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Articles by Guy Elliott
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ChatGPT: could emerging AI tools transform the fashion industry?
Guy Elliott, senior vice president of retail at technology consultancy firm Publicis Sapient, explains how fashion retailers can harness the power of AI tools such as ChatGPT to improve customer service, personalised marketing and returns. Earlier this month (13 February), etailer Very, operated by The Very Group, announced it would transform its product discovery experience with artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning.
Boots trials fast delivery as online orders grow fast
Shoppers can now order goods from nappies to medicines for fast delivery from Boots. Image courtesy of Deliveroo Boots is trialling deliveries in as little as 20 minutes via Deliveroo as its online orders grow quickly. Shoppers can order from a range of 400 products on demand from Boots for delivery in a trial initially based in 14 pilot stores, including in Leeds, Liverpool, London, Edinburgh and Nottingham.
Poundland doubles size of online trial to reach one in nine UK residents
Poundland's online delivery service is now available to more than 7m UK shoppers. Image: Shutterstock Poundland says that around one in nine UK residents are now able to buy from it online after the discount retailer doubled the size of its pilot online delivery service. The service, which operates from Poundland’s online fulfilment centre in Cannock, Staffordshire, from today extends further across the Midlands and into South Yorkshire.
GUEST COMMENT How to create a customer experience that is true to your brand
Samuel Cane, CXO & MD at Astound Commerce The beautiful brand experiences that companies go to such lengths to create, either through their products, through marketing campaigns or through the in-store universes they create as brand meccas, often fall apart once it goes live online. But why does this happen, asks Samuel Cane, CXO & MD Astound Agency and what can be done to fix it? Everyone has one or two anecdotes about brands delivering an inconsistent experience across a single buying journey.
Ikea brings digital and sustainability together as it trials next generation store format
Shoppers can now use their mobiles more widely in-store in Ikea's next gen store. Image courtesy of Ikea Ikea has unveiled its next generation store format in Shanghai – and says that if the new “interactive and intuitive” retail experience is successful it will roll it out in other markets from 2022.
The price is right - or is it?
This white paper produced in partnership with Avalara considers the challenges around cross-border final landed price and factors in the additional complexities that Brexit has introduced. We also delve into the importance of final landed price from the consumer’s point of view; as well as outlining the best practices for retailers when it comes to boosting the customer experience.
Study finds lack of diversity at board level as BRC launches charter to shake up the industry
More than 50 leading retailers have signed up to a Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) charter led by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and pledged to take decisive action to improve diversity practices across the retail industry as a study shows how lacking in diversity the industry actually is.
EDITORIAL From John Lewis to Boohoo: how retailers are developing their strategies to meet shifting customer demand
John Lewis is using collection to get close to shoppers as it closes stores. Image courtesy of John Lewis John Lewis is continuing its quest to stay relevant at a time when more of its sales take place online. In today’s InternetRetailing newsletter we report on how it is planning to close eight more stores in response to that shift - reversing in part its previous strategy of taking its products as close to its customers as possible through store openings.
Asda mostly female store staff win the latest stage of an equal pay claim - to compare their work to that of mostly male distribution centre workers
In-store Asda staff have won the latest stage of an equal pay claim that rests on the argument that mostly female in-store staff should be paid the same as mostly male distribution centre staff.
GUEST COMMENT Driving customer service excellence in 2021
Jonathan Allan, CMO at Puzzel Technological innovations have had a dramatic impact on business processes since the turn of the century, not least across retail. And they continue to accelerate. Over the past year, however, we have seen huge shifts in customer behaviours in ways we never would have anticipated. Transformations that would have taken years, instead took just days.
EDITORIAL How post-pandemic retail is more online and local - and hopefully more diverse
New beginnings for retail? (Image: Shutterstock) eBay maybe predicting that a massive sales boom is about to commence when restriction begin to lift on Monday 29 March, however that belies how different retail looks today than it did when this all started.
Software Solutions for Retail - Should You Build or Buy Them?
As a CIO in the retail and telecoms industry for the past 10 years, I have always supported the concept of “Buy, don’t build!”. This maxim has served me well for many years. Mainly for 2 reasons, firstly, the time and effort involved in building your own functionality was very high, and secondly, the business user sometimes only had a vague idea of the requirements and therefore could be persuaded to accept the vanilla version of a product off the shelf instead.
GUEST COMMENT Life after lockdown - what’s next for retail
Guy Elliott, senior vice president, retail, Publicis Sapient The last year has seen seismic shifts in terms of consumer behaviours and spending patterns. Online is now a material part of the UK’s shopping psyche and that’s not going to change. The pandemic has caused historical online shoppers to double down on an already important channel but more importantly, it has driven digital holdouts to try it and, in many cases, convert. That said, digital will never replace physical shopping entirely.
