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The world of retail used to be much simpler. It was an industry that was driven by creativity, trends and a gut feel for what would sell.
Retail workers have been on the frontline of the pandemic since the beginning and much has been written about the day-to-day challenges that they face.
Sydney’s lockdown ended overnight, with midnight haircuts, gym sessions and early morning shopping queues highlighting the enormous relief felt across the city.
The roadmaps out of lockdown released by the NSW and Victorian state governments last week offer a welcome glimmer of hope for retailers.
Digital retail is more than just online shopping. The explosion in online retail throughout the pandemic period has perhaps distracted from the fact that retail activity remains 80% bricks-and-mortar.
The post-pandemic retail recovery has officially stalled. This week the Australian Bureau of Statistics published the preliminary headline retail sales data for the month of June.
Clothing rental is taking off in Australia, with designers and retailers alike getting into the action with new apps catering for borrowing and renting clothing rather than buying.
Department stores have long been a popular hub for convenience, variety and discovery. However, the explosion in online shopping, continued expansion of floorspace and now the challenges of Covid-19 have seriously challenged their business model.
Australian retail sales grew 2.3% against the last year in March 2021, with several media reports highlighting the softening of retail demand. But the March headline growth number is misleading, given the 10% surge in March 2020 as panic buying took hold.
The ATO has recently announced they are reviewing a number of activities that involve alcohol entering the Australian domestic market for consumption without payment of the required amount of excise duty.
National Head of Retail & Consumer Products, Luke Ritchie, says retailers with deep connection to their customer communities are best placed to emerge stronger from the challenges wrought by the pandemic.
“Digital Transformation” is a common refrain amongst retailers grappling to respond to the explosion in online shopping brought on by the pandemic. Shrewd retailers understand this means far more than throwing money at a fancy website.