A peek at future of Retail
The Wikipedia defines Retail as - the process of selling consumer goods or services to customers through multiple channels of distribution to earn a profit. It is quite a comprehensive definition making the current complexity of the retail scenario apparent.
Gone are simple days of manufacturing a product and packaging it nicely before getting it to a wholesaler and/or a retailer who would then get them into the hands of the end customer for earning profits. The wholesalers would also sell their wares to retailers and it would then be passed on to the customer.
Whether the simple village bazaars (weekly markets) of India or the Greek agoras, it all gave way to the high street brick-and-mortar behemoths to the current buzz of mobile app-based marketplaces – the changes have been phenomenal to say the least. But the most disruptive technological advancement, that made its tremors felt in the world of retail, was of course the rapid advent and adoption of a user friendly and cost-effective app culture!
It is interesting to note how retail quickly grew out of its B2B and B2C stage to accept the mature world of C2B and C2C platforms. We are living in an increasingly consumerist world where Retail seems to be almost omnipresent and a major player in human society and life.
Where are we headed now in the fields of retail? Let’s take a peek at the future!
- Management of any retail operation — whether virtual or physical — will increasingly depend on technological level of the company, requiring paradigm shifts in aptitudes and expertise, recruitment, work culture and much else.
- Store operators will provide their renters better digital in-store opportunities allowing less tech-savvy sellers offer advanced services.
- Buyers will use in-store mobile-apps to know more about the products they add to their baskets, in real-time.
- Digital shelves will mushroom in all areas of retail.
- Automated warehouses — armed with advanced pick-up and delivery alternatives — reducing fulfillment times will redefine consumers’ expectations in delivery immediacy.
- Completely automated checkout will become the norm having camera-based and scan-and-go technology promoting to more harmonious retail encounter.
Hmm! Interesting times for those who are part of the great Retail Bandwagon! We, at Ginesys, can’t wait to be leading from the front!
