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April 22, 2026
Tariffs finally got a portal. Robots broke a world record. And Justin Bieber proved parasocial bonds are basically logistics at this point. Welcome to Commerce Unboxed!
Weekly News Roundup
Meet CAPE
No Cure for Bieber Fever
Second Time’s the Charm
Runner’s High
TARIFFS
Meet CAPE
Meet CAPE
Not the superhero kind. The government’s refund portal for unconstitutional tariffs is officially called the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries system or CAPE and it has been live since Monday morning, accepting claims from businesses that overpaid under IEEPA emergency tariffs the Supreme Court struck down 6-3 in February. Over 56,000 importers had registered before the portal even launched. Fingers were hovering over keyboards at 7:59 a.m.
Refunds are not automatic, as importers must opt in, compile every entry number, upload a CSV file, and survive two rounds of validation before anything moves. Approved claims then take 60 to 90 days to process, a window that already crept up from the 45 days originally promised. Phase 1 covers about 82% of entries worth roughly $127 billion, but the remaining 37% of entries already finalized or under protest are excluded entirely, leaving a significant chunk of the $166 billion total tab still in a holding pattern.
Meanwhile, consumers who absorbed higher prices on imported goods cannot file at all, as only the importer of record qualifies, and passing savings back downstream is entirely the brand's call, not a requirement. As one trade group puts it, customs is not figuring it out for you. The burden is on the importer, and a rushed filing is a rejected filing.
The money is real, the portal is live, and the clock is running. File carefully, and maybe book that customs broker before the next wave of claims gets processed. Read More ➜
POP CULTURE
No Cure for Bieber Fever
No Cure for Bieber Fever
Seven years is a long time to be away from a festival stage. Justin Bieber did not ease back in this weekend. He walked back into Coachella, played “Baby,” “Sorry,” and “One Less Lonely Girl” with his old music videos rolling behind him like a millennial's slideshow, and the crowd forgot entirely that they were adults with places to be. The fever was back. And nobody wanted a cure.
Bieber was paid $10 million for the two weekends, the highest performer payday in Coachella history. He pulled Billie Eilish onstage, a lifelong superfan who once cried on his shoulder backstage in 2019, now curled onto a stool getting serenaded in front of a hundred thousand people who wished it were them.
Bieber isn’t alone. BTS’s comeback has also been a massive hit among ARMYs, showing that when beloved artists return, consumers stop doing the math. Purchases aren’t weighed against the economy, credit card balances, or mortgage payments, they just happen. Notably, these artists didn’t reinvent themselves or chase trends, they simply delivered what fans already loved. This is a lesson for brands that feeling beats frugality. Make your customers feel something real and the wallet takes care of itself. Read More ➜
E-COMMERCE
Second Time’s the Charm
Second Time’s the Charm
Buying used stuff used to be something people did quietly. Now it is a $393 billion global market growing four times faster than retail, and nobody is embarrassed about it anymore. According to an industry report released earlier this month, the secondhand market at roughly 10% of total apparel spend globally, and it is still accelerating. The thrift store era is over. The resale economy era is just getting started.
Tariffs did not create this wave, but they absolutely caught it. Resale platforms are welcoming a flood of “tariff-ied” new customers as higher prices on new goods make secondhand look increasingly rational. 59% of consumers say tariffs will push them toward secondhand, and among millennials, that jumps to 69%. When a basic t-shirt costs 30% more because of import levies, a nearly identical one on ThredUp for a fraction of the price becomes a very easy decision.
AI is now the engine underneath all of it. Startups are using AI for pricing, scanning thousands of listings across retail and resale in seconds, and to photograph, categorize, and price thousands of garments per hour. 66% of consumers say they are already comfortable letting AI manage their resale activities entirely, choosing what to sell and evaluating markets for buyers.
For most brands, your products will likely have a second life whether you participate in it or not. The question is who captures that transaction. Build your own resale channel and own it. Sit it out and watch someone else turn your brand equity into their revenue. Read More ➜
TECHNOLOGY
Runner’s High
Runners High
Every runner knows the feeling. The first mile feels impossible. The fifth mile feels fine. By mile ten you have found your pace and nothing can stop you. That is roughly the arc of humanoid robotics, except the timeline is compressed into about 24 months and the pace is six minutes faster than any human has ever run.
