Retail in 2020 – will it survive?
The big question for today’s Australian retailers is how to handle the significant challenges of staying relevant in a world increasingly driven by multichannel participation and new trade types which require offline and online integration?
Historically, change in retail has sometimes been fast and at other times seemed diminished, yet as an industry sector retail has ever been driven to innovate. Competition globally is increasingly fierce with new participants challenging incumbents.
But now, there is a revolution occurring at a pace of change, unlike anything that came before.
This current digital revolution is leveling the playing field and thereby creating many new opportunities, so much so in fact, retailers could be forgiven for believing that reports of the demise, as expressed in the death of retail headlines are somewhat exaggerated.
The Main street supermarkets and shopping centers are going digital in a manner that spans engagement, transaction, partnership and supply chain. This is all caused by the convergence of the mobile-based consumer, cloud-based engineering and data-driven production and logistics.
Retailers must think in terms of building an ecosystem of partners in fulfillment, trade, content, expertise and most of all, logistics for internet retailers.
Ecosystems are the secret to helping draw customers and retailers together. They narrow the gap between supply and demand. Today’s consumers want fast and secure multi-channel digital choices combined with excellent personal experiences. For retailers, it is the only route to success and repeat engagement by their customers.