‘


Help your consumers make informed decisions – if you’re being more sustainable, tell them – they will respond’


Andrew Goodacre, the chief executive of BIRA (British Independent Retailers Association) looks at the future of the high street and the role sustainability has to play.


“The high street is challenged but there are opportunities as well,” said Andrew Goodacre, the chief executive of BIRA (British Independent Retailers Association). Speaking at this year’s Retra Conference, he explained:


“We have seen changes in consumer behaviour – more people go online and shop but, interestingly, internet shopping as a percentage of its penetration has dropped each month since Covid ended – from 60-70 percent to below 30 percent of total retail sales. People still like to shop in shops and go to high streets.” Mr Goodacre said that if you are a retailer in a non-essential


market, it’s tough, adding: “The place not to be is in the middle. If you’re not sure what people’s perception of you is and if you’re not value or real good quality – and you’re not convincing people that you are – then that’s when you’ll be in trouble and you’ll struggle to compete.”


“For independent retail, it’s about your business running


efficiently and being truly energy efficient. If you are doing deliveries, how are you making them more energy efficient and reducing wastage?”


He added: “Help your consumers make informed decisions – if


you’re strategy is about being more sustainable, no matter how small it is, if you tell your consumers, they will respond. It makes a difference on where they purchase from and in an ever-competitive market, where it’s difficult getting the money out of them in the first place, then information about your sustainability credentials will be absolutely crucial.”


He called for retailers to not lose their identity, citing the recent


failure of hardware chain Wilko as an example of a retailer that didn’t know where and what it wanted to be. “Sad as it is to see a big family business decline, and, ultimately,


fail, it failed because it had lost its identity to its competitors. “Consumers were choosing to follow brands that they trusted and what they offered in terms of value and quality.”


Sustainability On the role of sustainability in retail, Mr Goodacre said: “Some of the heavy lifting is being done by large retailers – the BRC, of which Retra and BIRA are members, has a roadmap that talks about putting greenhouse gases and sustainability at the heart of decision making when thinking about future strategies.” He added: “It talks about energy efficiency and zero-carbon logistics – how you get the goods to your consumer – and sustainable raw materials – the products you’re selling – and it talks about helping consumers and employees to be more sustainable. “The timescale for the roadmap is 2040 to get a zero-carbon


rating – that’s ambitious. Retail is a massive sector and there’s a huge amount of effort needed to go into the supply chain – the brands and manufacturers have a massive role to play.


“


For independent retail, it’s about your business running efficiently and being truly energy efficient. If you are doing deliveries, how are you making them more energy efficient and reducing wastage?


Andrew Goodacre Mr Goodacre said that the future of the high street is about


retailers being trusted – particularly on sustainability issues. “I think consumers want high streets – if we’ve learnt one thing


from Covid it’s that isolation isn’t great for humans. When high streets reopened, the surge of people wanting to be back in bars, café, restaurants and shops was palpable. “We need that interaction – high streets do have a future.”


▶ ▶ Retra Conference Review 27


Retra Conference Review


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