Over the past three years, we have seen over a decade’s worth of technological, social and cultural change in the world of retail and commercial retail maintenance and whilst people are returning to retail stores, shopping behaviours have fundamentally changed in a way that is unlikely to reverse.

According to a survey by Retail Dive, 85 per cent of consumers have stated that they intend to continue to approach retail in the same way they have since March 2020, including taking an omnichannel approach, using click-and-collect and opting for same-day delivery.

Within this new retail landscape, here are some of the best ways to get a headstart.

Push To The Edges Of Experience And Convenience

Retail stores and shopping channels can be easily imagined as a continuum between prioritising customer experience and a convenient, streamlined and easy to manage shopping experience.

A lot of the best examples of the latter are businesses such as Woolworths, Toys R Us and Argos, two of which have gone out of business and the third has prioritised their online retail network.

On the other hand, customers still want in-store experiences, leading to a difficult balancing act where stores need to provide a huge selection of products whilst also providing enhanced, personalised and memorable in-store experiences.

Click and collect, same-day delivery and personalised store navigation tools can be an effective way to square this circle.

Focus On Brand Loyalty

Ultimately, whilst conversions and sales of any type are positive, the best drivers of business profitability are those that encourage brand loyalty, from personalised deals, to push notifications and perks that come from being a loyal customer.

Target understood the importance of brand loyalty both for physical and digital retail so perfectly that the company surpassed the $106bn growth mark through effective use of personalised omnichannel retail strategies.