Temu’s troubles, BNPL discovery, AI’s Super Bowl flop and other key stats from this week

A lot happens in a week, so every Friday we're going to analyze all the new data and provide you with some of the key takeaways. Welcome to the Friday 5.

This week, Temu and Shein get a scare, consumers use buy now, pay later (BNPL) apps to discover new products, and Super Bowl viewers don’t really care about ads for AI products or services.

Key stat: Temu and Shein should brace for impact. Temu’s US sales fell as much as 32% in the first five days of February, according to Bloomberg Second Measure data reported by Business of Fashion.

• This coincides with President Donald Trump saying parcels under $800 from China would no longer be exempt from customs duties.
• Shein’s US sales fell 16% during the same period.
• Trump has since paused the removal of the duty-free exemption, but this data suggests trouble for retailers shipping from China if and when the move happens.

Key stat: BNPL drives discovery. 60% of BNPL users say using BNPL apps helped them discover new brands or products, according to “The State of Search in 2025” report from adMarketplace.

• 30% of US consumers enjoy using BNPL apps because they make it easy to find new products or brands, per the report. Consumers also enjoy BNPL apps because they have a fast checkout process (29%) and provide access to exclusive deals (29%).
• We forecast BNPL payment value in the US will climb 15.0% this year to reach $108.43 billion.

Key stat: Ads for AI tech did not impress Super Bowl viewers. Only 6% of Super Bowl viewers said they were more likely to purchase or use AI tech after seeing ads for AI during the game, per data from CivicScience.

• The majority (69%) of consumers said ads featuring AI-driven products or services had no impact on them, but a quarter reported they were less likely to purchase AI tech/services because of these ads.
• 83% of Super Bowl viewers are at least somewhat concerned about the proliferation of AI tools.

Key stat: Consumers are hungry for nostalgia. 75% of quick-service restaurant (QSR) chains that launched nostalgia-based promotions experienced an increase in transactions in the 13 weeks post-launch, according to data from Circana.

• Examples include McDonald’s Boo Buckets and Taco Bell’s Decades menu.
• While traffic to QSR restaurants was down 2% YoY in 2024, dollar sales were up 2% and the average check was up 4%.

Key stat: A low price does not guarantee loyalty. Farmgirl Flowers has the highest retention rate of Valentine’s Day flower services in the US, with 34.3% of customers returning a year after purchase and 11.4% returning five years later, according to Earnest Analytics.

• Farmgirl is also the most expensive option, with an average ticket price of $123 in the first week of February 2025. Teleflora ($112), UrbanStems ($110), and FTD ($108) were the next most expensive options.
• The Bouqs Co. had the second highest annual retention at 31.5%, but the fifth highest five years out at 7.6%.

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