Brick-and-mortar customers are becoming more demanding and want more online services. However, there's still little movement in one key retail segment.
The digital association Bitkom has customers askedwhich services they would like to have while shopping. Topping their wish list, at 46 percent, is home delivery of goods purchased in-store. Wi-Fi in stores is important to 43 percent. Just over one in three wants to use their smartphone to see which products are currently available in the store. 18 percent would like to use tablet PCs in fitting rooms when shopping in-store, which they can use, for example, to request clothing from the sales floor. 17 percent like to receive personalized special offers via SMS or WhatsApp as soon as they are near the store. Only one in six does not want digital technologies in stores. Bitkom retail expert Julia Miosga says:
"Customers consistently enjoy visiting certain stores because, in addition to receiving personal advice, they can also experience and test suitable products haptically in a pleasant atmosphere. Because customers want the best of both worlds, they also demand digital services in-store."
To attract new customers and retain existing ones, retailers should serve multiple channels: brick-and-mortar stores, digital services and online shops, says Miosga.
The survey reveals a clear generational divide: Only 16 percent of all participants would like to automatically pay by credit card when leaving a store, compared to 24 percent of 14- to 29-year-olds. Only 14 percent express interest in viewing products at home using AR or VR headsets, compared to one in four of the younger generation. More than half of 14- to 29-year-olds (54 percent) get purchase suggestions from influencers, compared to 39 percent of all respondents.
Online food sales are stalling
When most people think of e-commerce, they still think of non-perishable products. Online grocery sales are still struggling to gain traction—as the latest figures from Bavaria show. Although sales of food sold online grew by 21 percent in the Free State, the market share is still only 1.2 percent. Matthias Zwingel, Vice President of the Bavarian Trade Association, says:
“That’s very little, and many companies are becoming somewhat disillusioned.”
He sees the reasons for consumer reluctance in the good availability of food in brick-and-mortar stores, additional shipping costs, and the frugality of Germans when it comes to everyday shopping. However, Bitkom figures suggest that future customers will be more open-minded.
