At Glossy's first Hot Topic event, focused on data strategy, we learned the biggest trends and challenges facing fashion brands and retailers today as they try to understand their customer through data. The takeaway: Customer connections are critical, while attribution remains elusive.

Nordstrom has once again stirred up internet ire for selling a pair of distressed jeans caked in fake mud, described in the product details as “Americana workwear that's seen some hard-working action with a crackled, caked-on muddy coating that shows you're not afraid to get down and dirty.”

Thanks to a back-end technology integration that the company first started putting into place in 2015, Aldo is surviving the carnage of mall retail. To support its position as a cross-channel retailer, it just launched its first new website in 10 years.

Today marked four years since the Rana Plaza factory collapse in Bangladesh. To commemorate the tragic event, sustainable fashion non-profit Fashion Revolution is using social media to share findings from its latest transparency report and educate consumers about workers' rights.

Rent the Runway, which took to Snapchat last year to host virtual try-ons and "office hours," is switching gears by testing the waters of live engagement on Instagram Stories.

eBay wants to remind consumers that it’s more than an online auctioning site. It's also a platform for finding luxury products. Despite its reputation for thrift, 81 percent of items on eBay are new and 87 percent are available to buy immediately, at a fixed price — no bidding required.

The fashion industry is increasingly focusing on age diversity on the runway and in marketing campaigns, a response to the aging U.S. population and a bid for inclusivity.

Thanks to the success of companies like Everlane and the decreasing foot traffic in department stores, going direct-to-consumer seems like a retail lifeline for wholesale brands. But it's not as easy as flipping a switch: Brands like Altuzarra are using affiliate links and traffic data to decide their next move.

Walmart, after purchasing ModCloth, Moosejaw and Shoebuy already this year, is in talks to acquire menswear retailer Bonobos for $300 million. Customers of the digitally native brand have expressed disdain on social media.