Decision on online sales tax delayed to the autumn
A government answer to the thorny question of whether online sales should incur a tax is now not expected to come until the autumn. But there were insights this week into how such a tax might work. This week the government held used its new Tax Day to give the latest on business rates and the related question of the online sales tax.Its interim business rates report weighed up both sides of the argument for an online sales tax.
Missguided launches QR-driven label-free returns with InPost
InPost's QR codes deliver contactless returns for Missguided (image: InPost) Fashion retailer Missguided has become one of the first UK retailers to introduce a QR based returns solution that aims to make returning items quick, easy and label-free.
Online sales grew across all categories in locked-down February to take a record share of retail sales
Ecommerce once again took a record proportion of UK retail sales last month, according to official figures. Sales shifted online at a time when non-essential shops were closed across the UK for Covid-19 lockdowns. But across all channels, overall sales were down on last year, but up on January. More than a third (36.1%) of retail sales took place online in February according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) Retail sales report for February 2021.
Boohoo publishes UK supplier list as it moves towards a transparent supply chain, and launches sustainability plan
Boohoo has published its UK supplier list following eight months in which it has audited most its suppliers at least twice. A global supplier list is to be published by September 25.
What do the latest John Lewis store closures say about the retailer’s multichannel strategy?
John Lewis focused on new ways for customers to use its shops when it opened its Southampton store shortly before Covid-19. Image courtesy of John Lewis The John Lewis Partnership says it’s rebalancing its store estate to reflect the way that customers now want to shop as it announces that eight more stores will not reopen from lockdown. We take a look at the development of its multichannel strategy so far – and where it goes from here.
Company Spotlight: Findologic
Simon Reichel, COO at Findologic Simon Reichel, COO at Findologic "We are quite literally in the midst of an ecommerce revolution - become a digital frontrunner by inspiring, guiding and personalising every element of your on-site offering." Founder: Matthias Heimbeck Founding Date: 2008 HQ Location: Salzburg, Austria No. of Employees: 55 Customers: 1,000+, Website: www.findologic.com/en/ What does your company do?
Strong online growth and renewed customer demand helps to put pandemic sales and profit decline into reverse at Inditex
Zara, Madrid. Image courtesy of Zara/Inditex Zara to Massimo Dutti parent company Inditex today posted improving sales in the third quarter of its financial year, as its integrated online and store strategy continued to show strong results. Online sales alone were 76% up in the third quarter of the year, compared to the same time last year, as more shoppers bought from home during the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdowns.
PEAK 2020 How couriers and retailers are responding to the ‘exceptionally high’ number of parcels to be delivered this year
This year’s Black Friday, when sales took place predominantly online, has been inevitably followed by a rise in deliveries that is now proving testing for couriers and postal services. Online peak trading expanded to fill November, according to etail trade association the IMRG, which says Black Friday shopping was 38% up on the same time last year. Retail has moved further online during the year, with the Covid-19 pandemic accelerating a trend that was already ongoing.
Next-gen shopping app introduces aisle sat-nav, facial age-verification, checkout-less grocery to the high street
Co-op is among a raft of retailers that could be going state-of-the-art with their shopping apps While M&S is rolling out mobile pay and go technology at 40 more stores, it has a long way to go to keep up with some of the other players in the market – with the likes of Co-op, SPAR, Londis, and Warner’s Budgens all partnering with the UK’s most sophisticated retail innovation to overhaul shopping experience for customers.
Made.com sees customers shift online faster during Covid-19 pandemic
Philippe Chainieux, chief executive of Made.com Image courtesy of Made.com Made says the Covid-19 pandemic has changed the way that its customers buy, with business shifting online as quickly this year as might have been expected over the next four or five years. The furniture retailer saw shoppers start to buy online quickly over the last year, searching for equipment to furnish home offices.
Value, trust and choice paramount for buyers, but different shopper tribes require a nuanced approach
Online shoppers now have a range of tribal habits Good value for money is a top priority for shoppers this year, with two thirds (67%) suggesting it has become more important since the start of the pandemic. So warns research by Klarna, which surveyed more than 4,000 consumers across Europe, the UK, the USA and Australia to understand how shopping behaviour has changed over the past 12 months.
Mcommerce payments to rise 70% between now and 2025 as mobiles become key to omni-channel commerce
Mobile payments are key to safe, contactless omni-channel retail (image: Fotolia) Mcommerce is set to grow by 70% across the next five years as smartphones – and their wallet capabilities – become a key part in an increasingly omni-channel post-pandemic retail landscape.
