How GenZ represent a way back for Bricks&Mortar stores

The digital dependency of Generation Z (GenZ) could present a technological ticking ‘time-bomb’ for brands and retailers, according to new research by Vodat International, reported in NetImperative.

Apart from the potential represented by the 38% GenZ who say they will continue to make most of their purchases in-store, other research findings from the report include:

• Top motivations for GenZ consumers to shop in-store – validation (68%), immediacy (43%) and social interaction (42%)
• Top technologies that GenZ say drive them into store now – free WiFi (48%) and self-checkouts (38%)
• Top tech that would encourage them into store in 2021 – fast-track ‘scan and shop’ apps (18%), augmented reality fitting rooms (18%) and virtual queue ticketing systems (17%)

Lots more detail in the article, but in essence, the research shows a way back for Bricks&Mortar stores, providing they build in the right incentives for GenZ.

Not meeting this need, for a generation that will succeed the millennials, means GenZ’s growing digital reliance could drive a gap between shopper expectations and the reality of what the store can deliver over the next five years.

A pity, for the want of a little digital savvy, to allow GenZ to morph into GenZZZZZzzzzzz, as far as traditional stores are concerned…

Walmart Jetting to No.2 Online?

                                                                                                                                            pic Jet.com
Walmart's purchase of Jet.com may impose too big a payload on a 1-year start-up.

At Check-in:

• Walmart are paying $3.3bn for an online fellow-passenger that has generated sales of $1bn in its first year, but no profits, to complement their current $13.6bn digital revenue
• They gain access to a young team of digital talent that has thrived in a small company environment, now transferring to the world's biggest retailer
• They are hoping to access the cheapest way to ship online
• Walmart can offer Jet.com access to their global sourcing and buying power...and cash

At Check-out:

• Walmart's bricks & mortar estate, too big and slowing...
• Jet.com sells in bulk to a young audience - ability to pay?
• Transactional bulk-buying in an era that is increasingly about smaller, faster, closer, more convenient, cheaper shopping? Contrast this with Dollar Shave Club, who have found a way of shipping monthly at $1/basket, on a subscription model...

However, being Walmart, although No.2, they will try harder...

But are No.1 Amazon flying so high, No.2 becomes irrelevant?

Amazon Prime Air - Taking off via its new 40 Boeing fleet

In its continuous search for pipeline cost savings, Amazon have commissioned 11 of what will be a 40 plane fleet that will complement their drones and van network, raising the distribution bar even higher in online fulfillment.

Longer term, NAMs will need to think about how far up the supply-chain  Amazon will reach in their search for economies and faster response-times...

For instance, how about product design and manufacture, absorbing private label on the way? 

...thereby taking us back to their ultimate mission statement incorporated into their logo, 'everything from A to Z', selling anything anyone wants anywhere, whenever and however they choose to buy, within normal legal limitations, of course...

Dark Stores in Practice?

Copyright EMR-NamNews 

Lidl - the real threat?

The discounter as change-maker:

This week, why not visit your nearest Lidl and think about the threat to the major mults? Even better, follow it with a call on a nearby Tesco to heighten the contrast…

See how long it takes for you to appreciate that the hard discounters becoming more like supermarkets is not the issue... Of course they will add to their offering, especially to cater for upmarket clients…

But suppose their real impact is in making the consumer-shopper value a simpler, more limited choice, and in the process convincing us that we cannot perceive – and don’t always need – the ‘extras’ provided by equivalent brands at 30% more…

Causing us to ponder whether we are changing the discounters, or they are changing us?

Now that’s the type of competition the mults – and their branded suppliers - don’t need…

NAM-Tales: Winning and losing in Job interviews

The above* reminds me of a pal in a NAM-job interview who was handed a Biro by the Sales Director saying 'Sell me that'.

The interviewee examined it, snapped it in half and threw it into the waste-basket...

He then said: 'John, a man in your position should not use rubbish like this, what you need is one of these', taking a Mont Blanc pen from his pocket with a flourish...

No, he did not get the job...

Perhaps a lesson therein for both parties?

* HT to Gabi Ajulah

Public Wi-Fi hotspots and NAMs: Busting the many legal myths

Given the NAMs' dual roles of road-warrior and adviser to the retail trade, knowing the legal implications of using public wi-fi spots can help.

Nothing beats taking the time to read the full article by Ars Technica UK, but by way of encouragement, the following key points may whet your appetite:

-  "If there is no stated legitimate purpose for the processing of individual user information, the default position is that it must not be processed."

-  Some hotel Wi-Fi software records the URLs accessed by each guest (Held for legislative purposes, in case there’s a copyright breach or it’s requested by law enforcement or whatever).

-  Collecting and storing personal information brings responsibilities under the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA), soon to be updated. The more data collected, and the further its purposes diverge from what’s strictly necessary to provide a service, the more responsibilities the collector incurs.

-  A user "cannot be obliged to accept something that isn’t a necessary part of the service, and they especially cannot be expected to accept marketing as part of something else."


Note: The article deals specifically with the legality of public wi-fi in the UK. The rules and laws can vary wildly in other countries around the world.

NB. The article also adds much useful detail - and relevant links - for retailers setting up and managing a public wi-fi spot, a useful addition to a NAM's advisory repertoire.

A New Savings-account for unprecedented times?