Customer First Cashierless Shopping and Self-Checkout Theft
The announcement of Amazon Go in December 2016 sparked the Western imagination on the potential of frictionless cashierless shopping. Roughly 18 months later, we are still on the road to the fully autonomous retail store.
This post summarizes the opportunities and challenges of this global innovation journey. Primary focus is on the state of self-checkout, mobile scan-and-go adoption, and an update on global autonomous store deployments.
Coming soon, the new Sensormatic Global Shrink Index. The most comprehensive shrink survey to date from countries representing 73% of global GDP and 80% of global retail sales.
First is the sample infographic shared last week focusing on Europe. Second, for the global audience, below is an additional peek at the data. More in April.
Mercedes-Benz Smart Car Concept - Would Gottlieb Daimler Share this Vision?
The spark for the growth of the modern gasoline powered automobile was an innovation race. In the early 1890s,"Le Petit Journal, a French newspaper with a knack for publicity stunts, decided to hold a contest to discover the best method of propulsion: steam, electricity or petrol engine. It invited entrants to drive from Paris to Rouen, a distance of 79 miles. Their vehicles would be judged not by their speed but whether they were safe, easy to use and economical to run."
"The clear winner was not a direct participant but an inventor: Gottlieb Daimler, whose internal-combustion engine had powered nine of the vehicles, including the four that shared first prize. He had, the judges proclaimed, “turned petroleum or gasoline fuel into a practical solution” for self-propelled vehicles, which were starting to be referred to in French as “automobiles”. Daimler’s victory helped establish the supremacy of petrol-powered cars in the 20th century, and the term automobile soon spread into English and other languages."
Not too long ago, many including myself were forecasting major consumer changes for the year 2020. That magical year is just around the corner and it is now time to simplify the digital future of retail.
Big Data is Bot Food for AI
Information or more specifically data has been the power engine evolving the retail industry. For much of its history, the store, the forefront of the consumer moment of truth, was under-sensored.
With the connected consumer able to instantly choose alternative products or brands, retailers need to integrate a greater number of data sets inside their stores. Welcome to the Internet-of-Things for Retail (IoT):
Every National Retail Federation (NRF) Big Show, Deloitte publishes updated research on the top 250 global retailers. This favorite annual retail report summarizes industry / economic global trends and dissects the shifting sands of the world's largest retailers. This post summarizes my favorite insights from the 2018 edition.
Transformative Change, Reinvigorated Commerce
The rules of retailing "are being rewritten in this time of transformative change. Innovation, collaboration, consolidation, integration, and automation will be required to reinvigorate commerce, profoundly impacting the way retailers do business now, and in the future."
The 2018 retail industry trends identified by Deloitte include:
This week finds me in Asia with stops in Shanghai, Bangkok, Hong Kong, and Tokyo. On many levels, Asia is the "below the surface" retail innovation laboratory.
In the "Retailing 2020" post I proposed that you "Look to China where 500 million people are already shopping on mobile phones to understand the future of retail. Digitally driven ultra-convenience, spontaneity, and social shopping trends are transforming all Chinese retail sectors including grocery." During this trip I had the opportunity to visit the Alibaba digital / physical hybrid Hema Supermarket in Shanghai.
Building on the "NRF 2018: The Ten Quick Transformational Retail Trends", as promised here are my three below the surface trends of the New York Big Show that define the future of retail.
More than 37,000 retailers and industry partners from 90+ countries descended on New York for the NRF 2018 trade event the week of January 14, 2018. Because this was one of my favorite NRF's to date, a series of posts will follow.
An annual tradition is to walk the floor observing the technology themes, speaking to lots of retailers and industry friends, and creating my own personal list of the foundational ideas that are evolving the retail industry.
From an initial list of 20+ observations, following are my top 10 quick takeaway trends of NRF 2018.
At its roots, retail has always been a human covenant between a shopkeeper and a consumer. For much of the industry's history, the transactional interactions were highly personal. The shopkeeper welcomed the customer by their name and adapted the goods sold based on their preferences.
Present-day mobile devices connected to the Internet-of-Things (IoT) are appreciably digitally disrupting consumer commerce. By 2020, retail shopping, no longer a chore, will blur into your everyday life.
A key highlight of 2017 was a retail customer panel that I had the pleasure of moderating. Four executives (two recently retired and two still active) representing over $70 billion in revenue shared their insights on industry megatrends, driving disruptive change, choosing a technology partner, and the future of retail.
"Step with care and great tact, and remember that Shopping's a Great Balancing Act." (1)
As we enter the busiest shopping season of 2017, I started reflecting on the differentiation strategies for a successful transition to the digital future of retail. What are the definitive formulas for retail success in 2018 and beyond?
The McKinsey Formula for Retail Success
McKinsey in October 2017, published a great article on shopping and personalized marketing. "Targeted communications that are relevant and useful can create lasting customer loyalty and drive revenue growth of 10 to 30 percent."
As part of their marketing personalization analysis, McKinsey pointed to this simple formula:
On the journey to learn something new, we travel to Montreux Switzerland. After the creation of a Jazz Festival by Claude Nobs in 1967, the founding of the world-class Mountain Studios inside the local casino in 1975, and favorable tax benefits, this quiet Swiss Lake Geneva (or Lac Léman) town became a destination to create music by legends such as Queen.
The earliest settlement in Montreux dates back to the late Bronze Age. The name Montreux comes from the Latin word monasteriolum, meaning "small monastery". Over hundreds of years, the local language changed this Latin word into Mustruel by 1215, and later into the modern name Montreux.
Deep Purple got the inspiration to the song “Smoke on the water” here. The rock group Queen with lead singer Freddy Mercury recorded 6 albums here. The studio was inside the casino that burned down in 1971 that inspired the Deep Purple memorable song.
For Freddy Mercury, Montreux became his second home; a place where he could escape the spotlight and focus on what he loved most: making music. Today, his legacy lives on through the iconic Freddie Mercury statue overlooking Lake Geneva in this picture.
Being a fan of classic rock, I truly enjoyed my visit to Montreux and blasted “Smoke on the Water” in my ear pods on arrival. This particular pose with Freddy was a personal reminder that life is short and never forget to let your guard down and have fun.
Psychologist Mike Rucker once wrote that "Happiness is a state of mind, but fun is something you can do. It doesn't require education, money or power. All it requires is intentionality. If happiness is a mirage, fun is your backyard oasis."
My oasis is celebrating life, always having a positive attitude, listen to all types of motivating music, and living each single moment as it was my last. At the top of my voice, I will continue to scream that we are all champions of possibilities that must keep on fighting towards our destined end. Rock on my friends.
Confidence in physical retail remains solid this year. More than 55% of survey respondents said they feel confident or very confident about brick-and-mortar performance in 2026, while only around 20% expressed concern. - From Place AI Read more
The Number 1 country continued lead reinforces a broader trend: countries with strong institutions, high trust, and robust social safety nets consistently rank highest in life satisfaction. - From Visual Capitalist
This week finds me in Asia with stops in Shanghai, Bangkok, Hong Kong, and Tokyo. On many levels, Asia is the "below the surface" retail innovation laboratory. 