Desigual implements blockchain to drive better supply chain and delivery management
Desigual: celebrating blockchain (Image: Desigual) International fashion brand Desigual has become one of a growing number of retailers to turn to blockchain to manage its logistics, using the new distributed leger technology to keep a close eye on its complex supply chain and distribution network.
How the retail and logistics industries are responding to high online demand and no deal Brexit fears
As the UK teeters on the edge of a no deal Brexit, we report as retailers stockpile ahead of the change in relationship with the European Union on January 1. Deal or no deal, the way we trade with the EU will alter for good in just three weeks time. The shift to online shopping during the Covid-19 pandemic is, inevitably putting a strain on delivery services.
Retailers stockpile for Brexit, three weeks out from the end of the transition period
This December many retailers are not just stocking up for Christmas, but for Brexit. Supermarkets are stockpiling longer life foods as they prepare for shortages of imported foods, while ferry companies and ports both report carrying high volumes of freight as part of a wider effort by retailers and others to have stock available for customers to buy in January and beyond.
GUEST COMMENT The resuscitation of the Great British High Street
Guy Elliott, SVP, Retail, Publicis Sapient 2020 has been a year of records for all the wrong reasons, not least on the high street. The recent collapse of the Arcadia group topped off a year where we have said goodbye to some high street staples including TM Lewin, Peacocks, Jaeger, Laura Ashley, Bon Marche.
GUEST COMMENT How cross-border can help UK retailers beat the lockdown
Neil Kuschel, CEO Europe at Global-e The recent lockdown restrictions brought on by COVID-19 have been a challenge for non-essential retailers, who continue to face uncertainty following the closures of physical stores. As a result, this has led many to quickly pivot back to operating fully online. Recent data from Global-e reveals that ecommerce was a ’lifeline’ for 69% of non-essential UK retailers, with half (51%) experiencing growth in their domestic sales since the outbreak of the pandemic.
French Connection says online business has stayed positive despite decision to discount less
Image: Screenshot of frenchconnection.com French Connection today said its online business has stayed in positive territory through the autumn even though it decided to discount less this year than in previous ones.Its store business, however, has been hit first by social distancing measures and then by lockdown closures. But the fashion retailer, ranked Top350 in RXUK Top500 research, says that trade has been “encouraging” since stores in England and Wales reopened this month.
How Hugo Boss is using social media to boost its online sales during Covid-19 uncertainty
Image courtesy of Hugo Boss Hugo Boss today reported a 66% rise in its online sales in the latest quarter of the financial year – although that could not compensate for store closures and group sales fell by 24%. The brand is now using social media to raise awareness of its brand in new ways.
AliExpress taps into cross-border livestreaming with world’s first live translation feature
AliExpress: set to drive up live ecommerce With the rising trend for livestreaming in ecommerce and with more shoppers becoming cross-border, AliExpress – the global marketplace arm of Alibaba – has unvieled the world’s first real-time livestreaming translation feature for an ecommerce platform. This technology breakthrough launches just in time to empower participating merchants and live streamers to achieve international success in the 2020 11.11 Global Shopping Festival.
Denmark and the Nordics Ecommerce Update - Webinar
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Under Armour sells more online and direct to customers as wholesale revenues fall
Image courtesy of Under Armour Under Armour today reported a 17% lift in direct-to-consumer sales in its third quarter as shoppers bought direct from the sportswear brand. As a result, its direct sales reached $540m (£411m) but revenues in its larger wholesale business fell by 7% to $830m (£631.6m). Overall, Under Armour’s revenues across all channels for the three months to September 30 stayed flat at $1.4bn (£1.1bn) compared to the same time last year.
EDITORIAL How Quiz, Ikea, M&S, New Balance, Cath Kidston and The Hut Group are responding as shoppers shift online
Retailers in different categories have been affected very differently as shoppers have moved to do more of their shopping during the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdown. Some have benefited because their sector has been well-favoured by the shift to home working, but others have been hit hard. But most see the need to change their business models as they plan for the longer-term.
Puma's direct-to-consumer ecommerce grows more by than 60% to help deliver third-quarter sales rebound
Puma's headquarters in Herzogenaurach, Germany. Image courtesy of Puma Ecommerce drove a recovery in sales and profitability at Puma in the third quarter of its financial year, as its stores reopened from lockdown, sports events resumed and consumer confidence improved. Online sales grew by 60.9% during the quarter, contributing to growth of 66.5% in the first nine months of the year. However, the sportswear retail brand remains cautious as Covid-19 lockdowns continue around the world.
