Along with the evident decline in sales across North American retailers is the big question of just “How come?” As a frequent consumer and current employee working in retail, I wanted to further investigate the issue and draw upon possible conclusions after reading Michelle You’s blog entry. She mentioned that the diminishing trend amongst retailers may be due to the fact of “weak business plans” and “rise[s] in competition.” Although these factors have an overall negative effect on traditional retail, I believe there are other significant reasons that must be considered in order to resolve these conflicts.
Image: American Eagle Outfitters
According to Forbe’s analysis of American Eagle Outfitters clothing company, there has been a noticeable shift in the decline of in-store traffic and conversion rates of 5% to an overall rapid increase of e-commerce sales of 15%. With the continuous implementation of innovative technology on smartphones, more and more consumers are choosing to purchase online rather than shopping at physical store locations. In order for North American retailers to succeed in this day and age, they must not only meet inquiries but focus on exceeding the growing demands of consumers. There is no way to compete with the advances of technology and instead, companies must look to progress alongside these online operating channels. Although I enjoy the exclusive online offers that stores like American Eagle provides to their loyal subscribers, I still prefer the overall experience of purchasing in-store. These incentives to customers through omni-channel concepts are promising as they will “garner significant customer attention” while “divert[ing] web traffic towards its stores.” With new strategies and tactics, retail companies have the ability to claim more control over their market share and possibly gain more customers in the face of technology.
