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The hidden opportunity in the retail apocalypse
There’s no shortage of business headlines around the ‘retail apocalypse’ — stores such as Toys R Us, Victoria’s Secret, and Forever 21 closing doors at the hands of Amazon and other innovative eCommerce businesses.
Real estate data confirms there is a slowdown in demand for retail space — with falling rents in both London and New York. Yet, in the face of all this gloom is opportunity for new concepts to take root.
The Future of Retail
The ‘Future of Retail’ is a topic just as popular as the retail apocalypse. Every year, every consulting firm releases new reports defining how retailers can innovate and avoid the demise of other retailers. But the content is largely the same: personalized offerings, unique customer experiences, and optimized operations thanks to digitization, and agile work-forces.
A large part of this is driven by a simple insight: people want less shitty experiences like waiting in line and arriving to out-of-stock items. Other innovations, like 3-D printing and connected mirrors are typically one-off attempts to draw customers back to current retailers.
I’m less curious about the changes retailers need to make to stay alive, and more interested in what new concepts will take the place of those retailers that too slow to adapt.
