IS RETAIL DEAD?

Someone in the industry recently asked me a very good question 👇

Is retail over? Is shopping in-person for things outdated?

It caught me by surprise

I’ve been in retail and fashion for many years and I never considered it to be obsolete

Here’s what I told them

History doesn’t repeat itself, but it rhymes

While the list is very, very long of failed retailers and brands

There is continuous renewal- new stores, new products, new trends

How we buy things has evolved over time and will continue to do so in the future

HOW WE’VE SHOPPED

Since the Cognitive Revolution, humans have found ways to trade goods

500 years ago, local craftsman made, on demand, whatever we needed

200 years ago, if you needed things for your home, you would go to the town dry goods shop

150 years ago, the Sears and JCPenney catalogs allowed our ancestors to purchase anything we could imagine, delivered right to our homes

100 years ago, if you needed new clothes, you would go one of the many department stores downtown

50 years ago, as our lives shifted to suburban homes with more space, we shopped at the mall

20 years ago, the internet again allowed us to purchase anything we can imagine, delivered right to our homes

Today, we have all of these options- catalogs, specialty retailers, department stores, and ecommerce

Every one of these evolutions has been enabled by technology

The invention of the steam engine enabled the building of railroads across the country

The discovery and refinement of petroleum enabled electricity, transportation, and new types of products to be made

The organization of labor and building of factories, brought on by the industrial revolution, enabled the mass-production of clothes, cars, and consumables

The creation of the interstate highway system facilitated the move out of cities and into less dense areas

The creation and opening of the internet opened up the world

WHERE ARE WE GOING?

To consider how shopping will evolve, it’s helpful to look at what’s happening in technology

Artificial Intelligence is driving personalization, customization, and productivity leverage

Social networks are simultaneously enabling one-to-one, one-to-many, and many-to-many relationships between people globally

Digital-powered marketplaces are making obsolete bricks-and-mortar marketplaces

Globalization, in spite of political actions, will continue so that manufacturing moves to lowest cost producers

Digital-enabled logistics efficiencies are shrinking deliveries to hours as opposed to days

HOW TO SUCCEED

Think about what won’t change and hasn’t changed over time 👇

Consumers seek convenience, value, and ultimately they want to improve their lives

Brands and retailers who meet these needs and reach consumers where they want to be met will win

Importantly, new channels will develop that don’t exist even today

It’s important to be testing new concepts and invest in new channel development

You don’t want to be too early

And you don’t want to be too late

I would be going deep today into live-shopping as it’s a personal connection and frictionless for consumers

It’s already happening in Asia, it’s definitely coming to the U.S.

I would also take advantage of AI tools- to market, predict demand, and personalize the consumer experience

Future transformations are happening whether we are ready or not

As a leader of your business and brand, it’s important to stay prepared for change

CHAD’S ROUND-UP

📚 What I read: Irrational Loyalty by Deb Gabor- How do you build a brand that is so loved that customers spread the word for you? This book tells you how by answering these 3 questions- What does it say about a person that they use your brand? What is the thing they get from your brand that they can’t get anywhere else? How do you make the customer the hero in their own story? Written by a master branding expert, this book will change how you think about the work that you do

🎧 What I heard: Founders: Todd Graves- If you’ve ever eaten at Raising Canes, you know two things- they take chicken seriously and they don’t take themselves too seriously. This incredible story of an entrepreneur who has built his business through hardship, failure, and force of will. Todd’s simple maxim- Do one thing and do it better than anyone else.

🕵🏻‍♂️ An interesting discovery:  Sesame- I’m going to blow your mind right now 🤯. Sesame is an A.I. conversational tool that allows you to have a conversation with Maya and Miles, two virtual chat agents. It’s the most human experience I’ve ever had with A.I. You can’t tell that these aren’t real people. Check out the free demo

That’s all for today

I’m rooting for you!

Chad