Electronic Article Surveillance has been successfully protecting the retail environment from shoplifting since the late 1960s. But along the way, it has also developed some additional skills beyond just guarding the entrance to a store. Now EAS is more discreet, more versatile and packed with additional tools to help retailers better manage their operations. So,…
Remember the days when the retail sales associate was front and centre of the customer experience? Well, those days are fast returning as the omnichannel landscape sees bricks and mortar retailers seek to play to its in-person strength. Now the sales associate is the face of the retail brand, espousing a retailer’s commitment to stellar…
Ask Australian shoppers what their biggest bugbear is with bricks and mortar retail and chances are time spent in the queue will be among their top answers. Whether it’s waiting to pay, waiting to pick up a click and collect order, or waiting to ask a question of a sales associate, time spent waiting currently…
As Australian retailers look to embrace a positive Christmas spending season ahead, technology is being implemented at speed in a bid to combat the threat of COVID-19. From heat mapping to digital queues and click and collect, retailers are finding innovative ways to reopen safely, while still catering to the customer experience. Here’s a quick…
With the annual company reporting season well and truly under way all eyes are currently on retailer’s bottom lines. And this year there’s a lot to take into account considering the tough conditions Covid-19 has delivered and the ongoing shift in retail technology and consumer expectation. It’s making for some major headlines in terms of…
With online ordering now an essential ingredient of real-world retail, accurate inventory management is becoming increasingly critical. Quite simply, accurate, up to the minute inventory management allows retailers to understand exactly what is in stock so they can fulfil online ordering, manage click and collect, and also oversee stock on the floor, or on order.…
At a time in retail when the bottom-line matters more than ever, loss prevention has taken on an all-new importance. The reality is, preventing shrink in retail has always involved a multipronged approach that extends from protecting individual products all the way through to detailed insight into exactly what’s occurring in-store. In other words, it’s…
As retail rebounds in the wake of Covid-19, it’s imperative retailers do not let their loss prevention fall by the wayside. Although the focus might be on social distancing in-store along with contactless service and a greater online/in-person crossover, the reality is shoplifting remains a major contributor to retail loss, and could potentially increase due…
As the page turned on the new year of 2020, few retailers could have predicted the challenges that lay ahead. Yes, the retail landscape was in the grips of revolution, with customer service, convenience and social conscience all front of mind. But fast forward a few months and the retail sector was battling a crisis…
With lockdowns progressively lifting across Australia, bricks and mortar retail is very much back on the consumer agenda. But that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s back to business as usual. Shopper behaviour in-store shows signs of changing as customers respond to the new normal where hygiene is front of mind, and the household budget is tight.…
A retail outlook for 2020 shows that Australian retailers have labelled consumer confidence, rental overheads, and discounting as their top three challenges for the year ahead as the industry grapples with what could prove a “tempestuous” start to the new decade. According to Inside Retail’s Australian Retail Outlook 2020, the sector has entered a new…
The retail sector has been one of the key industries disrupted by both technology and changing consumer expectations in recent years. A few months into 2020, that shows no signs of abating. So, let’s look at how retail is changing and the impact that’s having on areas of your store… It’s all about the customer…