Target, one of the clear retail winners in the pandemic era, posted another impressive quarter, with Q4 revenue, earnings and comparable sales outpacing projections and its omnichannel strategy firing on all cylinders as it reported a $9 billion gain in market share based on internal and market research.
Coming after a year of economic contraction and retail disruption, the 2020 peak holiday season threatened to be brutal on retailers. While some retailers had exceptional results, operational challenges limited opportunities. See what a recent study revealed about the impact of pre-peak investments on reducing capability gaps.
Omnichannel operations are the future of brick-and-mortar and DTC retail.
The past year has redefined how Americans shop. Ecommerce, BOPIS and curbside are table stakes, and free shipping is expected. What exactly does that mean for ecommerce fulfillment operations? Now more than ever, they must be strategic, sophisticated and responsive. Here are 10 key areas to pursue in 2021.
Dark stores, even as a temporarily approach, can help offset the cost of underperforming stores and the expense of freight and logistics, especially in more densely populated areas. It also takes online fulfillment out of store operations, allowing retailers to concentrate on customer service and minimizing inventory confusion.
As 2020 comes to a close, it’s time to reflect back on a wild and crazy year in retail, to paraphrase the Festrunk brothers from Saturday Night Live. COVID-19 came in like a wrecking ball in February and March, causing widespread shutdowns that hit retail especially hard, leading to hockey-stick growth in ecommerce.
The pandemic has accelerated customer experience and convenience trends that were previously gaining momentum. Now, some of those trends have become essential for businesses to offer safe shopping experiences. To know which ones are worth investing in, recognize which are fads and which will prevail long past next year.
Amazon and Best Buy are both touting their expanded network of alternate pickup locations to deal with the holiday crush ahead of Black Friday, giving shoppers more options for getting their stuff fast. Amazon said it has Hub locations in more than 900 cities and towns, while Best Buy’s network is over 16,000.
The ability to delivery a high-quality omnichannel experience has never been more critical than during the post-pandemic era, but most brands aren’t prepared to meet consumer expectations, according to a report from NewStore. Not surprisingly, providing safety and convenience were atop the list of winning practices cited.
For retailers, massive holiday ecommerce this year raises the prospect of more customer complaints, lost package claims, returns due to delays and possible shipping fraud as harried customer service agents try to keep shoppers happy by making post-order changes. Here’s how you can plan now to keep holiday customers happy.
This holiday season retailers will not only have to contend with decreased carrier capacity due to the pandemic but also the anticipated influx of mail-in election ballots – all of which could result in a “super peak” holiday nightmare for retailers. Now is the time to implement strategies to ensure they can keep up with demand.