HORIZONS
PUTTING THE CUSTOMER IN CONTROL
T
he speed of technology development may have outstripped retail business
transformation in the past, when the only shop window was in front of a store and the only form of payment was cash. But, with the digital revolution gathering pace, the so-called resulting ‘consumerisation’ of technology is putting greater pressure than ever on retailers to keep up. Retail is no stranger to the benefits of IT
automation in harnessing greater efficiencies and productivity for its own growth. The difference this year – as Retail T
echnology magazine takes
a look ahead as part of its annual ‘Horizons’ supplement – is that retailers now require focused, strategic IT investment to also serve even their customers’ most basic needs. Take, for example, the growing evidence in
support of a shift in consumer behaviour, as last year for the first time online shopping sales via desktop PCs flatlined and sales via mobile devices became the main engine of online growth. Figures from IMRG and Capgemini found that 23% of all online retail sales were completed via smartphones and tablets in the second quarter (Q2) of last year. (E-retail reaches mobile tipping point,
RetailTechnology.co.uk, 24 Spetember 2013) And, while total online retail growth averaged around 15%, figures excluding mobile sales were in steady decline, recording almost no growth in the same quarter (as measured from May to July 2013). With the popularity of shopping via mobile
on the rise, it plays into the hands of retailers already embracing online channels. Those with an online presence capitalised, as confirmed by the IMRG Capgemini E-retail Sales Index, which found online retail sales overall increased 18% year-on-year during the key festive trading month of December alone. This contributed to 16% growth for the online retail market in 2013.
28 Winter 2014
With the online channel already a key component of most consumers’ shopping journeys and mobile traffic reaching a tipping point, strategic IT investment will become even more key to securing future retail growth, writes Miya Knights
Taking online double-digit growth into
consideration, when the British Retail Consortium also declared annual High Street footfall rates fell by 2.4% year-on-year, it stands to reason that retailers will continue to invest in this channel. But the undeniable seasonal trends highlighted by Helen Dickinson, British Retail Consortium director general, also indicates the wider role technology increasingly has in not just the final transaction, but in joining up every touchpoint along the customer’s shopping journey. “These figures highlight how the rapid
evolution of multichannel is changing the face of shopping, particularly at Christmas,” Dickinson said. “Rather than making multiple trips to the shops over the festive period, many of us planned ahead for our gift-buying and took advantage of retailers’ investment in services like ‘click & collect’ so that they could cover off their festive spending at their convenience.” Indeed, the shifts in technology driven spending habits and shopping behaviour defined by the Christmas season, led Dickinson to declare “multichannel the ‘story of the season’.” The terms multichannel has often been used
to represent the integration challenges retailers face in order to operate in a world where the store, online, mobile and click & collect exists. The technology industry however, in its bid to stay one step ahead, has now begun to refer to new ‘omnichannel’ demands being placed on already strained connections between different IT systems that have to manage supplier, distribution and sales operations across multiple, different geographies, as well as channels. So, in assessing those retailers that fared well
over the last few months, it could be argued it was no coincidence that Andy Street, managing director of John Lewis, saw fit to cite IT, alongside high levels of customer service, as a contributor
www.retailtechnology.co.uk
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