With the remarkable rise of online shopping over the last 20 years 75% of British shoppers now buy online. At one time it was thought this growing on-line phenomena was killing the high street, but high street retailers are fighting back as they reinvent the role of the bricks and mortar store. This is good news for the shopfittings industry!
Recent growth in non-food high street sales has been mainly thanks to new click and collect facilities, with many retailers adapting their stores to act as collection points for on-line purchases and thereby benefiting from casual or ‘on-the-go’ purchases made whilst customers are in the store.
In this respect retailers such as John Lewis who have invested in ‘m-retail’ (multi-channels) are faring much better than pure e-tailers for two reasons – firstly they have more sales channels, and secondly they drive more sales in-store. Indirectly other stores are also benefiting from shoppers being back on the high street.
With 90% of 16 to 24 year olds buying online the continued growth of internet shopping is undoubted, so it is vital for the shopfitting industry that retailers find useful ways of reinventing the role of their physical stores in this way.
Although store numbers are predicted to continue to decline, the importance of bricks and mortar shops will continue to endure as shops evolve to cater for customers changing demands and needs. Those of us who continue to serve shop fitters, designers and retailers with shopfittings and display equipment can take comfort from this evolution as long as we are flexible and responsive enough to meet their changing needs.