by U.S. Chamber of Commerce
  • Start

    Everything that you need to know to start your own business. From business ideas to researching the competition.

    Start
  • Run

    Practical and real-world advice on how to run your business — from managing employees to keeping the books

    Run
  • Grow

    Our best expert advice on how to grow your business — from attracting new customers to keeping existing customers happy and having the capital to do it.

    Grow
  • Good Company

    Entrepreneurs and industry leaders share their best advice on how to take your company to the next level.

    Good Company
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Joan Verdon

CONTRIBUTOR

About Joan

Joan Verdon has been covering business and retail news for the past 25 years. She has covered trends in tech, manufacturing, real estate and retail, first for The Record of North Jersey and USA Today, and now for CO—. She is a senior contributor, retail, for Forbes.com. Her passion is reporting on how Americans buy and sell. She has covered the birth of billion-dollar companies and the evolution of 100-year-old brands. Previously, she has been an education, general assignment and investigative reporter for The Grand Rapids Press and Buffalo Courier-Express. She spent a year working on Capitol Hill as an American Political Science Association Congressional Fellow.

Latest—

How Bugaboo North America Created a Parent-Friendly Culture That Yields High Worker Satisfaction
Expanded paid maternity leave and remote-work flexibility has resulted in improved employee engagement and happiness.
READ

Founder of Menswear Brand UNTUCKit on Taking an Innovative Idea to Profitability and Plans for Future Growth
The 13-year-old company is growing its store footprint and expanding into wholesale.
READ

How ‘Retail Concierges’ (Both Digital and Human) Are Poised to Disrupt the Shopping Experience
AI-powered virtual sales assistants and improved tools for store employees will anticipate shoppers’ needs and provide VIP-level service at scale.
READ

Future Shop: Retail Innovations That Will Change How Consumers Spend in 2024 and Beyond
A look at tech ranging from scan-and-go checkout and AI-fueled digital ‘humanoid’ assistants to other breakthroughs that experts say will transform the customer experience.
READ

This Black-Owned Startup Landed Walmart and Costco by Tapping Into the $400 Billion Breakfast Market
The founders of Blanket Pancakes & Syrup on how they leveraged their homemade recipes into a million-dollar brand.
READ

How Meal Solutions Startup Hungryroot Is Using AI to Fuel Its Growth
The grocery delivery and meal planning company taps AI to know what its customers want to eat and buy.
READ

How Holiday Spending Will Shape Retail in 2024
Consumers surprised retailers this holiday season with the strength of their spending and their willingness to use next-generation digital technology, like AI-shopping assistants, to make purchases.
READ

Meta, Google, and Shopify Execs Share AI Sales Tools for 2024
AI-enhanced commerce exploded this holiday season, giving merchants new ways to sell and changing how consumers shop.
READ

How Businesses Leverage Nostalgia to Win Over New Customers
Products and memories from the past are a powerful way to reach today’s young consumers.
READ

How is Walmart Helping Small Businesses Scale
The giant retailer is expanding its Walmart Marketplace platform to attract more third-party sellers, which are helping to boost its online business.
READ

Welcome to CO—

Designed for business owners, CO— is a site that connects like minds and delivers actionable insights for next-level growth.

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1615 H Street, NW
Washington, DC 20062

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