This week's retail news 'you may have missed'.....
At mdj2, we’re passionate about retail and always looking to share our news, views and insights. With so much information out there, we wanted to share just a small selection of retail news headlines from last week that we found interesting…??
B&Q and Pinterest team up to inspire Home Front trend with unique campaign
B&Q has partnered with Pinterest to launch a new co-branded campaign, marking the retailer’s first use of the platform’s Trend Badge feature. The initiative is aimed at consumers who are increasingly focused on the “Home Front” trend of decorating the exteriors of their homes. The trend was identified in Pinterest’s December trend prediction report, with search terms such as “front door transformation,” “front garden,” and “front hallway decor ideas” all continuing to gain traction on the platform.
B&Q is utilising Pinterest’s Trend Badge to target users with a strong interest in home decor, finance, gardening, and bathrooms with creative video ads that offer inspiration and products to realise these ideas.
Pinterest is one of the world’s top destinations for home decor and DIY enthusiasts, with millions of visitors every month using the platform to find inspiration and shop for products. Pinterest’s Trend Badge is an advertising solution that enables brands to tap into top themes and provide content that corresponds with user searches during key seasonal moments. The badge is unique to each country and is awarded to only one brand for a particular trend. This allows brands to inspire Pinterest users with the very ideas they are searching for, with relevant and up-to-date content.
Matt Siberry, Head of Home at?Pinterest?UK, highlighted the creativity of Pinterest users, who are seeking to improve overlooked areas of their homes with small budgets despite the cost-of-living crisis. He added: “We’re delighted that our insights can help B&Q inspire people with the very products and ideas they’re looking for.” Jane Sell, Head of PR & Social Media at B&Q, stressed the importance of insights in ensuring effective and engaging content. She expressed?B&Q’s?satisfaction with working with Pinterest on the campaign and obtaining the Home Front trend badge. The Pinterest predictions for 2023, align with B&Q’s?Slice of Home Life report 2023, which indicated that consumers are increasingly using their homes as social spaces.
Pinterest has over 450 million monthly active users globally who rely on the platform to make inspired purchasing decisions. It is the place where users can find inspiration, discover new dreams, plan, and shop for moments that matter the most to them. Every search on Pinterest is a reflection of users’ desires for what they want to try or buy next. The platform’s grounded vision for the future allows it to gain an early indication of where consumers are headed and aid brands in predicting future trends.
John Lewis staff to vote on Sharon White's leadership as questions over retailer's future come to a head
John Lewis staff can vote on Sharon White's leadership this week as questions over the retailer's future come to a head.
Tomorrow and Wednesday, 60 employee representatives will have their say on White's role as chairman during a council meeting, including two votes on her leadership, according to reports from The Sunday Times.
Although White cannot be ousted through this ballot, the council is able to dismiss her at any time if she fails to meet responsibilities.
The council vote comes just weeks after it emerged that White could consider selling a stake in the business, undermining the 70-year-old partnership model, where 74,000 employees are part-owners.?
The plan provoked a backlash, with ex-boss Andy Street saying the end of the partnership would be a 'tragedy'.
Staff lost out on a bonus this year after the retail group posted a ￡230million full-year loss.?
Chris Earnshaw, president of the Partnership Council, said: 'Since 1919, the chairman has held sessions with our Council to reflect on the performance. This is a routine part of our democratic process.'
Moss Bros plots store expansion as profits double
Moss Bros has revealed plans to expand its store footprint and marketplaces offer after its profits more than doubled thanks to the continuing post-pandemic surge for formalwear.
Sales for?the menswear retailer?skyrocketed 63% to ￡151.6m for the 12 months to January 2023, up from ￡93.1m the year before.
EBITDA soared 112% from ￡17m to ￡36m for the year, boosted by a “significant” uptick in demand for casual wear.
The formalwear retailer said it plans to open 10 new stores this year, creating around 80 new jobs, as well as some “significant resites” of its existing outlets to fit the new ‘MOSS’ rebrand.
Moss Bros said its strong performance was in part from the success of its marketplaces offer, which it plans to expand beyond Next and John Lewis over the coming months.
Chief executive Brian Brick said: “Our omni-channel approach ensures a continued focus on stores backed with a strong on-line offering.
“We have completely reimagined the product offering for the way our customers are living today.
“We’ve also pivoted from a formal hire business that sold tailoring to a menswear fashion brand that sells suiting, complemented by smart casualwear, while offering a rental service.”
