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Footfall rises in June as shops reopen


By Peter Walker

UK footfall decreased by 62.6 per cent year-on-year in June, as lockdown restrictions continued to ease, with a 19 percentage point improvement from May. The latest British Retail Consortium (BRC) and ShopperTrak figures showed that in the first two weeks the footfall decline averaged 77.1 per cent, improving to 53.3 per cent in the remaining three weeks, once all stores were allowed to open in England and Northern Ireland.


Amazon ploughs ahead with US store openings

Amazon will open four new stores across the US, despite decreased footfall due to the Coronavirus. Two new Amazon Go stores will be situated in Washington, while two grocery stores with conventional payment systems will open in California and Illinois.

Shoppers expect boom in AI tech post COVID-19

More than half (65 per cent) of consumers expect to see a rise in touchless interactions, voice assistants and facial recognition after the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new study of the growth of AI in retail. The survey of 950 organisations by Capgemini found that a majority (53 per cent) of retail organisations have continued to progress their artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives, despite the disruption brought by the Coronavirus pandemic.

Boots and John Lewis shed thousands of jobs

Boots and John Lewis have announced downsizing plans which will cut thousands of retail jobs. The pharmacy chain will shed more than 4,000 jobs - around seven per cent of its total UK workforce - as part of action to mitigate the “significant impact” of COVID-19.

Online sales continue to boom despite return to stores

Even as high streets came out of hibernation last month, June’s online retail sales spiked to a new 12 year high of 33.9 per cent year-on-year. The latest IMRG Capgemini Online Retail Index, which tracks the online sales performance of over 200 retailers, showed that this acceleration in online sales was underpinned by the continued success of almost every category.
Retailers risk losing $20bn annually until online payments hole is plugged

The economic recovery could be delayed unless businesses plug an annual $20 billion hole in online transactions, according to a new study by Checkout.com. Loss of sales caused by false declines, where legitimate transactions are flagged as fraudulent, cost online retailers at least that amount in 2019 in the world’s biggest e-commerce markets.

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Summer Statement a ‘missed opportunity’ for retail

The UK’s ailing retail sector has bemoaned the “missed opportunity” in the chancellor’s Summer Statement to offer further support for the High Street. While British Retail Consortium (BRC) chief executive Helen Dickinson welcomed the new Job Retention Bonus in helping bring back hundreds of thousands of staff who have been on furlough in recent months, she noted that retailers lost out to the hospitality and tourism industry in this latest announcement.

BROTHER

Bazaarvoice acquires Curalate to accelerate social content across its network

Bazaarvoice, a provider of product reviews and user-generated content solutions, has acquired Curalate, which provides shoppable social marketing solutions to retailers. A statement explained that the deal will capitalise on the growing visual commerce trend, where consumers increasingly buy based on user-generated visual content.

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Should ailing retailers dump stores post-COVID?

With High Street clothing and footwear retailers among the hardest hit by the Coronavirus lockdown, some are suggesting that those going under would be better to re-emerge as online-only brands.

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Coronavirus-hit grocers struggle with supply chain modelling

The Coronavirus crisis has hit many industries hard, but those grocers expected to keep the nation fed and watered have been criticised in recent weeks for not being able to handle the surge in demand. The self-isolation advice and eventual lockdown across the UK has led people to stockpile certain key items, putting a serious strain on ‘just in time’ replenishment models not prepared for such spikes in sales – especially while dealing with staff shortages that cut available manpower by as much as a quarter.

5G could drive retail tech revolution

The advent of 5G phone networks - promised to be rolled out across the UK from next year - could bring the mobile internet speed and stability required for retailers to really commit to innovative technology projects. The government is supporting 5G by incorporating it into its Industrial Strategy, having pledged £1 billion towards digital infrastructure, while the bidding process for 5G licences opened to the telecoms industry last year, with testing underway in certain parts of the country.

Delivery sector reacts to lockdown demand

One fairly predictable consequence of the Coronavirus lockdown has been a marked increase in the amount of online shopping – but how is the delivery and logistics sector dealing with the spike in demand this has caused?

RetailEXPO 2019 Roundup

The future of the High Street, cutting edge in-store technology, new payment methods and trying to keep up with e-commerce giants were among the topics covered at this year’s RetailEXPO. The two-day conference formerly known as RBTE took place this week, with sessions dominated by tech-niques designed to help retailers - both physical and online - innovate themselves back into firmer financial footing.

E-commerce industry granted SCA stay of execution

It was announced this week that with only a month to go until the deadline for implementation of the Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) rules, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has agreed an 18-month extension. While this new plan will be welcomed by card issuers, payments firm and online retailers, there is clearly still a lot of work to do in terms of preparing the security technology, checkout experience and consumer expectations in time for March 2021.

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Find out how HULFT can help you manage data, integration, supply chain automation and digital transformation across your retail enterprise.

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Talking shop: retail technology solutions from Brother
Retail Systems editor Peter Walker sits down with Brother’s senior commercial client manager Jessica Stansfield to talk through the company’s solutions for retailers and hospitality businesses, what’s new in labelling technology, and the benefits of outsourcing printing.

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