with peak demand looming, the pressure is on. Adrian Smith shares 6 considerations to help retailers sleep a little easier.

With almost a third of employees planning to quit the sector, are retailers underestimating the importance of employee experience?

War, extreme weather, power cuts, looting, connectivity issues… anyone would think South African retailers had a lot to contend with. And they’d be right.

The last couple of years has seen the supply chain hit hard, with challenges piling up. 

Although I’m sure all of us would love to look inside a crystal ball to see what the year ahead has in store for us, retailers should look to use 2022 to prepare themselves for the fact that change is just as inevitable as it is unpredictable.

When Ebenezer Scrooge was stuck in his ways, he had the benefit of timely visits from the ghosts of the past, present and future to teach him how to change his ways. As we move into 2022, we come bearing a candid look at the past, present, and future for retailers too. Sitting comfortably?

Making retail easier. Quite a neat new strapline if you ask us. But leaving marketing speak behind, what does that really mean? In this blog, Retail Directions’ MD, Andrew Gorecki, discusses the thinking behind our new strapline, considering why retail has become so complicated and how retailers can overcome complexity to make their lives easier.

This Black Friday event will be the second since the pandemic, and quite what it will bring – online and instore - is unknown. One thing is certain though – retailers really do need to be ready for anything.

Many retailers have experienced online sales booms during the pandemic as customers flocked online, denied the ability to shop in stores during lockdowns.

Many retailers have been impacted by the coronavirus, some quite severely. We have learned a few interesting lessons working in partnership with our clients through this difficult period – definitely worth sharing with the retail industry at large.

The economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is severe. Specialty retailers have been particularly affected, with many forced to close their stores. Apart from online business, their income has dried out.