Are retailers ready for the rise of individualism?

As our economy reopens and retailers gear up for their next phase of growth, many will be charting changes in the way people are thinking and feeling, and considering how these shifts will impact their businesses.

Over the past year, there has been a profound shift in the consumer psyche. People are feeling a new sense of agency over their own lives. They’re finding new confidence to show up as themselves, and they want to be rewarded with authentic experiences and connections. This shift – discussed in depth in the recent Fjord Trends report – is already impacting the retail sector in several ways.

To start with, it’s influencing how and where people want to shop. People are losing their appetite for mass-market consumerism. Instead, they want to make purchases that reflect their identity – or say something about who they want to be. This is contributing to the growth of marketplace platforms, such as Depop, that help consumers identify people like them micro-influencers they aspire to – and shop with them. ?

HURR, is another great example of this. Visitors to the fashion rental platform can browse the wardrobes of a number of style icons, identify the looks that could work for them, and try them out. The platform also offers consumers a more sustainable way to shop, at a time when many are thinking more deeply about how they consume finite resources.

The trend for individualism and independence is also fuelling the influencer economy and rise of social media selling. People are using platforms like Tik Tok, Instagram and Facebook to share their style and create powerful, personal brands that consumers really engage with. This engagement has become a commodity, enabling influencers to trade with retailers who want to sell to their audience, and make money on their own terms.

Balancing mass market and personal appeal?

The rise of individualism is challenging large retailers to strike a delicate balance. They must maintain mass market appeal, while connecting with consumers on a more personal level.

Online fashion and beauty brands are leading the way in this. ASOS, Pretty Little Thing and Missguided all understand that consumers want to engage with people like them. By recruiting diverse influencers to promote their items, these retailers are able target multiple consumer groups, while making their brand really relevant to each.

Some retailers, including Pretty Little Thing, are going one step further and getting influencers involved in the design of their clothes. This presents another point of personal appeal for consumers. They don’t just get something Molly Mae has endorsed – they get something she’s actually created.

John Lewis is taking a slightly different approach. Rather than recruiting social media?influencers as brand ambassadors, the retailer has identified members of its home and fashion teams, and is helping them become influencers in their own right. These JL influencers star in video tutorials and have their own Instagram accounts, where they can build a personal following and showcase their take on John Lewis items.

The initiative works for everyone: consumers, employees and the business itself. Consumers find someone in the John Lewis family that they can connect with – and even have a styling appointment with. Employees feel appreciated as individuals and get the opportunity to build their own social following. John Lewis benefits from greater consumer engagement.

Individualism and employees

When it comes to winning consumers, a one size-fits-all approach will no longer do. The same is true for retail employees.

People are thinking more deeply about what they want from work and are likely to come up with different answers. For the first time, the balance of power sits with employees. If retailers want to attract and retain great people, they will need to develop new employee value propositions that appeal to their diverse needs.

One of the things many employees are looking for is greater flexibility in when and how they work. Historically, retail has been viewed as a flexible sector, due to options for shift work, zero-hours contracts, and so forth. However, this is very much flexibility on retailers’ terms. Now, as new working models such as the four-day week emerge, employees are likely to demand new forms of flexible working.

Retailers looking to develop new working models should draw inspiration from the convenience sector. For years, convenience stores have provided people with flexible employment close to their homes. They typically have longer hours, but allow employees to work shorter shifts. Their heritage as family-run stores also means that flexibility is deeply embedded into their culture. It is the norm for people to trade shifts and help each other juggle life/work commitments.

Whether retailers choose to offer a four day working week, more flexible hours or a combination of measures, it’s clear that they must do something. One recent Glassdoor survey found that retail is the second worst industry for work life balance, so the imperative to reinvent is high. Those retailers able to demonstrate empathy, and successfully balance the changing needs of employees with the commercial needs of their businesses, will benefit from a more loyal, committed workforce.

In my next blog I’ll be placing a retail perspective on two more of the Fjord Trends; The end of abundance thinking and The next frontier. In the meantime, if you have any comments or reflections on the above, I’d love to hear them.?