Consumer Centricity

As a result of increasingly heightened expectations, it is important to allow individuals to consume on their own terms

At the tap of a button, billions of people have the power to summon whatever they want at a great price - and delivery is often free. In some cases, retailers have decreased fulfillment time to 30 minutes or less. With millions of products available to consumers and steep competition for the last mile, there’s never been a better time to be a shopper.

Marvin Ellison, CEO of Lowe’s, always asks the question, ‘what is in the best interest of our customers?’, with the vision to ‘provide a total home solution for customers’. He sees effective technology as the key driver of this, yet it's technology that no one sees. “All the customer knows is that the transaction was easy; all the associates and supply people know is that the system works well.”

Sumit Singh, CEO of Chewy said he spends early mornings reading reviews on websites to understand customer issues and inquiries and find solutions; “to live inside the details, listen closely, and have mechanisms that allow you to work backward from customers. Additionally, “it takes seven trials to form a habit and 12 to form permanence.” A year into the pandemic, retailers that are meeting consumer expectations are finding their consumers have formed lasting habits.

The Store Advantage

With more shoppers migrating online, stores are playing a new role.

In 2019, analysts were predicting the store of the future would offer inspirational experiences that couldn’t be replicated online. Fast forward a year and store associates are live-streaming events for shoppers at home and mobile app features are being designed to reduce in-store dwell time. This new mindset is driving capital investments that will unify in-store and online experiences.

Increasingly, retailers are reconfiguring floor plans to provide more space for online order fulfillment; adapting parking lots and transforming service desks into pickup desks. Salesforce believes the store associates’ role is evolving into trusted agents that operate on behalf of retailers, both in-store and via digital channels. They are seeing digital enhance physical store offerings, with growth coming from these blended experiences.

Fifth Avenue CEO Marc Metrick has shown success in putting technology in the hands of the associates; in-store stylists have generated more than $150M in revenue through the use of technology to fulfill a customer need both before and after stores were opened.

Seeking to boost the store advantage, retailers are “reimagining how their physical assets can be used” to balance discovery and online fulfillment, says Michelle Evans, Senior Head of Digital Consumer, Euromonitor International.

Brands with purpose will win

The strength and values of an organization’s culture has been called to task.

Last year saw significant upheaval within society, something that resulted in consumers increasingly looking to brands to make an impact and show that they shared strong values. Customers were asking companies to demonstrably put purpose above profits - a call to arms that many reacted to, from joining movements on social media to pledging resources and profits to fighting causes.

Marvin Ellison, CEO of Lowes believes this groundswell spurred brands into action: “You can’t solve all problems, but we took enormous steps to make this year a better one for people who needed it most”. Indeed, the company committed more than $1.2B to serve its associates and communities in 2020.

Similarly, Marc Matrick, of Saks Fifth Avenue said he felt energized by “a call to change” within the industry, and sees this as a chance to drive real change by working amongst those in fashion.

Lululemon meanwhile doubled down on its values of inclusivity, action and equity, ensuring that employees can see themselves in all levels of leadership. As a company with 77% women globally, the senior leadership team now reflects this. Not least, Lululemon has 55% of women sitting on its board of directors.