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THE WEEK IN RETAIL ISSUE 43
EDITOR’S COMMENT
DARE WE DREAM ABOUT A LASTING COVID LEGACY?
2020 will go down in history as a bit of a weird year. It was horrendous in almost every respect but one: most of the local retailing sector had the best year they’ve ever had. So we found ourselves mired in a dark and mysterious netherworld where we were having the commercial time of our lives, but we wouldn’t dare shout about it for all sorts of obvious and valid reasons.
Early in the first lockdown however, it became clear that many astute retailers were already viewing the pandemic as more than just the chance for a relatively short-term opportunity to replenish the coffers and pay down the debt. No, they were viewing it as an opportunity to leverage their new found positions of power within communities across the UK to build something more lasting. A legacy, if you will.
Most retailers I have spoken to over the last year have been of roughly the same opinion: lots of new shoppers have discovered convenience for the first time and lots of existing shoppers are using convenience more often, but they’ll probably drift back to the supermarkets and their old ways when Covid recedes.
Six months ago, that was probably a fairly sensible appraisal. But the longer this pandemic lasts and the more familiar shoppers get with how good their local store is and how proactive it has been in supporting their community, the deeper and deeper the relationships grow. Stronger bonds take a lot more breaking, as we all know.
There are countless reasons why shoppers want to use their local store and those all have to be put on one side of the scale. On the other side, we have to put the reasons why shoppers would drift back to supermarkets and discounters – pricing being the main one. The big puzzler is, what does that scale now look like? Which way is it tipping?
If Lumina Intelligence’s new report is accurate, that scale is getting closer and closer to being perfectly balanced – and the momentum is surely with the local retailing sector. Approaching half of all consumers now say they plan to shop locally more often, even after Covid is gone. That is an astonishing figure and demonstrates that the sector has done a sensational job of building a lasting legacy.
OK, it won’t be that simple in reality, but it clearly shows that shoppers have changed how they view the world, what they value, who they want to ‘support’ and why it might not all come down to price in the ‘new normal’. Dare we dream?
