Beyond Frictionless: Meaningful Brand Interactions

By Diane Palmquist, CEO, Flooid

Diane Palmquist, CEO, Flooid

Diane joined Flooid in 2020 with 25 years experience working with enterprise retail clients with a focus on ERP, Supply Chain and Master Data Management at companies such as SAP, Infor, GT Nexus and others. Diane brings global experience in selling and delivering platforms and products into complex ecosystems.

The year 2022 brought customers back into stores signifying the importance of brand loyalty and profitability. While shoppers were looking for frictionless experiences during the pandemic, now the trend is shifting toward convenient, meaningful brand interactions. Retailers who cannot keep up with the trend will find it difficult to grow or even to retain market share.

Brick and mortar stores are the heart of brand experience: The pandemic had consumers shunning face-to-face encounters and shopping turned to click and collect or online journeys. These days consumers are looking to complement those convenient shopping methods with more meaningful engagements. The store is at the center of these experiences. Well organized stores with empowered and knowledgeable staff encourage shopper loyalty.

Personalization: The creation of personalized experiences both online and in the store is another important way to nurture consumer loyalty. Expect to see retailers offer new or improved loyalty programs, special personalized offers, easier returns and regional targeted promotions linked to localized buying patterns.

Profitability: There have been thousands of store closures in the last three years. This will continue in 2023 as consumers demand more brand value from each journey. Retailers who don’t deliver on an excellent brand promise will not be profitable due to misalignment of inventory selection or unsatisfactory store experiences. This, in turn, will drive lower prices and higher inventory carrying costs. Ultimately these failures are predicted to drive more store closures in the coming year. The opposite is also true. Retailers that successfully deliver on their brand promise to delight consumers will thrive both in store and online.

Digitalization and Technology: Technology investments are crucial and wise strategies should be employed. All technology decisions should be evaluated and prioritized based on the direct value to the consumer. Consumers value modern ways of purchasing, a consistent omnichannel experience and convenience. That translates to a composable commerce strategy enabling shopping journeys such as cashierless consumer mobile checkout, self-scan checkouts, buy online - return to store, buy now/pay later (BNPL) payment options, associate-driven clienteling and more. All of these are technologies that have a high experiential value to a consumer and promote brand stickiness. A technology platform built upon a composable commerce structure, allowing retailers the flexibility to change technologies and technology partners as markets evolve is an essential component of this strategy.

Shoppers were looking for frictionless experiences during the pandemic. Now the trend is shifting toward convenient, meaningful brand interactions. Retailers need to keep up with the trend to grow and retain market share.

Loss Prevention: Inventory shrink (shoplifting) is one of the key drivers behind loss of gross margin for retailers. Target predicted that 2022 will reflect an unexpected additional $600 million loss in gross profit over 2021 due to theft and similar losses are being predicted by other retailers in not only the grocery sector, but across all other sectors, regardless of geography. This is not sustainable for retailers that have already seen heavy losses due to the pandemic. Technologies that assist retailers in the reduction of shrink will see an upswing in adoption in 2023. Facial recognition on video surveillance, AI to identify suspicious transactions and anti-theft tags that are tracked are just a few of the technologies that will surge. Excellent store operational practices also reduce loss. Retailers with stores that are well organized with empowered and knowledgeable staff have less shoplifting. This also increases brand satisfaction resulting in a win/win.

In closing, retailers need to invest in technologies and solutions that support an excellent consumer experience to deliver on their brand promise. They will be the winners in 2023.

The State of the Retail Industry 2023

JAN 2023

07/05/2024 15:52:31

Profitability Drivers for the Retail Industry in 2023

By Pascal Cardinal

President of eCommerce, Orckestra

It was a great couple of years for the ecommerce industry as sales skyrocketed during the pandemic. However, with the pendulum swinging back to pre-pandemic levels and the reopening of physical stores, the retail sector has started readjusting itself. Retailers are starting to worry about their returns from the investment that was made to set up their ecommerce platforms. Adding to the existing pressure, high inflation is driving up costs, while increasing interest rates and the looming recession are lowering consumer spending. A survey released by Dye & Durham Ltd. found that 30% of Canadians believe they are already in a recession and 53% believe they are imminently entering a recession. If the industry tracks in the same manner, it is now more important than ever for retailers to strategize and find ways to sustain and promote profitability.