Apple and Google report strong sales as they help customers connect during pandemic
Image: ymgerman/Shutterstock The US tech companies that have led the way in enabling mobile commerce both issued their latest figures overnight. Both Apple – developer of the iOS system – and Google – developer of Android – reported strong sales figures reflecting the way both helped their customers to connect during the Covid-19 pandemic.
GUEST COMMENT From Amazon to vouchercodes.co.uk on why online is set to be bigger than ever this Christmas
In today’s InternetRetailing newsletter we’re reporting on predictions – from Amazon’s Jeff Bezos and from research from vouchercodes.co.uk – that this Christmas will be stronger than ever online. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, has already seen more people shopping early for presents – including, no doubt, on Amazon Prime Day in October – and is now expecting an “unprecedented holiday season”, following on from a third quarter in which net sales grew by 37% and net profits by 200%.
GUEST COMMENT How can retailers not just survive, but thrive in the Golden Quarter?
Christmas is coming and now is the time to act Suzin Wold, SVP Marketing, Bazaarvoice Though physical retail stores re-opened in July, the impact of lockdown has undoubtedly accelerated the shift towards digital in retail. In fact, online sales boosted total retail sales by 3.9% in August. As we edge towards the Golden Quarter, there is huge opportunity for retail brands to take advantage of this peak period and expected sales surge, but they must consider the impact of new shopping behaviours.
eDelivery Top500 - Webinar
We discuss our new report which considers the role of e-logistics within multichannel retail. Drawing on research across Europe we focus on the key learnings from the report and how companies have used delivery as a competitive advantage.
A third of Christmas shopping expected to take place online in 2020: study
A third of all Christmas spending is forecast to take place online this year, as shoppers spend 25% – or £5.6bn – more on ecommerce than they did last year, new research suggests. But offline – store – spending is expected to fall by 7% at the same time. Shoppers are forecast to spend 1.6% – or £1.3bn – more across all channels, than they did last year, according to the VoucherCodes.co.uk Shopping for Christmas 2020 report, carried out by the Centre for Retail Research (CRR).
Christmas Critical: How retailers can use digital to navigate a second wave in peak season
Guy Elliott is senior industry lead of retail at digital consultancy Publicis Sapient As we hurtle towards Christmas, we’re seeing further regional restrictions as Coronavirus not only lingers but increases in certain areas, including the major cities of London, Manchester and Liverpool. In turn, consumer urgency and angst are likely to rise, putting pressure on retailers to perform in order to capture, and retain their business.
Next sees online up 23% but worries about non-essential store closures
Next: fears a non-essential store closure programme looms Next has driven up online sales by 23% in last quarter, against its store sales dropping a further 18%. The retailer also admits that its biggest worry is whether non-essential shops will be forced to close again due to coronavirus. Full year profit before tax, based on Next’s new central sales scenario, is now forecast at £365m, £65m higher than the central scenario given in September.
EDITORIAL Video commerce: ushering a new era for ecommerce?
Video saves there retail star? (Image: Shutterstock) In the age of social distancing, video is increasingly becoming a must have for online retailers looking to both stand out from the crowd and to offer better customer experience and customer service.
Navigating the New Normal of Digital Commerce - Webinar
The health and economic crisis have completely transformed the e-commerce and retail landscape. Today’s digital economy is a visual one where brands must create deeper customer connections — where beautiful, visual-centric experiences engage and convert. A failure to deliver the visual cues and connections that today’s consumers want and have come to expect results in disappointment at best, and abandoned carts and lost loyalty at worst.
Amazon predicts ‘unprecedented’ peak trading performance following fast third-quarter growth
Amazon chief executive Jeff Bezos has predicted an “unprecedented holiday season” as the retail-to-technology giant reported third-quarter sales up by more than a third and profits up threefold. The retailer, ranked Elite in RXUK Top500 research, overnight reported record net sales of $96.1bn (£72.95bn) in the third quarter, up by 37% on the same time last year. Net income of $6.3bn (£4.8bn) was three times – or 200% – the $2.1bn (£1.6bn) reported at the same time last year.
Covid is paving the way for the store of the future
It’s a sad reality that a record number of stores are closing, with more inevitably to come. Even as stores started to re-open post lockdown 1.0, the devastation of the retail industry is still evident (grocery and a few niche categories excluded), and that has led to a significant impact on the business of retailers. However, it is important to put this in context of what was already happening in the industry and to separate out the impact of Covid-19 in both the shorter and longer term.
Will Covid steal Christmas?
Holiday season is fast creeping up on us and retailers are already in the midst of planning for their busiest shopping period whilst still grappling with the business consequences of a global pandemic. With the threat of a second wave and subsequent lockdown that could catastrophically collide with peak shopping season, Covid-19 could present an even bigger challenge for retailers the second time around if they are not prepared.
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