A very happy new year to all of our members and to all of the retailers who read our newsletter!
The question on every one’s lips is what we can expect in retail for 2017.
According to Vend’s white paper, success for retailers in 2017 will depend upon whether they are:
- Promoting product quality, transparency and sustainability;
- Providing unique in-store experience;
- Adopting mobile payment solutions;
- Personalising their service and interactions with their consumers;
- Providing same day shipping;
- Continuing to invest in the omni-channel;
- Finding a way to make their store entertaining and an experience;
- Harvesting data and utilising it effectively; and
- Investing in apps services and third parties to fulfil the needs of the modern shopper.
We expect to see retailers continuing to be progressive, innovative and creative. Many of our members have implemented a number of these examples into their stores in 2016 and earlier and it is these members that we typically see performing well across the industry.
Ultimately for retailers this year, we believe it’s going to be about being preemptive, perpetual distribution and deeper customer understanding and connection. Remember, it’s just as important to understand the intent of the demographic of your consumer, as it is to understand the demographic itself.
All in all, we expect 2017 to bring big things for retail and we are hopeful that sales will continue to increase along with consumer confidence and the government’s investment in bettering our economy.
Many members will be in the process of planning for 2017 and this may include strategy around training, employment and succession planning. If you require any assistance with any of these issues or are interested in any available government grants, information around your rights and obligations and/or would just like a sounding board, give us a call on 1800 RETAIL (1800 738 245) for advice.
We all wait in anticipation for what 2017 brings but all in all it is shaping up to be an impressive year.
Dominique Lamb
CEO