New Retail Trends in Today’s Environment

With bankruptcies looming, retail is among the industries dominating the headlines in today’s uncertain environment. COVID-19 is, temporarily, at least, threatening all traditional models, forcing consumers to experience retail almost entirely from their homes. Even before the pandemic, other trends were transforming the way retailers go to market. The influence of millennials and Gen-Z shoppers, demand for  seamless integration between in-store, online, and mobile experiences, and intelligent use of mass amounts of data all drive disruption and innovation. To explore new retail trends, we turn to our sister company, Clarkston Consulting, and their recent industry insight, summarized below. Bull City Talent can provide the right resource to help you implement and deploy solutions to keep up with today’s retail trends.  Visit our Book A Project page to learn more for your specific change needs, SAP or otherwise.

NEW RETAIL TRENDS DRIVE INNOVATION IN CONVENIENCE

Today’s consumers demand convenience. During the 2019 Holiday season, services like buy online/pick up in store (BOPIS) were big hits with shoppers, especially for those merchants offering same-day service. These same services are going to be vital for retailers who seek to bounce back quickly from the impacts of COVID-19. Unfortunately, we are uncertain when things will return to normal, and when we do, will shoppers be hesitant to return to the stores? Retailers who offer services like BOPIS will be ahead of their competition. Frictionless return or exchange processes will be vital for consumers who avoid non-essential trips to shipping locations for returns. Simple “drop and go” return policies with major national carriers like UPS or FedEx are being offered to entice shoppers to buy. While these options offer merchants much needed near-term resiliency, their benefits will extend well into a post-Coronavirus future.

EVER-EVOLVING STORE FORMATS

Retail stores are not dying; however, their roles are evolving with the times. Traditional malls may be struggling, but new small-format stores are thriving. Forward-thinking retailers are introducing more small-format stores  focused on creating new and convenient experiences for their customers. Even digital leaders continue to innovate and explore different store types, focusing on smaller online formats with very specific product offerings. Now more than ever, retailers must continue to innovate store formats, creating relevant experiences for their customers that seamlessly integrate with their online channel.

DIGITAL EVOLUTION ALL AROUND

New retail trends are forcing retailers to reevaluate how technology can be advancing each area of their business – whether it’s channel specific (online, in-store) or behind the scenes in different functional areas (supply chain, customer service). Innovations in wireless data speeds, new payments technologies, AR/VR technologies, visual searches in digital channels, and customer service are all areas where digital innovations promise to enhance the shopper experience. Retailers that can seize the opportunity, particularly under threat of COVID-19 will win the day.

NEW TRENDS IN RETAIL DATA AND ANALYTICS 

Analytics remains a hot topic among retailers as they look to get even closer to their customers by better understanding their wants, needs and behaviors. Amid the pandemic, this is more important than ever as retailers may only be able to reach customers via digital and social channels. Beyond customer intimacy, data continues to deliver meaningful returns in optimizing store operations, fraud detection, robot process automation, and merchandise planning.

SUSTAINABILITY CRITICAL IN RETAIL TRENDS

Sustainable practices for retailers continue to driver consumer engagement and are ever more important as core business practices. Younger shoppers, Gen Z and Millennials in particular, re willing to spend an incremental 10% or more on sustainable products, according to reports. “Circular economies” where goods complete a full lifecycle of consumption and reuse (or recycling or upcycling) are likely to replace today’s linear economy within 10 years, says Gartner. These younger shoppers already are outpacing spending of legacy generations and retailers must learn to adapt operating models and sustainability practices to meet their demands.

FOSTERING DIVERSITY & INCLUSION

Retailers must integrate diversity and inclusion in their business to protect and spur long-term brand growth. As mentioned above, younger, more diverse generations have become increasingly powerful in spending, which drives influence. Practices such as fashion size diversity and natural, ethnic-tailored beauty and fashion strive to foster inclusive brands and shopping experiences. Among their own employees, retailers need to foster a diverse and inclusive organization so they can attract and retain talent. This new retail trend dictates that diversity and inclusion is no longer a ‘nice-to-have, rather a strategic imperative.

IN SUMMARY

The COVID 19 pandemic continues to create uncertainty and disruption throughout the retail industry. In order to survive, retailers need to embrace digital technology and gain a firm understanding of consumer ideals and values. Retailers must continue to invest in efforts and resources that help them understand, engage, and relate to ever changing consumers.

For more details on Retail Trends, please see the full article written by our our sister company, Clarkston Consulting.

Regardless of where you are at in your SAP and enterprise systems journey, we want you to know that BCTG is here to help. Whether that be through leveraging our network of technical and functional consultants, or through simply having a human conversation, we welcome the opportunity to become an extension of your team.  Please call us to help you implement industry best practices with today’s evolving retail trends.