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Four Predictions On The Future Of Retail Stores
Throughout my decades-long career in e-commerce, I’ve watched the industry transform from a fringe business model into a multi-trillion-dollar global machine. Although the steady rise of e-commerce led many to predict the pandemic would spell the end of physical stores once and for all, demand for in-person retail is?higher now?than it was in 2020.
Believe it or not, three quarters of all U.S. retail sales?are forecasted to occur offline this year. And paradoxically, the next evolution of e-commerce may make physical storefronts more durable. In fact, I founded my most recent business on the premise that the era of isolated online and brick-and-mortar retail strategies is over.
I believe that going forward, innovative brands will apply a digital perspective to in-person retail—and unify offerings to deliver an improved customer experience across all channels. Here are four predictions on how that is likely to look.
1.?????Physical stores will no longer be "stores."
The original purpose for physical storefronts was, quite literally, storage. Retailers needed a way to “store” inventory in locations that were accessible to shoppers. Now, rising property leases have prompted some retailers to relocate to smaller footprints—and?many are finding?that having less inventory on hand isn’t a disadvantage.
Modern retail and inventory technologies enable retailers to stock the bulk of their inventory in cost-effective warehouses and ship it directly to customers—even customers who place “orders” in-store. What’s the point of having a physical footprint when most purchases will arrive by mail? Why will shoppers even go to stores? The answer is simple: branding.
Stores are increasingly becoming a marketing and customer service investment—a physical extension of the brand. You can see this in luxury fashion hubs like Paris or Milan. Customers can only glean so much information from a Gucci or Prada website. For the full experience, they have to see the architecture, touch the products and feel the scarcity factor. Expect mainstream retailers to find similar ways to set their stores apart in the next five years.
2.??????Hardware will disappear.
Beginning in the 2000s, the retail industry replaced much of its antiquated hardware with modern payment terminals, credit card readers, receipt printers and inventory-monitoring RFID antennas. Now, many retailers may leave these tools behind, as well.
This transformation is already beginning. Tap-to-pay technology enables businesses to offload their payment terminals. The proliferation of?powered payment options will also reduce the necessity of cash and plastic credit cards, as will capabilities like “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) financing, which began as an online-only payment option but is now common at physical retailers.
As e-commerce capabilities become feasible for stores, retailers can add through subtraction. By ridding themselves of excess hardware, they can free up valuable real estate to create unique, immersive shopping experiences.
3.?????Stores will operate through a single device.
The end result of retailers discarding outdated hardware is that stores will primarily operate through software. Eventually, this software might even run on?reality glasses, allowing store associates to assist customers hands-free without having to look down at a screen.
For now, retailers can use mobile devices as their primary control center. It’s already possible for store associates to service customers entirely from their phones. They can place orders for items not available in-store, check product inventory across locations, process returns, check customers out from anywhere in the store and remain available for assistance after customers leave the premises.
In addition to these customer-facing tasks, modern retail software digitizes and simplifies backroom tasks like inventory management and cycle counts, enabling store associates to more efficiently track stock accuracy and keep customers satisfied.
4.?????Mobile apps are the new loyalty card.
Mobile apps are already emerging as the most powerful tool brands have to cultivate loyalty. Established retailers have undervalued mobile apps for years—in 2021, only?33% of retail brands?had apps in place. But many fail to offer benefits that shoppers want, such as real-time inventory, exclusive promotions and chat?capabilities. By incorporating these features, apps can better serve as a bridge between in-person and digital shopping experiences—while rewarding loyal customers with the most personalized experiences.
For example, customers can scan QR codes in-store to gain access to more comprehensive product info and branded content online. And after they’ve made their selection, they can use an app to complete their purchase—in some cases, without the help of a store associate. This seamless back-and-forth between channels helps retailers unify their in-person and e-commerce experiences under the same umbrella.
Apps can also benefit customers in ways they don’t see on their phone screens. Retailers can use the data that apps gather to deliver better service. For example, if a customer places a BOPIS order through a mobile app, store associates can receive the fulfillment request in real time and prepare it for the shopper’s arrival. Once there, the associates can be ready with the order when the customer steps in the door and suggest related products they might enjoy.
The channel conflict is over.
Look back years—decades, even—and you’ll find headlines heralding the rise of e-commerce and the decline of physical retail. But I believe it’s now clear that one is not destined to overthrow the other. Innovative retailers can lead the way by connecting traditional retail and e-commerce capabilities to offer customers greater control and flexibility over how they shop.?
In the future, the store’s potential as a marketing asset and value driver can finally come to fruition.