Retailers need to remember that consumers are in the driver’s seat of their shopping experiences and the right way to shop is whatever, wherever, and however the customer prefers. An accelerated omnichannel transformation is the need of the hour.

Before becoming the eCommerce President of mdf commerce, Pascal Cardinal had an impressive and rewarding career. He managed the North American online presence of Guillemot/Ubisoft before heading to California to become an ERP solutions expert at i2. He then returned to Montreal to lead Generation Flash and build the live audio streaming company, Streamtheworld. As founder, he led product and business development, which resulted in the 2010 acquisition of Streamtheworld by Triton Media. Pascal then spent 5 years building the SAAS platform Virtual Paper, which allowed newspaper publishers to easily monetize their content online. From there he was hired by Yellow Pages Group to lead technology and innovation for their adtech division Mediative. Finally, before joining mdf commerce, Pascal was the President and CEO of iPerceptions, a customer relationship management platform. This background allows him to play a key role within mdf commerce.

The most ideal way for retailers to move forward is to understand consumer shopping behaviors and adapt their offerings accordingly. While shoppers are making their way back to brick and mortar stores, ecommerce has penetrated parts of the population that had never been online before, and a complete reversal is unlikely. Consumers are now looking for an integrated and complementary experience that allows them to blend both physical and online retail spaces easily and seamlessly. Here are some of the trends that will allow businesses to remain profitable in this evolving retail environment.

Inventory unification

Sustainability is the buzz

High attrition, higher tech infusion

Having the right amount of inventory at the right time and in the right place - and having that visibility across scattered stores and warehouses - is more important than ever. Inventory unification through an omnichannel order management system allows businesses to break the silos between all their inventory sources, and merge online and physical inventories creating a “sell from any channel, fulfill from any location” approach. This, in turn, promotes omnichannel sales growth, fewer markdowns, the ability to move inventory quicker, and a reduction in the time and cost in fulfilling orders.

Sustainability has moved up the agenda this year. Despite the inflated prices, 66% of US adults and 80% of young US adults (age 18-34) are willing to pay more for sustainable products, according to the Business of Sustainability index by Green Print. Consumers are highly concerned about the environmental impact of the products they buy and have modified their purchasing decisions to buy eco-friendly products. Keeping in mind consumer sentiment, the retail industry needs to take conscious steps towards sustainability in every aspect of the business. It could mean using energy efficient equipment, switching to sustainable packaging alternatives, partnering with suppliers who are committed to sustainability, and so on.

According to McKinsey, half of the US frontline retail workforce are considering leaving their jobs. Their reasons include lack of flexibility, uncompetitive compensation, inadequate growth opportunities, among others. Retailers need to provide motivation in order to avoid burnout in their employees. Investing in advanced technologies that will free up employees’ time can make their jobs more attractive while also providing learning opportunities. Simplification and the removal of monotonous tasks can help improve productivity and lower the attrition rate. A dedicated fulfillment app puts powerful and efficient order fulfillment capabilities right in the palm of your store associates’ hands. In addition to turning your stores into hyperlocal fulfillment centers, it empowers your in-store team to process orders better and faster while creating a simpler, more efficient experience for stores and warehouses.

On the verge of a downturn with recession headwinds, there is still opportunity in this changing market for retailers to gain market share by being the first movers in the industry. Stakeholders in the retail industry have provided a clear indication for the need of accelerated omnichannel transformation in order to offer a complementary and seamless shopping experience for consumers. In order to lead the way in 2023, retailers need to remember that consumers are in the driver’s seat of their shopping experiences and the right way to shop is whatever, wherever, and however the customer prefers.

The State of the Retail Industry 2023

JAN 2023

07/05/2024 15:52:31

Navigating the Headwinds: Resilient Retail

By Shelley Bransten, Corporate Vice President of Global Retail & Consumer Goods, Microsoft

Shelley Bransten, Corporate Vice President of Global Retail & Consumer Goods, Microsoft

Shelley Bransten is the Corporate Vice President of Global Retail & Consumer Goods for Microsoft. In this role, Shelley leads the thought leadership, go to market and solution approach to address retailers most important growth opportunities.

