The effects of the Covid-19 pandemic have further accelerated the rise of online retail, while many brick-and-mortar retailers got into great trouble. However, a current international study carried out by the research institute of the management consultancy Capgemini offers the troubled retailers a glimmer of hope: According to this, the desire to return to stationary stores after the end of the health crisis has risen sharply among the consumers surveyed: inside.
For the study “What Matters to Today’s Consumers”, the Capgemini Research Institute “surveyed more than 10,000 consumers over the age of 18 in ten countries worldwide, including Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Australia and Canada , Great Britain and the United States ”. For the fashion industry, however, the findings are only of limited significance: the participating consumers have “bought food, household and toilet articles and / or health and beauty products at least once in the last six months,” said Capgemini.
After the end of the pandemic, consumers want to increasingly visit stationary shops
In November 2021 – before the current wave of infections, which was intensified by the Omikron variant, had swelled, 72 percent of those surveyed stated that they “will be shopping to a considerable extent in physical stores again after the pandemic has subsided,” the study authors shared: inside with. The desire for the conventional shopping experience was stronger than immediately before the outbreak of the pandemic at the beginning of 2020, when only 60 percent of the respondents said they used stationary stores “regularly and to a significant extent”. In the crisis year 2020, which was characterized by long lockdowns, the value had meanwhile dropped to 24 percent.
However, the study participants want to hold on to Internet shopping: 38 percent said in November that they shop online regularly – and just as many want to hold on to it after the end of the pandemic. The market researchers from Capgemini saw this as a sign of stabilization in the retail sector, which was recently marked by upheavals: “Online shopping will not completely replace stationary retail,” they explained. Nevertheless, they identified fundamental changes in purchasing habits: “The type of these interactions is changing, however, as the distinction between online and retail stores is becoming increasingly blurred.” to use. The experts therefore advised retailers to “develop an omnichannel strategy that includes the role of shops, e-commerce, direct sales and marketplaces”.
Younger customers in particular like to order directly from the provider – and are ready to share their data with companies
Brands’ own online shops are now firmly established in e-commerce: 41 percent of the consumers surveyed stated that they had ordered items directly from the provider within the past six months – i.e. not from multi-brand retailers or online marketplaces. The younger the consumers: “More than two thirds (68 percent) of Generation Z consumers and more than half (58 percent) of Millennials have shopped directly from a brand, the more likely they are, the younger they are from Generation X (37 percent) and the older generation of baby boomers (21 percent), ”explained Capgemini. The main reasons for ordering direct from the supplier are therefore a “better shopping experience”, “access to loyalty programs” and the desire to get in direct contact with a supplier based on “brand values”.
Younger consumers in particular are also willing to share data with providers in this context. Martin Arnoldy, Head of Consumer Goods and Retail at Capgemini in Germany, sees great potential for retailers in this: “The willingness of younger consumers to buy directly from brands is a real opportunity for companies in the consumer goods industry,” he said in a press release. “Because consumers are willing to provide information about themselves or their preferences if they receive added value in return from companies. Manufacturers can use this consumer data to optimize their direct sales channel. ”In addition, the data could help sellers and retailers to“ translate supply and demand trends into concrete decisions – for example, when it comes to where they best store their products, how they customize products and services and how they can improve the customer experience, ”says Arnoldy.