Every sports locker room and high school coach has uttered\nthe clich\u00e9, \u201cwhen the going gets tough, the tough get going.\u201d But this old\nadage has never felt truer than this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We all toughened up this year. We learned resiliency\ntogether, even while apart. We grieved for the loss of family members, for\nspecial occasions spent together, and for the loss of normalcy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
More than any other year, retailers stood out in the\ncollective consciousness as the world grasped just how central a visit to\nTarget has become in daily routines. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This year, retailers stood on the frontlines of keeping the\nworld safe, fed, and sane. To all those in the industry, thank you. You got us\nthrough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And as retail workers and brands adapted in real-time to\nchanging global conditions, trends like e-commerce and curbside pickup became\nforever cemented as \u201cways to do retail.\u201d Here we look at four trends that make\nus excited and hopeful for the future of retail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We\u2019re not worried about the so-called \u201cdeath\u201d of retail.\nWhy? People love to shop. This year brought many changes but people still are\nspending. Q3\nsaw consumer spending increase by 46.9%<\/a> as confidence in the economy\nrebounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Online shopping was increasing prior to 2020. This year just\naccelerated the trend. This shift is natural and expected. People love\nconvenience so e-commerce will continue to increase. People will keep doing\ntheir research online and comparing products and prices before going into a\nstore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Retailers that adapt to this will continue to thrive, long\ninto the future. Just look at Target\u2019s performance this year. Nearly every\nsales category increased and their same-day services exploded. Shipt grew\n280% and Drive Up increased by more than 500%<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n But just because more people turn to their phones before entering a store, doesn\u2019t mean that in-store shopping will ever fully disappear. We might be spending more time on our phones or do our research more thoroughly beforehand, but if 2020 showed us anything, it\u2019s that people will always want to gather in person. There\u2019s something about walking in between the gleaming shelves at Target that make us feel like we\u2019re kids in a candy shop. And this year proved to even the non-shoppers, how cathartic and enjoyable that in-store experience can be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This year was the year of home delivery and curbside pickup.\nAnd those two options are here to stay. Why? Convenience. But that doesn\u2019t mean\nthat in-store shopping will go the way of the dinosaurs. Quite the opposite.\nWho doesn\u2019t miss strolling between the sparkling shelves of Target? Your cart,\nmysteriously overflowing even though you went in for one spatula.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Prudent retailers are expanding how they service their customers. But the in-person shopping experience will never go away. In fact, even 73% of Gen-Z<\/a>, the most digital-friendly generation, prefers to discover new products by shopping in stores.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That doesn\u2019t mean that retailers will be able to coast and rely on the same old tactics that worked in the early 2000s. The future of in-store shopping will be all about the customer experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We expect endcaps and signage to be increasingly important\nto the in-store experience. Some even going so far as to install temporary\npop-up stores.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Not every retailer that will be successful has to focus on\nover-the-top \u201csurprise and delight\u201d experiences. Just as effective is focusing\non the basics. Great customer service, easy-to-navigate store layouts, and\nfriendly return policies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Expect an increase in focus on executing endcaps and\ndisplays<\/a>, needing top-notch retail\nplanogram maintenance<\/a>, and embracing in-store signage, including Instant\nRedeemable Coupons<\/a> (IRCs) to attract buyers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the most fascinating phenomena this year was watching how consumer dollars shifted. In years past, we spent on cosmetics and items that help us socialize. This year? Lots of coffee, hygiene products, and comfort foods<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Though how we shop and what we buy may change, the reasons we buy stay the same. We still want to buy gifts for our loved ones, groceries because we need to eat, and home improvement projects because it\u2019s nice to love where you live. <\/p>\n\n\n\n While we sure hope we\u2019ll be less dependent on junk food next\nyear, expect the retail data lovers to continue crunching numbers that look at\nwhat we spend and more importantly, why. This data will feed into supply\nchains, staffing decisions, marketing campaigns, and more. We\u2019re just at the\nstart of the data revolution and we expect the trend of more personalization\nand more real-time adaptation to continue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As for what consumers will buy post-pandemic, only time will\ntell for sure. But staying ahead of trends and keeping a pulse on what\nconsumers value is sure to be a winning strategy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The reason Disneyworld<\/a> is\nso magical is there\u2019s an elaborate network of tunnels, zigzagging beneath the\nstreets. Their operations are fine-tuned so guests only experience a seamless\nexperience that makes even adults feel like they\u2019ve been transported to\nNeverland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The same is true for retail. Without backend operational\nactivities like setting displays, taking inventory, and re-stocking shelves\nwould be empty, items mis-stocked, and the retailer and brand alike would miss\nout on sales.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 2020 cemented the importance of tightly run operations.\nRetail workers shifted their focus to essential items, like toilet paper and\nhand sanitizer (thank you!), as well as to fulfilling online and curbside\npickup orders. This dance of balancing fully stocked shelves with growing\npickup orders is already rearranging staffing and retail technologies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Retailers and brands can stay ahead, even as their\noperations transform, by embracing technologies like RFID to better track\ninventory and partnering with retail merchandisers, like RMS<\/a>. to improve store\npresentation. Like expecting to be\ntransformed by the magic of Disney, shoppers expect a great shopping experience\nwhen they take the time to visit a physical location.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The effects of COVID-19 will stretch long into the future\nand consumer behaviors like online shopping. Building key partnerships,\nembracing data, and staying on top of buyer trends are key to thriving in the\nyears to come. So, while we hope that we never have to have another year like\n2020, we celebrate the people who got us through it and will continue shaping\nthe future of retail.<\/p>\n\n\n\nTrend 2 – In-Store Experiences<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Trend 3 – What We Buy<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Trend 4 – The Magic Is in the Back-End Operations<\/h2>\n\n\n\n