E-commerce marketing · Industry brief

Ace Hardware has expanded its retail media network RedVest Media with enhanced measurement capabilities, audience solutions, and social media features. The enhancements include incrementality measurement for offsite media, new-to-brand reporting, social amplification and influencer marketing capabilities, and a new DoorDash advertising option allowing vendors to reach customers within the Ace Hardware storefront on DoorDash. According to Molly Hjelm, corporate vice president and head of RedVest Media, the expansions focus on providing robust measurement and richer audience intelligence across the customer journey (Retail Customer Experience, September 4, 2026).

Saudi e-commerce platform Salla has acquired fintech company Paylink in a deal combining Salla's commerce platform with Paylink's regulated payment infrastructure. The acquisition enables Salla to offer integrated payment acceptance and management across digital stores, physical sales channels, and international transactions, supporting multiple currencies and payment methods while expanding into point-of-sale and SoftPOS capabilities. Paylink, founded in 2017 and licensed by the Saudi Central Bank for e-commerce payment services, brings regulatory expertise and cross-border transaction capabilities that will help Salla serve tens of thousands of merchants and support Saudi brands entering international markets.

China's market regulator is pushing Tencent's Weixin, Ant Group's Alipay and other mini-program hosts to take greater responsibility for e-commerce conducted within their platforms, challenging their argument that they provide only technology services. This represents a regulatory enforcement action addressing accountability for commerce on these online ecosystems (MLex, September 4, 2026).