How grocers can win in retail
As the digital age brings heavier competition amongst grocers, keeping up with the trends has become more important than ever.
But Retail Store Tours, a New York-based organization that provides curated experiences showing how innovative retailers are driving traffic to their stores, says it can help.
“In curating hundreds of stores and retail formats in the last year, we discovered the winning factors in retail today, including employee training, retail environment, use of technology, business model, store design, customer management, brand story, unique concept, the human touch and change,” said Retail Store Tours Founder and CEO Dan Hodges.
Some retailers are doing these “winning factors” well, according to Retail Store Tours, and grocers can learn from them. Let’s start with “the human touch.” According to Retail Store Tours, Apple Stores hires sales associates based on their kindness and evaluates them based on customer empathy. Microsoft retail hires sales associates who are both entertaining and informative. It is noteworthy that two of the leading technology retailers are focused on the human touch as a business strategy.
Customer engagement technology that interacts with shoppers in-store is a winning play, Retail Store Tours stated. Apple’s sales associates use customer management software that increases responsiveness to customers, resulting in satisfaction and more time in the store. Additionally, Amazon’s Amazon Go store concept reveals the steps being made toward a grab-and-go grocer experience. Customers, who need to have the Amazon Go smartphone app installed, swipe a code on their device on the way in. At that point, Amazon’s system of cameras and sensors tracks them through the aisles, charging a credit card for items they take after they leave.
Retailers built to capitalize on rapidly changing consumer behaviors and trends are also winning, according to Retail Store Tours. The future belongs to the fast movers and their ability to adapt their business models. Story is an example of a store that changes its entire product offerings many times during the year. Nike’s flagship store is another example where customers can buy online and pick-up in store in their own, secure locker.
To read the entire story, click here.