Business View Magazine
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generation comes into being the main purchasers,
they’re looking for less ‘stuff’ than the Baby Boomers
did. They’re spending their money on experiences like
trips and/or things that they enjoy doing, versus prod-
ucts. So, retailers are fully aware of that, and they’re
trying to figure out the best ways to marry product and
experience. They have to change what the shopper en-
counters when they come to a store. A shopper has
come to a store for many different reasons - they may
have started their shopping journey on a mobile de-
vice, or from a billboard, or an email, or they could have
put something online
in their cart, but then
they actually want
to go to the store, or
they’re being driven
to the store - so the
store has to change
from just being one
type of experience
to a multi-faceted
one. The consumer
expects the store to
know about them
and to know what
they like to do, what
they want to do,
what’s important to
them, what’s pertinent to them.
“The consumer will absolutely expect every retailer to
be able to do the best ‘experience’ that they have ex-
perienced, so far,” Cantrell asserts. “What I mean by
that is: they’ve gone onto a site, or into a store, and it
was completely seamless - they click one button; the
retailer knows what they want, what they like; it comes
in a day or hours; it’s exactly what they wanted; there
was no friction; they know that the inventory is in there
when they get to the store: it was the best, seamless,
frictionless experience. The consumer is demanding
that. So, retailers are having to really change how they
operate to satisfy the customer in every possible way.
The consumer being in charge is a whole different
thing.”
“Retail is something that changes, constantly,” Cantrell
concludes. “It’s part of the DNA of this business.” And
she believes that the events that the NRF produces,
the content it creates, the advocacy it promulgates,
and the education that it provides, deliver value to its
members that is “second to none in the industry.” Not
only do NRF members get representation on Capitol
Hill and protection against things that could materially
change their businesses, they get education about how
to run those businesses better, and knowledge of what
their peers are doing and what consumer benchmarks
are relevant to them. “They learn what is happening in
the market, today, and how they’re going to cope with
their current challenges,” she adds. “And also, we are
always providing what’s coming. We give them trend
outlooks, how fast the trend is catching on, what types
of retailers are adopting it, so that they always know if
something is right for their business.”
