Industry Talk

Regular Industry Development Updates, Opinions and Talking Points relating to Manufacturing, the Supply Chain and Logistics.

Largest annual fall in retail sales, what next for retailers?

With sales last year seeing the largest annual fall on record, and in the face of continued lockdowns, the stakes have never been higher for retailers to evolve their strategies.

Though e-commerce isn’t a perfect solution to lockdown retail challenges, there is no better time for retailers to double-down on ensuring the digital path to purchase is frictionless, reliable, informative, and engaging.

Tightening up demand forecasting methods to streamline the supply chain will be absolutely crucial in minimising waste-generated losses. Improved predictive technology will lessen lockdown’s impact on margins, while priming retailers to better anticipate consumers’ fluctuating buying patterns even beyond this urgent situation.

In addition to nailing the transactional and technological components, though, retailers would be best served to demonstrate compassion (not in an exploitative way, of course, but in a helpful way). This is an important moment for brands to ask themselves how they can provide real value to consumers.