Purpose is the new digital in Retail
We all shop and spend our hard-earned cash, so everyone can relate to this, so thanks for opening and having a look, I thought I would share my thoughts on:
Lounge suits are the new business dress, our lounges are for lunges J
2020 has seen a step change in consumer behaviours, due to convenience or really not having a choice due to restrictions, whether that be food shopping, clothes shopping or choosing a new car. For some, spending has reduced or been paused due to worries about what the future holds.
For others the last few months has been a time to change: in wardrobes – more ‘comfy’ clothes as we spend our lives on video conferences; new cushions, or adding a few more pictures to make the house look nicer – as we are sick of staring at the same ones every day; and gardens which have been our staycations to replace vacations.
There are various predictions about what 2020 will look like post the retail peak, with suggestions that the whole of UK retail will be down 4.6% versus 2019, and it will take to 2022 (for most) to recover to 2019 levels. I am sure this will be a similar picture around the world_. Online has increased (no surprise there) by circa 17%._
There’s no going back – this shift in our spending and our behaviours won’t revert
It’s become our new norms, some wish it would all go away so we can go back how it was at the start of the year, it won’t, but what is changing is our expectations. We have experienced those brands that have really stepped up to the mark and given us great shopping experiences, our tolerance is now very low for ‘out of stocks’, ‘poor delivery’, ‘dreadful customer service’– businesses have had enough time to shift the dial, and in fact in the main, it’s the ones that were far behind the curve pre Covid that appear to have gotten worse and still using Covid as the reason for poor standards.
Quite simply consumers won’t and don’t need to put up, as there is a vast array of choices and brands fighting for our money and I am sure like me, many consumers are really thinking about who and where they are spending the cash and the value it brings.
So what are the shifts? The re-inventions of retail?
According to the recent report published by Deloitte they refer to 3 trends:
Here’s the link if you want to read more on their report: Deloitte
KMPG has also shared their views and research too with 4 trends which are:
Here’s the link if you want to read more on their report: KMPG
So, some similar themes between the two reports.
It’s interesting, as I have reflected on an event that we chaired with a number of retailers over 6 years ago at Fortnum and Masons in London. A fantastic graphic artist sketched some the themes that came out of this – it feels a little bit sometimes like groundhog day, as some of the same themes, issues, trends are still being discussed today – and we can say this, as myself and my co-founder have come from many years working in retail and we have continued to work with many retailers over the last few years.
Emotionless Brands are simply products/services. This has always been the case, but it is now more important than ever.
So my 5 key things to add to your basket
Emotionless Brands are simply products/services. This has always been the case, but it is now more important than ever.
So my 5 key things to add to your basket
I hope you enjoyed this post, to read more go to www.custerian.com – A company founded and run by practitioners to get (the right) stuff done using the experience gained operating at board level in large UK retail, distance shopping, financial services, logistics and service organisations, covering all aspects of the ‘C’ suite remit, from brand /proposition creation, to service model creation/development & operational delivery.
