Growth of E-commerce and Omnichannel
The current market situation has accelerated the development of their online stores and applications for many companies. The whole world was at home in quarantine simultaneously, so everyone, even those who had not practiced online shopping before, turned their eyes to the Internet. Now, the client wants to find the product online, examine it, and choose the method of receipt and delivery. Reading the product when he arrives is desirable, which he can refuse if he does not like it. Recently, more and more online stores are considering opening offline: pick-up points, showrooms, and full-fledged stores.
Development of Marketplaces
Placement on the market is an excellent opportunity for companies that do not have an online store and are not ready to invest enough resources in it now. It allows you to sell your products to a broad audience of customers and use marketplace promotion tools. Interestingly, many retailers create marketplaces based on their online stores, and even retailers with their online platforms actively cooperate with marketplaces to expand sales channels. Marketplaces, in turn, strive to develop their assortment as much as possible, which makes it possible for manufacturers who previously sold their goods only offline to enter the online channel.
It is also curious that large logistics operators have entered this niche. They have their delivery, courier service, and customer base. All that remains is to create an online platform and fill it with an assortment with the help of customers, who, in this case, will act as suppliers.
Delivery and Food Tech
2020 gave a powerful impetus to the development of delivery, mainly express delivery. The customer has become more demanding: arranging next-day delivery is insufficient. All things being equal, you will choose in favor of the seller, who can deliver the goods today or, even better, in the next 2 hours.
Food tech companies are the leaders in terms of sales growth in 2020. It is due to the development of e-commerce in general and delivery services. It is also worth noting that with the announcement of self-isolation at the beginning of the pandemic, all restaurants closed, but most tried to keep their jobs, switching to delivering ready-made meals.
Changing Formats of Offline Stores
Small-format stores mainly drive retail growth. Large store formats began declining several years ago, but in 2020, some of them managed to reverse this trend through online sales and the development of delivery services. Due to online sales of food and essential goods, dark stores are growing. In a pandemic, when it is recommended to be in crowded places as little as possible, it is easier to go to the nearest store two or three times a week and buy all the necessary products at the same prices as in hypermarkets.
Ready-made Food and Own Production
Grocery retailers continue to develop their product line, which allows them to differentiate themselves from competitors and increase the frequency of customer visits to stores. Also, in accordance with the trend towards healthy food, the development movement of the fresh and ultra-fresh categories is gaining momentum. 2020 had limited access to cafes and restaurants for everyone, so their former regulars are now ready to give preference to shops where you can buy a ready-made business lunch or dinner and eat in a cafe on the store’s territory.
Three Promising Development Paths
You can assume the three most promising development paths by analyzing past events and observing how retailers have adapted to the changes.
Retailers will Continue to Transform
Almost all networks are currently in the process of transformation, which covers all functions and departments. As part of the developed СVP (customer value proposition), the chains launch projects to improve service and interaction with customers, improve quality control and freshness of goods, adapt the assortment to “their” customers, and market trends personalizing promotional offers, etc. These changes will allow interaction with customers to a higher level and gain their loyalty.
Networks will Invest More in Social Programs, Environmental Care, and Community Support
2020 showed how vital genuine support from employers to their employees, people in crisis, and a global concern for the environment and the planet we live on turned out to be. That is why corporate social responsibility for many networks is becoming a growth driver, is included in the HR brand, and is considered when positioning in the market and drawing up a CVP. This example can be seen at X5 Retail Group and other players in the retail market. The sustainable development strategy and social programs are based on the principles of the UN Global Compact.
Networks will Focus on Tackling Employee Turnover and Increasing Engagement
This trend developed several years ago and will undoubtedly continue. Today, the main goal of retailers is to attract and retain talent, and for this, it is necessary to develop new systems of motivation and loyalty. High staff turnover and low involvement of line personnel are the pain of the entire Russian retail. The networks are constantly launching various projects to solve this problem. Recently, these have been recognized as the primary tools for creating comfortable and safe conditions for store personnel, non-financial motivation and involvement in corporate programs, development of programs for professional and career development, and much more.
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