Lightning, a humanoid robot built by Honor, ran a half-marathon in Beijing on Sunday in 50 minutes and 26 seconds, obliterating the human world record by six full minutes. No cramps, no mental block, no post-race ice bath. Just a brief collision with a railing near the finish line, a quick recovery, and a win. In Boston the same morning, John Korir ran a course record 2:01:52, the greatest marathon in the race’s 130-year history. It deserved a bigger headline. But Lightning did not leave much room.
A year ago, the winning robot needed two hours and forty minutes. This year, four of them finished in under an hour. Entries jumped from 20 to over 100.
That curve doesn’t stay in the lab. It moves into warehouses, fulfillment centers, and last-mile logistics, and it moves fast. The brands that recognize what mile marker they are actually at right now are the ones who will not be winded when it matters. Read More ➜
Shopping Smarter, Not Harder
62%
Nearly two-thirds of Gen Zers and Millennials now prefer AI-powered shopping tools over doing it alone, compared to 51% of consumers overall, specifically to reduce the risk of making a bad purchase, per latest industry report. The next generation is not browsing and hoping for the best. They are outsourcing the uncertainty entirely. Read More ➜
TOTB_full-1
Tax season is over. You filed, you survived, and you made the same promise you make every year. Now, about those other taxes.
Federal income tax gets the headlines, the deadline, and the national anxiety spiral every April. Sales tax gets none of that, and that is exactly the problem. Over 12,000 tax jurisdictions across the US are quietly running their own rules, rates, and thresholds, each with its own definitions of what is taxable, who owes it, and when it needs to be filed. Most brands are not tracking all of them. Most brands do not know they should be.
Here is where it hits the bottom line. Extra costs at checkout are the single biggest driver of cart abandonment online. A tax charge landing on the final screen, a cost the customer never saw coming, is often the difference between a completed order and a closed tab. The product was right. The price was right. But the math changed at the worst possible moment and the sale was gone.
Sales tax nexus for e-commerce sellers in 2026 is more complicated than ever. A new fulfillment node, an affiliate in a different state, a revenue threshold crossed quietly in Q1, any of these can trigger a compliance obligation before anyone on the team notices. By the time they do, the penalties are already compounding.
Eric Mendez, Stord’s Director of Business Development, makes the point that the brands that build sales tax correctly into their operations, with the right fulfillment partners, the right systems, and the right visibility, are the ones converting the most carts at checkout.
Tax season ends in April. Sales tax has no off-season.. Neither should your compliance.
TOP READS
An End of an Era: After 15 years and a run that grew Apple from $350 billion to $4 trillion, Tim Cook is stepping down as CEO.
Uber Eats Your Returns: Uber just launched doorstep returns through the Uber Eats app, and the shoes that did not fit are someone else’s problem now.
Our Power, Our Planet: Today marks the 56th Earth Day, and this year’s theme is a reminder that environmental progress is not waiting on governments, it is built by communities, one action at a time.
UPCOMING E-COMMERCE EVENTS
American Supply Chain Summit, April 27-28 in Dallas, Texas.
A premier gathering for senior supply chain leaders to exchange proven insights and define what’s next. Join top executives for strategic discussions.
The Beverage Forum, April 28-29, Manhattan Beach, California.
Clink glasses with experts at the global hub for beverage industry leaders, where insights, ideas, and executive conversations drive innovation.
National Postal Forum, May 3-6 in Phoenix, Arizona.
Explore the future of mailing and shipping, connect with industry leaders, and uncover what’s next at NPF 2026.
ABC Kids Expo, May 13-15 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
North America’s premier B2B trade show for the juvenile products industry, where manufacturers, retailers, and distributors come together to discover the latest innovations in baby gear, toys, apparel, and more.
Accelerate 26, May 21-22 in Salt Lake City, Utah.
The global ecommerce acceleration summit built for what’s next: AI-driven growth, agentic shopping, and the future of consumer behavior. Connect with brand leaders, decision-makers, and operators shaping global commerce.
Home Delivery World, May 20-21 in Nashville, Tennessee.
The world’s most important e-commerce logistics event, covering every step of the supply chain journey, from freight and fulfillment to last-mile delivery and returns. Join 3,000+ attendees and 200+ speakers driving the future of retail logistics.
See you next week for more commerce news and updates.
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