Remember stopping at the grocery store on the way home from work to pick up some ingredients for dinner? Or meeting friends for a day of shopping? Or visiting your favorite retail hotspot to check out the season’s latest trends?
Those simple activities have grounded to a halt as many retail stores have closed and approximately 25% of the world is under some form of lockdown.1
Like all industries, retail has been severely affected by COVID-19. According to the U.S. Commerce Department, retail sales dropped 0.5% in February 2020. For reference, retail sales increased by 4.3% in February 2019.2
In March 2020, U.S. retail sales slumped 8.7%, its worst monthly decline on record in the data available from the Census Bureau, which dates back to 1992.
The retail news isn’t much better in other parts of the world:
National attitudes support these figures. In Canada, for example, 96% of consumers believe the economy will be negatively impacted by COVID-19 and 78% of respondents expect it to be really bad. 7
Savvy retailers have been quick to adapt to this disruption and remain open with the help of mobile technology.
For retail stores that are still open, like supermarkets and pharmacies, mobile technology allows customers and store staff to safely shop and work.
Once a customer enters a store, and activates the store app, beacon technology tracks them as they make their way from aisle to aisle. When they arrive at a certain location, beacon technology serves up product-related alerts and promotional discounts.
Using scan-as-you-go technology, shoppers can simply scan the items they are planning to purchase. When they are ready to checkout, they simply pay for the order and walk out of the store.
When a customer opts into using this technology, facial recognition software identifies their face when they walk into the store. Upon recognition, the customer can receive custom text messages, offers and discounts from the retailer.
Nobody truly knows when the coronavirus pandemic will subside. As one prominent physician said: “You don’t make the timeline. The virus makes the timeline.”8
Yet, it’s possible to predict what new trends will become permanent based on how mobility and IoT are transforming retail. Shopping convenience and store cleanliness will continue to be top-of-mind among consumers. Retailers must find a way to fuse those elements with current expectations of a more personalized shopping experience.
It’s not inconceivable, for example, for stores to employ handheld devices to scan shopping carts for the presence of harmful viruses or bacteria. Any cart that’s deemed a health risk is taken out of circulation for a thorough cleaning. Some stores in Germany are even using 3D printers to print “hands-free” cart handles to allow for a safer, cleaner shopping experience.9
In addition to the mobile technology mentioned earlier, retailers are looking to add things like voice activated satellite navigation to their shopping apps. Customers say which item they want, and the app guides them to its location. This gets people in and out of the store quicker and minimizes contact with other shoppers and store employees.
Mobile technology can also be used to limit the amount of people inside a brick and mortar store. For example, retailers can contact customers as they’re about to enter alerting them that the store is at maximum capacity. Alternatively, customers can use apps to make appointments when they want to visit based on personal schedules or anticipated store traffic.
With many retail locations closed and people staying home, online shopping has picked up steam. Since mid-March, 42% more of consumers are shopping online and are spending 30% more than they usually do for online purchases.10
The items people are stocking up on at grocery stores are experiencing the same demand surges as online retailers11:
In China, housebound consumers are using online shopping to purchase fresh produce. During the Chinese New Year, vegetable deliveries increased 600% year-over-year. While over a 10-day period between late January and early February, 15,000 tons of groceries were purchased online.12
People are also heading online to buy things to keep them entertained while at home. For example, e-commerce sites in the UK have seen a spike in hobby items such as: puzzles, crafts, sewing kits, gardening items and coloring books.13
Follow these tips to keep you and your purchases safe:
To learn more about Mobile Technologies, get answers to your questions, and find out if this solution is the right fit for your business, contact an AbeTech Solution Expert today!