UK high streets are becoming “Waste Lands” – Retailers need a smarter approach to omnichannel retail

The warning from Retail Sector Council is a story we’re now hearing time and time again. To take advantage of the boom in online shopping – rather than experiencing empty brick and mortar shops – retailers need to improve their omnichannel strategies. One way to get shoppers back to the high street is with click-and-collect. Our recent consumer research found that 45% of consumers found manual click-and-collect services too frustrating to use, but the research also found 72% of consumers are open to using smart, secure parcel lockers. Placing a carrier-agnostic locker inside a local store, or on a busy road – enables shoppers to collect their online orders or return them, bringing consumers back to the high street.

Lockers enable people to do all of this on their way to pick up a pint of milk or meet a friend for coffee, rather than having to make multiple trips to out-of-town retail parks or navigate Post Office queues. This convenience will not only bring greater footfall, but can lead to people spending money nearby when picking up or dropping off items. In fact, 33% of customers collecting items from lockers in a well-known multinational retailer spent additional money when they were in store.

Given lockers are most effective placed near to where people live, work or socialise, local high streets are the perfect location for them. Retailers and local authorities should put this high up their list of priorities for the year, so they can keep the high street relevant and useful.