Beyond retail - why retailers should think "services" and "ecosystems"
Imagine if your neighborhood and the people in it changed dramatically over just five years. Everyone's behaviors and expectations have changed, and you, as a member of this neighborhood, have to adjust your ways to fit in. This is similar to what's happening in the retail industry right now.
All of the people involved in retail - the customers who buy things, the suppliers who provide goods, the employees who work in the stores, and the investors who put their money into these businesses - have changed how they behave and what they want. This has caused a big disruption in the industry, and it's as if everyone is playing a new game with different rules.
Let's meet the new type of customer in this game, who 麦肯锡 call the 'zero consumer'. They don't stick to one brand or shop in one place anymore, they want their products delivered quickly, and they care a lot about the environment. They're like guests who keep changing their orders at a restaurant and want their meals served immediately and in an eco-friendly way.
Because of these changes, retail leaders have to come up with a new plan, or 'playbook', to stay successful in the game. They need to be fast, bold, and forward-thinking, like a football team that needs to change its strategies to win matches. This is important because the retail industry is becoming a winner-takes-most game, where a small number of successful retailers are taking the majority of the profits.
In this new retail game, it's not just about selling things anymore. Retailers have to offer unique and exclusive products, provide quick and free shipping, and show that they care about sustainability. If they don't adapt to these new rules, they might find themselves left out in this fast-changing retail neighborhood
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Looking ahead
The retail industry has faced significant disruption in the last five years, with changes in behavior and expectations from customers, suppliers, employees, and investors. The article outlines a new playbook for retail leaders to navigate these changes, emphasizing the need for a 'retail reset'. Key elements of this new environment include the emergence of the 'zero consumer', who shows little loyalty and demands fast shipping and sustainable products. Retailers must adapt to remain competitive in an industry where the gap between winners and losers is widening
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CEO at Pentaleap | Crealytics | Retail Media Thought Leader | Entrepreneur | Startup Investor
1 年Very true, I'd subscribe to all this ?? On a meta-level it requires very traditional corporate to become agile, take on risks, try new things, innovate. Having worked with and sold to large retailers, I feel these attributes can rarely be found. Let's take retail media as an example: - Alibaba is playing this game for 20 years now - Amazon started 10 years ago - Many others are now getting into it How can western retailers (and other companies) keep up with the pace of innovation we're seeing from Chinese companies these days? What needs to change?
Growth Leader | Amit Upadhyaya Youtube | Personal Finance Enthusiast | PLM Expert | Seeker of Human Stories | Photographer | Lifelong Learner
1 年Indeed insightful John Greca ! There are clear examples every where in the world that retailers who adapt to these changes are getting rewarded significantly !