Faster delivery; ESG: Survey Lists 10 Trends for Retail in 2022

The year 2022 should still be a year of restructuring for the sector retail, according to the KPMG consultancy. Very affected by the pandemic, companies needed to change their strategies and adapt more to the digital, and now they will need to work on new plans with the trend of economic reopening.

For Fernando Gambôa, leading consumer and retail partner at KPMG, “the new reality requires consumer and retail companies to implement business strategies to achieve success in the next year. These transformations will be necessary and will act as a booster for the sector’s demand to remain heated”.

The company listed ten elements that should be trends for retail in 2022, linked both to the relationship with consumers and to the forms of investment and planning by retailers.

Expansion of e-commerce

The first is the continuation of a change in consumption habits seen in the pandemic, with an expansion of the e-commerce and so-called marketplaces. The main challenge will be to maintain quality, manage risks, prevent fraud and increase cyber security in internet consumption.

cyber security

According to KPMG, the increase in e-commerce was accompanied by a growing number of complaints, which affects the image and revenue of companies. With that, it will be important to invest more in cyber security, mainly avoiding fraud and reducing vulnerabilities and risks of shopping sites.

Customer not center

There is also an expectation that the sector will increase its focus on a type of strategy that places the customer at the center of the processes. It involves increasing the use of tools and processes that improve consumers’ journeys, from searching for a product to purchasing and receiving it.

Integration between physical points of sale

The company’s analysis is that retail is still undergoing a digital transformation process, which should lead to more investments in the area. At the same time, with the reopening, there is an expectation of integration between the physical points of sale, which should not cease to exist, and the digital ones.

Continuation of the digital transformation

The digital transformation process must involve not only greater integration with physical retailing, but also an investment in innovation to improve what already exists in e-commerce. The company hopes that concepts such as marketplaces – sites that bring together products from various companies – gain even more space, while traditional issues in the sector, such as customer base and credit offer, need to be rethought with the digital in mind.

Shorter delivery time

Another challenge will be to improve delivery logistics for online purchases. For KPMG, delivery time and the process worsen as urban centers move further away, something that still needs to be improved. Along with this, retailers are even more pressured to offer increasingly shorter delivery times.

More competition

The sector will also have to face the emergence of a new competition from the direct sales modality from the manufacturer to the final consumer, which gained strength during the pandemic.

New forms of investment

From the point of view of investments, the consultancy expects the sector to continue working on new ways to attract and generate capital, including acquisitions of complementary businesses and new investors.

ESG

The issue of adopting environmental, social and governance practices (ESG) should also become a bigger concern in retail, encompassing suppliers, partners and even end customers. With this, the tendency is to seek to intensify ESG practices throughout the value chain of the products sold.

Efficiency

KPMG also expects the industry to invest more in technology adoption to address regulatory and tax issues. For her, the process, essential to gain efficiency, has not taken place as quickly as necessary.