LOSING THE CORE

March 23, 2017

For countless years, retailers have claimed that the three most important elements of business success were location, location and location. So it might shock many that the importance of location is fading fast.

Emerging technologies offer consumers more choices than ever, from home delivery or in-store collection of online orders to models such as Blue Apron that deliver ready-to-cook gourmet meal kits. And there’s no reason to believe that innovation will stop anytime soon.

What’s more, food retailers continue to face an ever-increasing number of traditional threats from different formats, ranging from large mass merchants to small convenience stores and increasing numbers of deep discount operators. Some of these competitors seek to service the consumers’ entire shopping list, while others merely focus on specific areas.

Taken together, these competitors are altering the customer experience and their perception of convenience and continue to erode any sense of exclusivity that food retailers once had. Even one-stop-shopping is losing appeal as consumers put heavier emphasis on price and quality.

Understanding and acting on these powerful changes to stay relevant for the changing shopper are the essential reasons behind Surviving the Brave New World of Food Retailing: A Roadmap to Relevance, the new report from the Coca‑Cola Retailing Research Council North America. The report offers important insights on a range of industry challenges along with suggestions on how each company can prepare for a very demanding future.

The new report can be downloaded here.