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Published: May 02, 2019
Updated: May 02, 2019
With the prevalence of today's online consumer activity, it's no surprise that notable retailers like Payless Shoes, The Gap, Gymboree and others are closing their stores. Traditional brick and mortar retailers are re-assessing their store footprints and rethinking how to better connect with customers. Regardless of this shift, retail growth in Canada continues to be strong. Retailers, including those that are traditionally online only, continue to open stores across Canada. E-commerce marketplaces are exploding and international retailers are flocking to Canada with ambitious growth plans.
What's the difference between retailers that are growing and those that are shrinking? One of the biggest differentiators is that growing retailers have a mature digital transformation strategy that incorporates the foundational trends of today's retail environment:
- Consumers continue to gravitate towards retailers who offer seamless, omni-channel commerce with digital and store-based experiences.
- Retailers are aligning their entire business; in store, supply chain, and head office are working towards a consistent customer experience.
- Growing retailers are using data analytics to gain deeper insights into customers, operations, and financials with an ability to predict future activity vs. simply analyzing past activity.
- Digital transformation is no longer for large retailers. Retailers of any size can benefit from a sound strategy coupled with affordable, cloud-based technologies.
Investing haphazardly in technology is not a digital strategy. A true digital transformation is business-centric and invests in the highest ROI initiatives across the organization.