Prior to joining Microsoft, Shelley was the SVP of Retail Industry & Consumer Goods Solutions at Salesforce. In this role, Bransten was responsible for developing and launching transformative business solutions that address the unique challenges facing the retail industry.

In her previous role leading CRM for Gap, Inc., Bransten set the vision and execution of world-class CRM programs for Gap, Banana Republic and Old Navy. Shelley built out Gap Inc.’s CRM Strategy where she lead the team for over 16 years and oversaw the customer database and direct to customer marketing for the world’s largest specialty retailer.

Shelley was recently named Women to Watch in Retail and serves on the Advisory Board for the Retail Ascendant Network. In addition to her 16 year tenure leading CRM for Gap Inc., Shelley served on the Board of Merchants Customer Exchange (MCX) a mobile payments and loyalty coalition with executives from leading retailers and brands such as Target, Walmart, Lowe’s Southwest Airlines, Best Buy, Exxon Mobile, etc. Shelley has also been an advisory Board Member for Loyalty One’s annual Loyalty Innovation Awards.

Prior to Gap Inc., Shelley worked at Williams-Sonoma, Smith & Hawken and Visa USA.

Shelley holds an undergraduate degree from Duke University and Masters in Business Administration from University of California at Berkeley.

Welcome to 2023 – a new year packed with opportunities (and challenges) for all of us in the retail industry. During the past three years we’ve experienced unprecedented economic, societal, and technological change. But for all that change one thing is clear: retailers are turning to digital technology like never before. Why? Because digital is what will make the difference between retailers that thrive and those that get left behind. In fact, I don’t know where we’d be today if many of the retailers we work with had not accelerated their digital technology investments. From curbside pickup to virtual outfitting appointments, artificial intelligence-driven supply chains and more, our customers have woven digital technology into the fabric of their operations.

Not only is digital helping retailers to navigate the headwinds we’re facing today but it’s also a way to embrace the innovation that will define our tomorrow. Every retail leader I speak to is asking clear-eyed about this. It’s what we call ‘Resilient Retail.’

Empower retail’s frontline.

Take the retail frontline. Retail frontline workers account for 85 percent of the retail workforce. But they’re more stressed and stretched than ever before. Findings from the Microsoft Work Trend Index show that despite 60 percent of FLW workers being excited about the job opportunities tech creates, more than 30 percent don’t have the tools they need to perform their jobs well. “The Great Reshuffle.” “The Great Resignation.” “Quiet Quitting.” Never has it been more important to invest in retail’s frontline with the same tools, training, and resources already afforded office workers. It’s why we recently introduced Store Operations Assist, a new capability in Microsoft Cloud for Retail. It acts as a single pane of glass for all the operational day-to-day activities a store associate must carry out, driving their productivity and ultimately a better customer experience.

Elevate the shopping experience.

Experience. It remains as important as ever before. With digital, retailers can offer new experiences that truly bring the vision of omnichannel retailing to life. During the pandemic, REI launched a new virtual outfitting service to help customers assemble bikes, find the right hiking boots, and gear up for camping trips all from the comfort of their homes. Since its launch, the platform has served over 5,000 satisfied customers.

Digital is what will make the difference between retailers that thrive and those that get left behind. With digital, retailers can offer new experiences that truly bring the vision of omnichannel retailing to life.

Maximize the value of your data.

Everything we do today generates data. Tens of petabytes of data is generated every hour in retail alone. And what better way to leverage the power of retail data than building retail media networks. eMarketer predicts retail media network spend to surpass $50 billion in 2023. It’s no surprise then that more and more retailers are going all-in on it. Microsoft recently partnered with BJ’s Wholesale Club to launch BJ's Media Edge with the goal of connecting advertisers with BJ's members. BJ's Media Edge allows brands to reach members across various touchpoints and target specific segments of its 6.5 million members. With real-time analytics and closed-loop measurement capabilities, retail media networks can help brands boost customer loyalty, drive sales and growth.

This is just a snapshot of things to come in 2023. And for all the changes we continue to see across the retail industry, I remain confident in our ability to adapt and excited by the opportunity ahead.

The State of the Retail Industry 2023

JAN 2023

07/05/2024 15:52:31