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“... independents now account for 66 per cent of all retail and leisure units in Great Britain as a whole.”
Again, technology has come along in
leaps and bounds. Tools are available to manage the returns process efficiently, ensuring returned stock is properly accounted for and, if undamaged, is made available back on the sales channels as soon as possible. Te data gathered through this process then drives reporting to allow retailers to keep an eye on which products are being returned. If a certain item is frequently being returned as faulty or poor quality, retailers might want to stop selling it.
(Supply) chain reaction
Like everything in the independent retail space, smaller retailers need to make their supply chain work for them. We already know that agility and speed are key to beating the bigger competitors, so how can technology help retailers apply this to supplier management? If purchased stock is sitting in the
warehouse but not offered for sale, it represents a missed opportunity. Tis can happen all too easily when stock is returned or when new stock has arrived. How can independents ensure that as soon as new stock is delivered that sales channels are updated? Again, inventory management
technology has allowed smaller businesses to match the IT capability of the retail giants. For too long smaller companies spread across multiple channels have relied on manually inputting the new stock into disconnected systems, which takes a lot of time and vastly increases the likelihood of mistakes being made. By synchronising your warehouse inventories to both point-of-sale and online shopping channels (which is entirely possible with new technology), this margin for error is removed and products can find their way into the hands of customers all the more quickly.
Channelling the multi-channel
Independent retailers are not just expanding through their own websites. Amazon and eBay are increasingly a part of the modern multi-channel landscape. Tese channels offer reach far greater even than a good ecommerce operation. However, they also raise new tricky issues around managing reputation, receiving payments and keeping the various stores up-to-date.
Making your way to the checkout
Online payments are a great example of where technology has made a real impact for small retailers. Once a maze of PCI
DSS and POS, online stores can now quickly and easily add a secure payment feature into their website or app, meaning retail giants are no longer stealing the show in online purchases. What’s more, online analytics tools
mean small retailers can see the journey their customers are taking through the online store and optimise that journey just as they do through a physical store - to see what makes them click and what makes them abandon shopping baskets. Again, smaller retailers have the flexibility to make changes according to real-time customer behaviour, and this has proven invaluable.
Knowing your customer
Technology has made an incredible impact on all spheres of society, and this is certainly the case for independent retailers. Tere are currently a plethora of factors coming together, to create the perfect ecosystem for smaller retailers to blossom: customer demand for unique and new goods; society support for small and local businesses and the availability of new and affordable technologies. Tis latest research is evidence that now is the age of the independent retailer and it’s all to play for.
Direct Commerce |
www.directcommercemagazine.com
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