputy CEO and beauty and fashion president, as its new CEO, taking over for Marc Puig, who shifted to executive chair.
• Dollar General CEO Todd Vasos is stepping down from his role on January 1, and Ahold Delhaize USA CEO JJ Fleeman will exit his position in June with plans to fill Vasos’s role. Ahold Delhazie USA also promoted Abby Cook, VP of US strategy and portfolio, to SVP of Own Brands.
• David Simon, president and CEO of retail real estate giant Simon Property Group since 1995, died at age 64. His son, Eli Simon, was named to succeed him.
• Swiss sneaker company On announced its five-year CEO Martin Hoffmann will be replaced by co-CEOS David Allemann and Caspar Coppetti on May 1 as the company enters its “next growth phase.”

Keep reading here.—EC

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