COVID-19 has accelerated the number of purchases being made on-line. As such, many retailers have needed to jump-start their digital transformation strategies, offering alternative ways for shoppers to make purchases. Important areas for retailers to consider is how products are presented on a web page and with ensuring that consumers can assess what is available through multi-channel offerings.
Take the U.K., for example, new data compiled from IMRG (as reported by Internet Retailing) indicates that British online retail sales rose by 22 percent in the first week of April 2020 compared to the same time the previous year.
This trajectory is evidenced through research undertaken by C+R looking at the ways U.S. citizens have changed their grocery shopping habits. The findings reveal that 60 percent of shoppers are now fearful to shop at a grocery store and 73 percent are shopping less at physical grocery stores, turning to online providers. People are also spending more. The average weekly grocery spend before COVID-19 was $159; whereas, the average weekly grocery spend since COVID-19: $184.
To add to this, retailers also need to grapple with stock issues (which requires careful management of their supply chains, again requiring on an increased use of digital technology) and with distributing purchases to customers in a way that is both timely and safe. in the U.S. many small retailers have joined forces to help leverage purchasing power, distribution networks and to seek economies of scale.
C+R research, for example, showed that grocery delivery in the U.S. has increased almost four-fold during COVID-19 where, at the same time, in-store shopping has decreased. As an example of increased reliance upon deliveries, consumers on average took 2.3 weekly trips to the grocery store before COVID-19 and now average only 1 per week.
Adaption is of great importance given that, and again taking the UK as an example, a study by Alvarez & Marsal predicted that half of British retailers could be wiped out if coronavirus lockdown measures continue.
Going forwards there is the likelihood that retail will never be the same again, as consumers become increasingly used to make online purchases, meaning major changes ahead for the traditional bricks and mortar stores. It’s been suggested that many stores will be transformed into large showrooms, showcasing higher-end physical products while consumers buy the actual products through digital channels.
