Omnichannel

As Jeff Bezos expands the Amazon.com empire, its dominance is impacting consumer behavior as well as legacy business models across more business sectors than we could have originally imagined. It’s been referred to as the Amazon Effect. One notable ripple of the Amazon Effect has been felt by traditional retailers. The profound impact has been…

In episode 190 of Total Retail Talks, Executive Editor Joe Keenan interviews Erik Lautier, chief marketing officer and chief digital officer at Francesca’s, a national fashion and accessories boutique. Listen in as they discuss how Francesca’s identifies a singe view of the customer across many channels, the brand’s partnership with customer data platform AgilOne, and the emerging…

For the past decade, I’ve worked closely with retail organizations through a consistently changing landscape that has always been dictated by new generations of consumers. Over the years, I couldn’t help but notice that there seems to be a vast gap in perspectives between the retail executives I talk to and today’s consumer. A new…

It’s no secret that the e-commerce boom has transformed the way people shop and, in many cases, had a deleterious impact on in-store sales. Last year saw a 3.4 percent growth for brick-and-mortar sales and a notable 15 percent jump for e-commerce sales. With these numbers and news of retailers committing to close their physical…

Jeff Bezos said, “If we can keep our competitors focused on us while we stay focused on the customer, ultimately we´ll turn out all right.” Many retailers today seem to do exactly this and try to compete with Amazon.com. It's not rare that I have conversations with retailers about implementing strategies to compete with, or…

Wayfair, the Boston-based seller of home goods, said this week that it will open its first full-service physical retail store in early fall. The store, which will be located in the Natick Mall in Natick, Mass., is designed to extend the way Wayfair customers shop. Customer service and home design experts, for example, will be in-store to…

According to Deloitte’s 2019 Retail Industry Outlook, 2018 saw a strong U.S. economy and a record-breaking holiday season. And while the retail industry witnessed mixed earnings, one constant remained — customers’ expectations are on a steep incline. Becoming a data-capable organization requires significant changes to be made at the leadership and technological level in order…

As we approach the end of the year's first quarter, now is a good time for retailers to consider the trends that will impact their businesses in 2019 and beyond. One exciting trend crossing all segments of retail is the renewed focus on the human connection — i.e., building authentic relationships, stimulating community connections, and…

In episode 187 of Total Retail Talks, Total Retail Executive Editor Joe Keenan is joined by Steve Pinder, managing director of Kurt Salmon, part of Accenture Strategy. Listen in as they discuss the increasing influence of digital in the grocery space; what Amazon.com buying Whole Foods has meant for traditional grocers; and what grocers should be…

A survey by the National Retail Federation in 2018 showed that retailers reported a median return rate of 10 percent. This equates to $369 billion in sales that were made and then lost. Legitimate returns are expensive for retailers — labor, overhead, and opportunity costs all impact performance. Added to these necessary returns, return fraud…